FCC chairman Ajit Pai drops truth bomb on Jimmy Kimmel after 'hysteria' over net neutrality repeal

When the Federal Communications Commission voted on Thursday to repeal Obama-era internet regulations known as "net neutrality," the left lost its mind. CNN claimed it was the end of the internet, while late-night comedians like Jimmy Kimmel bashed FCC chairman Ajit Pai.

Pai responded to the criticism Friday on Fox News.

What did he say?

Responding directly to Kimmel, who called Pai a "jackhole," Pai said objectors to the repeal of net neutrality have everything wrong.

"Those who've said the internet as we know it is about to end have been proven wrong starting this morning," Pai said. "We have a free internet going forward."

Pai added that Kimmel's "name-calling hysteria is disappointing, but it's not surprising."

"Those on the other side have literally nothing other to peddle than hysteria and misinformation and fear about the light-touch approach that we've had for most of the internet's existence," he explained.

What else did he say?

The FCC chief went on to explain what exactly his agency did on Thursday. Prior to 2015, the U.S. government chose to let the internet operate free of government regulation and left the ebbs and flows to the free market. That changed in 2015 when the Obama administration passed net neutrality. Repealing the Obama-era law simply frees the internet from government regulation, which is typically not helpful for consumers or a free market.

Pai noted that most of his critics argue that his agency's actions have allowed major corporations to squash their competition. However, Pai explained the best way to organically allow a market to grow is by providing an environment where there is less government regulation, meaning more new competitors can enter the market.

As far as internet speed, Pai said speeds won't be affected and will continue to get faster and faster, which has been the industry norm for decades.

Why did net neutrality need to be repealed?

Pai said there is "no question" government regulators would have enacted even more regulations in the future and further stifled internet markets had net neutrality remained in place.

"There's no telling how far they would have gone. They would have been limited only by their own imagination," Pai explained.