🔗 Share this article

Late-night television hosts recently directed their focus on former President Donald Trump, lambasting his use of an ableist slur and what they described as feeble efforts to address growing questions about his mental fitness.

Jon Stewart's Scathing Critique

Beginning his monologue, Jon Stewart took aim at a inflammatory Truth Social message in which Trump described Minnesota Governor Tim Walz with a widely condemned slur. "On Thanksgiving?!" Stewart exclaimed. "Did you mix it up with your own personal grievance airing day?"

When questioned by reporters if he regretted the remark, Trump is said to have intensified his attack, insisting there was "something seriously wrong" with the Democratic governor.

"The issue is with him? With him?" Stewart responded. "You were sitting with your family at Thanksgiving, stomach full of turkey and pie, surrounded by the love of your extended crime family, but your first thought was to Truth a slur at Tim Walz? And there’s something wrong with him?"

The host then turned to Trump's bizarre explanation of a recently revealed MRI. In an attempt to dismiss concerns, Trump stated he had "zero knowledge" what part of his body was even scanned, remarking it "couldn't have been his brain" because he "aced a cognitive test."

"That’s not physically possible," Stewart shot back. "To have no idea, it’s not possible. What could you possibly say to the doctor? ‘Wait, stop, don’t tell me. I want to find out at my MRI reveal party.’"

He continued, "For God’s sakes, man, were you not curious at all? When they laid you down in a tube for 30 to 45 minutes, you didn’t want to know what they might be doing? Or did you just think to yourself, ‘What a loud tanning bed’?"

Stewart further ridiculed Trump's boast of a "flawless result" on the scan. "That’s how they score the MRIs," he joked. "It's either a big stamp, ‘Perfect,’ or you get in red ink, ‘We need to talk.’"

The Late Show's Satirical Take

On his own program, Stephen Colbert pointed out increasing frustration among some one-time allies. "Maga folks are starting to notice that Trump views them like livestock," he remarked, referencing anger about funding a luxury ballroom over addressing economic issues.

"In other news, Trump celebrated Thanksgiving in his customary fashion – with racism," Colbert quipped, referring to an inflammatory post from the weekend. "Amidst all of that nonsense," he summarized, the president also used the offensive term against Governor Walz.

After Walz challenged him to "Make the scan public," Trump said he would do so, despite his claimed ignorance of what was scanned.

"Uh, here’s a theory: maybe the part that’s broken is the part that’s supposed to know," Colbert noted.

He then poked fun at the subsequent official explanation—a doctor's letter stating the MRI was for preventative screening. "Alright, that's reasonable," Colbert said. "People his age also benefit from retiring, so … can we get that ordered next?"

Kimmel's Direct Criticism

Jimmy Kimmel also condemned Trump's use of the slur. "Look, he is capable of being presidential when he wants to be!" he remarked sarcastically. "It's puzzling why he didn’t get that Nobel peace prize. It defies all logic."

Regarding Trump's subsequent statement that he thinks "there’s something wrong" with Walz, Kimmel was direct: "yet another profound insight from the president of the middle school."

Kimmel also addressed Trump's claims of record-high approval ratings. "Which means it’s not just books he can’t read," Kimmel said, noting polling showing significant disapproval. "You can find gas station bathrooms on Yelp with better reviews than Donald Trump right now."

The host finished by highlighting Trump's promise to grant clemency to a imprisoned international drug trafficker. "Now some have pointed out the unbelievable hypocrisy of Trump taking a hard line elsewhere, while at the same time freeing a man who sent a million pounds of cocaine to this country," said Kimmel. "Such individuals are just haters and losers, you know? Relax!"

"During his campaign, Trump made it very clear: his key goals were a) pardoning drug kingpins and b) building a place to host formal dances," he summarized. "Commitments stated, pledges fulfilled."