Ted Cruz pushes to keep AM radios in cars, saying automakers want to kill off right-wing talk shows

U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, is backing a federal bill that would require automakers to offer free AM radio access in new cars. Further, he argues that his proposal would stop big businesses from conspiring to silence conservative talk show hosts.

No stranger to ginning up outlandish conspiracy theories, Cruz made the claim during a recent episode of his podcast The Verdict with Ted Cruz.

"I think there's a reason big car companies were open to taking down AM radio, which is AM radio is where a lot of talk radio is found, and talk radio is overwhelmingly conservative," Cruz said. "And let's be clear: big business doesn't like things that are overwhelmingly conservative."

So many pinkos in the boardrooms, eh, Ted?

While it's true that automakers including Mazda, Tesla, BMW and Volkswagen have begun removing analog AM radio from their vehicles, their justification sounds a little more mundane. The car companies argue that AM radio receivers can interfere with a vehicle's batteries, according to Reuters.

Just the same, Texas' junior senator went on to compare automakers' war on AM radio to DirecTV's January decision to no longer distribute far-right cable news channel Newsmax.

Never mind that DirecTV said that the decision was over financial disagreements. Or that the dispute was resolved in March, allowing Newsmax to reach DirecTV subscribers again, according to CNBC.

During his podcast, Cruz also argued that AM radio is essential to the emergency broadcast system and that without it, millions of Americans would not receive crucial information regarding natural disasters and weather alerts.

At this point, it's probably worth pointing out that emergency alerts also go out via smartphones, which are carried by 85% of all U.S. residents.

Despite concerns from car manufacturers, Cruz's AM for Every Vehicle Act has garnered some degree of bipartisan support. The proposal would require companies to offer free access to AM radio in their vehicles and disclose to customers if vehicles don't have it.

So far, the bill has secured support from 12 senators, including Cruz, and 49 House members, according to Spectrum News.

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