Pennsylvania Radio Host Quits After He's Ordered To Not Criticize Donald Trump

"The fact that my bosses would censor me ... is ridiculous," says Bruce Bond.
Bruce Bond says listeners "can't handle someone as liberal & brutally honest as I can be."
Bruce Bond says listeners "can't handle someone as liberal & brutally honest as I can be."
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Bruce Bond, host of a talk radio show broadcast Saturdays in central Pennsylvania, has resigned instead of heeding management’s order to stop criticizing President Donald Trump, media outlets reported.

Bond said he felt he had no choice after receiving the directive from one of his bosses at WTPA-FM, which has a listening area that includes the state capital of Harrisburg.

“It wasn’t my agenda to talk politics, but it’s impossible to avoid the topic of Trump doing a 3-hour talk show,” Bond told Philly.com on Tuesday. “The fact that my bosses would censor me and not allow me to talk about this stuff is ridiculous.”

Bond had earlier posted a letter to him from the station’s general manager, Tim Michaels, “serving notice” that it was against policy to “speak disrespectfully” about the president. Michaels wrote Bond’s actions had resulted in angry audience mail and threatened boycotts.

The letter ordered a cessation of any political discussion or the show would be scrapped. In the post, Bond lamented that his listeners “can’t handle someone as liberal & brutally honest as I can be.”

Michaels told PennLive: “I’ll make this clear and concise: Bruce resigned, we have accepted his resignation, and we wish him well. That’s basically my comment on Bruce.”

Philly.com reported that WTPA owner Pat Garrett is an “unabashed” Trump loyalist who even wrote a song backing the Republican during last year’s campaign.

Bond, who has generated much controversy over the decades in radio and served prison time for a check-forging scheme, said he was warned months earlier to stop talking about Trump ... or else.

I certainly didn’t want to leave,” Bond said to PennLive. “Being in that studio, it was perfect. And I’m very sad that that couldn’t continue.”

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