IV 
119TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. RES. 748 
Condemning attempts to use Federal regulatory power or litigation to sup-
press lawful speech, particularly speech critical of a political party or 
the President of the United States, and warning against the rise of 
authoritarianism. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
SEPTEMBER 19, 2025 
Ms. ANSARI (for herself, Ms. ADAMS, Mr. AMO, Ms. BALINT, Ms. BARRAGA´N, 
Mr. BELL, Mr. BEYER, Mr. BISHOP, Ms. BONAMICI, Mr. BOYLE of Penn-
sylvania, Ms. BROWN, Ms. BROWNLEY, Mr. CARSON, Mr. CASAR, Mr. 
CISNEROS, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Mr. CLEAVER, Mr. COHEN, Mr. 
COURTNEY, Ms. CRAIG, Mr. CROW, Ms. DEGETTE, Ms. DELAURO, Mr. 
DESAULNIER, Ms. DEXTER, Mr. DOGGETT, Ms. ELFRETH, Ms. 
ESCOBAR, Mr. EVANS of Pennsylvania, Mr. FIGURES, Mrs. FLETCHER, 
Mrs. FOUSHEE, Ms. FRIEDMAN, Mr. FROST, Mr. GARAMENDI, Mr. GAR-
CIA of California, Mr. GOLDMAN of New York, Mr. GREEN of Texas, Mrs. 
HAYES, Mr. HERNA´NDEZ, Mr. HIMES, Ms. HOYLE of Oregon, Mr. 
HUFFMAN, Mr. IVEY, Mr. JACKSON of Illinois, Ms. JACOBS, Ms. 
JAYAPAL, Ms. JOHNSON of Texas, Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia, Ms. 
KAMLAGER-DOVE, 
Ms. 
KELLY
of 
Illinois, 
Mr. 
KHANNA, 
Mr. 
KRISHNAMOORTHI, Mr. LANDSMAN, Mr. LARSON of Connecticut, Mr. 
LATIMER, Ms. LEE of Pennsylvania, Ms. LEGER FERNANDEZ, Mr. 
LICCARDO, Mr. LYNCH, Mr. MAGAZINER, Mrs. MCBATH, Ms. MCBRIDE, 
Mrs. MCCLAIN DELANEY, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mrs. MCIVER, Mr. MENEN-
DEZ, Ms. MENG, Mr. MFUME, Mr. MIN, Mr. MORELLE, Ms. MORRISON, 
Mr. MOULTON, Ms. NORTON, Ms. OCASIO-CORTEZ, Mr. OLSZEWSKI, Mr. 
PANETTA, Ms. PETTERSEN, Ms. PINGREE, Mr. POCAN, Ms. RANDALL, 
Ms. RIVAS, Ms. ROSS, Mr. RUIZ, Mr. RYAN, Ms. SCANLON, Ms. SCHA-
KOWSKY, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, Ms. SIMON, Mr. SOTO, Ms. STANSBURY, 
Mr. STANTON, Mr. SWALWELL, Mr. TAKANO, Mr. THOMPSON of Cali-
fornia, Ms. TITUS, Ms. TLAIB, Ms. TOKUDA, Mr. TONKO, Mrs. TORRES 
of California, Mrs. TRAHAN, Mr. TRAN, Mr. VARGAS, Ms. VELA´ZQUEZ, 
Ms. WATERS, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, Mr. WHITESIDES, Ms. WILLIAMS 
of Georgia, Ms. CROCKETT, Mr. GOMEZ, Ms. LOFGREN, Mr. MULLIN, 
Ms. OMAR, Mrs. SYKES, and Mr. MCGARVEY) submitted the following 
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and 
in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to 
be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consider-
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•HRES 748 IH 
ation of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
concerned 
RESOLUTION 
Condemning attempts to use Federal regulatory power or 
litigation to suppress lawful speech, particularly speech 
critical of a political party or the President of the United 
States, and warning against the rise of authoritarianism. 
Whereas freedom of speech and freedom of the press are 
foundational principles of the United States, enshrined in 
the First Amendment to the Constitution and by the 
Founders of this country; 
Whereas independent journalists, commentators, comedians, 
and media outlets have historically played a vital role in 
holding those in power accountable, regardless of political 
party; 
Whereas the use of indirect or direct government power to si-
lence criticism of a political party or the President of the 
United States undermines democratic norms and chills 
public discourse; 
Whereas authoritarians and authoritarian regimes throughout 
history have sought to control or co-opt media, silence 
dissent, and weaponize regulatory agencies to punish crit-
ics, eroding civil liberties and undermining democracy 
from within; 
Whereas efforts to pressure the Federal Communications 
Commission (FCC), or to bring politically motivated law-
suits, as tools to threaten or punish media figures for 
their criticism of elected officials or satire mirror tactics 
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•HRES 748 IH 
used by authoritarian governments to intimidate and si-
lence critics; 
Whereas the Trump Administration and President Donald 
John Trump have issued public calls to use the awesome 
power of the Federal Government to investigate, fine, or 
otherwise penalize media figures and networks critical of 
the President, silencing free speech and echoing authori-
tarian tactics; 
Whereas late-night television host Jimmy Kimmel, who has 
been an outspoken critic of the Trump Administration, 
was taken off the air indefinitely following FCC Chair 
Brendan Carr threatening coercive government action 
against the Walt Disney Company and American Broad-
casting Companies, Inc. (ABC) for Kimmel’s remarks; 
Whereas major law firms have reportedly been enlisted to file 
or threaten lawsuits against networks or personalities 
whose programming is critical of former President 
Trump, further chilling free expression; 
Whereas the firing or forced removal of media personalities 
under political pressure can have a chilling effect on dis-
sent and signal a dangerous slide toward authoritarian 
practices rather than democratic accountability; and 
Whereas maintaining a free and open press is essential to a 
healthy democracy and to public accountability, and the 
erosion of this freedom has historically been a precursor 
to the rise of authoritarianism and the decline of demo-
cratic institutions: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) condemns the use of regulatory agencies, in-
cluding the Federal Communications Commission, 
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and the threat or filing of lawsuits as tools to sup-
press, intimidate, or punish lawful speech critical of 
any political party or the President of the United 
States; 
(2) warns that such practices echo the tactics 
of authoritarian regimes and pose a serious threat to 
the democratic traditions and constitutional free-
doms of the United States; 
(3) reaffirms its commitment to upholding the 
First Amendment and protecting the freedom of the 
press and freedom of expression for all individuals, 
regardless of political viewpoint; 
(4) calls upon all public officials, regardless of 
party affiliation, to refrain from using their positions 
of power to pressure media organizations or individ-
uals into censoring or silencing speech protected by 
the Constitution; 
(5) urges the Department of Justice, the Fed-
eral Communications Commission, and other rel-
evant agencies to ensure that their policies and prac-
tices safeguard free expression and do not become 
tools of political retribution; and 
(6) affirms that a vibrant, independent media 
and the ability of Americans to criticize their gov-
ernment are indispensable to the preservation of 
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democratic governance and to preventing the rise of 
authoritarianism. 
Æ 
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