Stand up for freedom of the press and our democracy,” Sanders wrote in a letter sent Tuesday. “Do not capitulate to this dangerous move to authoritarianism.”

Opposition to CBS News parent Paramount potentially opting to settle a $20 billion lawsuit from President Donald Trump is growing, with Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) warning the network that doing so will embolden the government to continue targeting the press.

Nine Democratic senators sent an open letter to Paramount Global’s controlling shareholder, Shari Redstone, urging her company to not settle a lawsuit filed by President Trump — which seeks $20 billion in damages — over what he claims was a deceptively edited interview aired by CBS’s “60 Minutes.