Kat Timpf has pushed back after Jimmy Kimmel ‘s show was dramatically pulled, declaring that no one should want the government to ‘have this kind of power over speech.’ The Fox News contributor appeared on Gutfield! on Thursday where she discussed the talk show host’s suspension, following comments he made about conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s death. Timpf, 36, blasted the FCC for their involvement in Jimmy Kimmel Live! being taken off air indefinitely by the ABC network.

‘The FCC are actually not supposed to be engaging in the nuances of content moderation. Its scope is supposed to be very narrow,’ she said on the panel show. The TV host explained although she is ‘certainly no fan of Kimmel,’ that doesn’t mean she agrees with his show being taken off the air. ‘I hated his comments,’ she said bluntly. ‘I thought that they represented a stunning lack of touch with reality. I do have a lot of personal reasons why maybe you think I’d be cheering this but I’m not.’

Although the reaction to Kimmel’s monologue ‘bothers her,’ Timpf insisted she has ‘long said’ the independent government agency has an ‘undue influence’ on speech in the country. ‘Having the head of the FCC say on a podcast that this should be shut down, that’s an arm of the federal government saying that “we can do this the easy way or the hard way.” [It] bothers me,’ she shared incredulously.

Timpf then took a swing at Democrats, declaring: ‘A lot of people who are saying, “this is free speech how dare you” they had no problem with the Biden administration’s attempts to quell free speech.’ However, the mom-of-one insisted she is a ‘free speech absolutist.’ Timpf then took a jab at Kimmel himself, claiming she is ‘pretty sure’ he would not have the same reaction if she were to be canceled but reiterated her thoughts on the freedom of speech.

‘The bottom line for me is, you just shouldn’t want the government to have this kind of power over speech – even if it’s speech you absolutely hate because it could then use that power against you,’ the columnist concluded. The TV personality shared the clip to Instagram, where she doubled down on her comments, writing: ‘This isn’t about politics or personal feelings, it’s about the FCC engaging in content moderation.’ ‘I’m still the same free speech absolutist as I’ve always been, for all the reasons I’ve spent my career espousing,’ she said.

On Wednesday night, it was announced that the Jimmy Kimmel Live! had been suspended ‘indefinitely’ by the network after his comments about the assassination of Kirk, 31. The Jimmy Kimmel Live! host made controversial statements during Monday’s show about Kirk’s assassination at Utah Valley University last week – and said during his monologue that the ‘MAGA gang’ was trying to gain political points over his murder. Kimmel said the ‘MAGA gang’ was ‘desperately trying to characterize the kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it.’

The talk show host also took a jab at Donald Trump, sarcastically remarking ‘how hard the president is taking this’ before showing a clip of him deflecting and talking about the White House’s ballroom construction when a reporter offered their condolences for the loss of his ‘friend.’ ‘This is not how an adult grieves the murder of someone he calls a friend,’ he said. ‘This is how a four-year-old mourns a goldfish,’ he joked.

Shortly after the ABC announced Kimmel had been suspended, Trump said: ‘The ratings challenged Jimmy Kimmel Show is CANCELLED. ‘Congratulations to ABC for finally having the courage to do what had to be done.’ ABC will not be airing Jimmy Kimmel Live! ‘for the foreseeable future,’ a spokesman announced on Wednesday.

The network’s affiliate group, Nexstar, additionally shared on Wednesday that it ‘strongly objects’ to Kimmel’s comments and ‘will replace the show with other programming in its ABC-affiliated markets.’

The indefinite ban has sparked concerns about the First Amendment, with Hollywood heavyweights weighing on over the matter. Several stars have pushed back against the decision, with Jamie Lee Curtis, Ben Stiller, Henry Winkler and Alison Brie joining the ranks in opposition.