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GOP strategist Matthew Bartlett appeared on MS NOW’s “The Weekend” Saturday, where he argued that Democratic staffers and “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” staff did Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, “dirty” earlier this week after not having her on Colbert’s show.
Crockett’s opponent in Texas’ Democratic Senate primary, state Rep. James Talarico, D-Texas, appeared on “The Late Show” Tuesday, sparking controversy after Colbert accused CBS of blocking the interview amid what he described as the FCC’s crackdown on the longstanding equal candidate time rule.
On Friday, Crockett said that she had still not been invited to appear on Colbert’s show. She previously stated she “received a phone call” on Tuesday, informing her that CBS was told “they could go ahead and move forward with the interview of James Talarico,” as long as it provided her, and the other candidate in the race, Ahmad Hassan, with equal time.
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GOP strategist Matthew Bartlett appears on the set of MS NOW’s “This Weekend” on Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026. (Screenshot/MS NOW)
CBS denied Colbert’s claim that it blocked his interview with Talarico from airing, telling Fox News Digital on Tuesday, “THE LATE SHOW was not prohibited by CBS from broadcasting the interview with Rep. James Talarico.”
MS NOW’s Jonathan Capehart asked Bartlett what he thought of the controversy.
“As a conservative, I think there’s been a lot of political maneuvering that has been quite impressive. This notion [that] Trump [was] going to stop Colbert in order to stop Talarico — people kind of went with this narrative,” he responded. “I’m not sure it’s true. I think, candidly, they’ve actually done Jasmine Crockett dirty.”
Bartlett added that he doesn’t believe the narrative of President Donald Trump suppressing the interview with Talarico “is reality,” and that the state representative “got a nice little bump from this” in terms of fundraising.
Jasmine Crockett speaks onstage during the 2025 ESSENCE Festival of Culture on July 4, 2025, in New Orleans, Louisiana. Stephen Colbert attends the WSJ. Magazine 2025 Innovator Awards at MoMA on Oct. 29, 2025, in New York City. Â James Talarico, a Democrat from Texas and US Senate candidate, during a debate at the 2026 Texas AFL-CIO COPE Convention in Georgetown, Texas, on Jan. 24, 2026. (Erika Goldring/Getty Images for ESSENCE; Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for WSJ. Magazine Innovators Awards; Bob Daemmrich/The Texas Tribune/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Following up on Bartlett’s claim, Capehart asked who the “they” was that he believed had done Crockett “dirty.”
“I would say, some of the Colbert media folks and some of the Democratic, you know, staffers with Talarico here,” he argued. “So I’m not sure. You know, everyone likes to be the victim. I’m not sure Talarico is the victim of Trump’s suppression. I think Jasmine Crockett might be the victim of a false media narrative.”
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Texas State Rep. James Talarico, D-Travis, and Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, shake hands. (Bob Daemmrich/Getty Images)
Similar to Bartlett’s claim that Talarico likely received a “nice little bump” in fundraising, Crockett told MS NOW’s Jen Psaki on Tuesday that the controversy probably gave her opponent “the boost he was looking for.”
Fox News Digital reached out to CBS and Talarico for comment. Talarico’s campaign declined to comment.
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Fox News Digital’s Joseph A. Wulfsohn contributed to this report.
