Why is the Democratic Party so furious about Stephen Colbert’s cancelation? That’s a question I’ve been asking myself all week, ever since we learned that the late-night host is losing his show, after CBS decided that $40 million in losses each year is too high a price to pay. 

This really shouldn’t come as much of a surprise to people: It’s hard out there for large traditional television organizations. They now face all sorts of competition from streaming and social media, from independent people who are, in some cases, a lot funnier than Stephen Colbert and can do what late-night hosts do for a fraction of the cost. I say there’s more fun to be had on YouTube, on TikTok, on Substack, on X and elsewhere. That’s how more and more people are getting their entertainment and their news — and late night is going to have to catch up. It just doesn’t have the same relevancy, or pack the same punch. 

So ultimately, this was quite clearly a business decision. But try telling them that.  

Colbert is certainly acting like this is Donald Trump’s fault — isn’t everything. In fact, he recently swore at Trump on air, and Jon Stewart went further, singing an entire profanity-laden song about how much he hates Trump. I won’t play the clip, because my very patient producers are getting sick of having to bleep every video I’ve requested this week, between this and Hunter Biden.  

Now look — even Keith Olbermann, perhaps the most relentlessly partisan, anti-Trump, anti-Republican mainstream progressive commentator on the planet, thinks this was probably just a business decision.  

He wrote on X: “If they fired him to appease Trump, why are they letting him remain on the air as a lame duck, with nobody to stop him saying whatever he wants, for the next TEN MONTHS? They may have timed it to use it as a sop to Trump but this is like Phil Donahue getting cancelled.” 

Donahue being another former commentator, one I quite liked, who was eventually put out to pasture for business reasons. When Keith Olbermann is providing you a much-needed sanity check, you should be very, very afraid. 

Ultimately, I don’t really blame the other late-night hosts — Stewart, Kimmel, Fallon, etc. — for showing industry solidarity with Colbert. But why are Democratic politicians also so upset about the cancelation? 

And trust me, they are furious. Rep. Ted Lieu is actually circulating a petition telling CBS not to cancel Colbert. Doesn’t he have more important things to do, possibly on behalf of his constituents?  

Sen. Bernie Sanders weighed in as well. Bernie writes on X: “CBS’s billionaire owners pay Trump $16 million to settle a bogus lawsuit while trying to sell the network to Skydance. Stephen Colbert, an extraordinary talent and the most popular late night host, slams the deal. Days later, he’s fired. Do I think this is a coincidence? NO.” 

Again, he has no evidence whatsoever that this was anything other than a business decision. The show was a huge money loser! I know Bernie isn’t a huge fan of capitalism, but generally, when you’re losing tons of money, the business pivots. Perhaps under democratic socialism, we’d have subsidized terrible political comedy? 

And of course Sen. Elizabeth Warren is equally outraged. Seriously, she won’t stop tweeting about this.  

Does anyone think for a minute that various Democratic politicians would be furious if a conservative news channel canceled a conservative show? Or even if a show like the one you’re watching right now, “Rising,” got axed? We speak to perspectives all over the place. I doubt it would matter to most Democratic officials, except maybe to a few friends of the program who’ve enjoyed being interviewed here.  

No, the reason the end of Colbert is so infuriating is because the Democratic Party likes the content: And the content of Colbert was reliably anti-Trump. It just wasn’t very funny. 

Robbie Soave is co-host of The Hill’s commentary show “Rising” and a senior editor for Reason Magazine. This column is an edited transcription of his daily commentary.