In five weeks ‘ day, around 49 % of the state is going to be some mixture of pissed off and/or terrified, which is really no way to run a practical community. In response to one president’s threats to shut down their broadcast networks, anti-dignation is on the rise on the day of what Beltway dorks and TV news chastises never tire of describing as the Most Significant Poll of Our TimeTM. The couple in the hall across from me appeared to be posing for an oil painting titled American Gothic, but the sports-TV executive admitted to being a little nervous about Donald Trump’s subsequent suggestion that ABC be denied its transmit license. The pair were dining in a SoHo eatery frequented by older Manhattanites. The former leader groped about the ABC editors who fact-checked claims he’d made during the broadcast in an appearance on Fox News Channel’s Fox &amp, Friends the day after his conversation with Vice President Kamala Harris. Trump yelled,” They ought to take away their permit for the way they did that,” in much the same way he had expressed his dissatisfaction with NBC, CBS, and the typical defendants on the cable news overcome. While Trump’s commentators ‘ attention is focused on the news units, an attack on one development equipment branch also targets all of the others. Despite the fact that Trump had previously teed off on NBC while residing permanently in the White House, it appeared that the new resumptions of the license-snatching theme had irritated our breakfast companion. The Republican nominee of later has been upping the speech in his “way-or-the-highway” campaign, and while he’s previously shied from indulgent in the most divisive hyperbole, George W. Bush vividly described the efficiency as” some strange s–t” before 45 was sworn in on January 20, 2017; the frequency and vigor with which Trump has gone after the networks is evidently getting under some skins. A few weeks ago, in response to an published 60 Minutes meeting with Harris, Trump would roll into all-caps setting on his Truth Social accounts, writing, “TAKE AWAY THE CBS LICENSE”. A few hours after that opening salvo, Trump more or less disengaged the caps lock key on his phone, writing, “CBS should lose its license, and it should be bid out to the Highest Bidder, as should all other Broadcast Licenses, because they are just as corrupt as CBS —and maybe even WORS E”! The anti-TV missives have yet to join the oft-quoted Hannibal Lecter, despite Trump’s fervent support for playing the hits. More to the point, in the event Trump wins the race, there’s very little possibility that soccer fans will have to scramble to find CBS ‘ first post-Inauguration NFL glass ( the AFC Championship Game, check your local listings ) on One America News Network. For one thing, Grover Cleveland II’s friends in the owners ‘ apartments are likely to blame him for misusing their advertising dollars. Even the most authoritarian chief executive may have a devil of a time attempting to shut down an American TV system, for one. Next to impossible. The FCC calls the shots, and it’s not really its cup of tea when it comes to revoke spread permissions. Ajit Pai, Trump’s own appointed FCC captain, claimed that the fee is generally unwilling to withdraw any spread website’s working papers after Trump tweeted about challenging NBC’s right to work in October 2017. ” I believe in the First Amendment”, Pai said at an event hosted by George Mason University. According to the law, the FCC has the power not to revoke a broadcast station’s license based on a particular newscast’s content. Earlier this month, Pai’s successor, Jessica Rosenworcel, reacted to Trump’s salvo against CBS and 60 Minutes in a similar fashion. ” As I’ve said before, the First Amendment is a cornerstone of our democracy”, the Biden appointee said. Simply because a political candidate disagrees with or dislikes content or coverage, the FCC does not and will not revoke licenses for broadcast stations. Case closed. Or maybe not. As part of the” Agenda47″ platform unveiled a year ago, Trump vowed to “bring the independent regulatory agencies, such as the FCC and the FTC, back under Presidential authority, as the Constitution demands”. The Constitution is completely devoid of all references to TV stations and regulatory bodies ( it was written in 1789, when the closest thing to a broadcast was a guy riding a horse with a bell yelling” Hear Ye, Hear Ye.” ) Naturally, if Trump really wanted to accelerate the demise of broadcast television, it’s not as if he could n’t work his way around the legal niceties. Look alive out there, people: That’s what presidents do. The president is always right, according to former principal deputy assistant attorney general Steven Bradbury, who should serve as a reminder that not a sizable portion of the electorate in the Revolution wished for George Washington to be made a King of America. Washington, to his eternal credit, told his myopic fanboys to go pound sand. Trump probably wo n’t suffer the logistical pains of kneeling his broadcast bête noires, unless there is a surprise invocation of the War Powers Act. ( This does n’t mean there are n’t muscles that can be flexed and levers that can be pulled. ) The Communications Act of 1934 contains 1, 097 words denoting the president’s authority during the war ( 47 U. S. Code 606 ). Among the more collar-grabbing lines is that the President may suspend or change the rules and regulations applicable to any or all stations or devices within the United States ‘ jurisdiction as the Commission may direct. Maybe we should all settle for watching Nantz and Romo do their thing on Newsmax TV without giving it another thought. The coffee klatsch at the Grant Wood diner ended with some flimsy assurances that the anti-TV candidate might not win. And while it’s understandable that some broadcast network employees are concerned about what lies ahead for their industry, I’ve found that the most difficult times call for a reflection on Final Things. Put it this way: I just “celebrated” my Sammy Hagar Birthday. Anyone who may still feel the need to communicate with me in, say, 20 years will need to invest in a Ouija board if the actuarial tables and a lifetime of bad habits are anything to go by. Like everything else that goes on beyond my control, this is shaping up to be more of a You Problem than a Me Problem. I’d be sorry to see sports being shuffled off whatever clutch of bottom-tier TV channels has curried favor with our nation’s top banana. As it may be, I can barely work up any interest here in the Aboveground, so I hereby assert my God-given right to completely not give two figs about anything that might or may not happen after I’ve been worm chow.