🔗 Share this article

Late-night television hosts this week trained their comedic fire on ex-President Donald Trump, lambasting his employment of a derogatory term and portrayed as feeble efforts to alleviate public concerns about his mental fitness.

Jon Stewart's Pointed Commentary

Beginning his monologue, Jon Stewart focused on a inflammatory Truth Social message in which Trump referred to Minnesota Governor Tim Walz using a highly offensive slur. "On the holiday?!" Stewart remarked. "Are you confusing that with Festivus?"

When questioned by reporters if he felt any remorse, Trump is said to have doubled down, stating there was "something seriously wrong" with the governor.

"The issue is with him? With him?" Stewart responded. "You were sitting with your family at Thanksgiving, belly full of turkey and pie, enveloped in the love of your notorious associates, but your initial instinct was to post an insult at Tim Walz? And there’s something wrong with him?"

The host then addressed Trump's peculiar account of a recently revealed medical scan. In an attempt to dismiss concerns, Trump stated he had "no idea" what part of his body was examined, suggesting it "couldn't have been his brain" because he "took 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 placed you 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, ‘This is a noisy 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, ‘See me.’"

The Late Show's Witty Observations

On his own program, Stephen Colbert pointed out increasing frustration among some one-time allies. "Maga folks are starting to notice that Trump treats them like livestock," he said, citing anger about building a gilded event space over tackling affordability concerns.

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

After Walz challenged him to "Release the MRI results," Trump promised do so, despite his claimed ignorance of what was scanned.

"Well, here's an idea: maybe the part that’s broken is the part that’s supposed to know," Colbert suggested.

He then mocked the follow-up White House justification—a medical note stating the MRI was for routine evaluation. "OK, fair enough," Colbert said. "Men in his age group also benefit from retiring, so … can we write that prescription next?"

Jimmy Kimmel's Blunt Assessment

Jimmy Kimmel likewise blasted Trump's use of the slur. "Look, he is capable of being presidential when he wants to be!" he joked. "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 blunt: "another bold statement from the president of the eighth grade."

Kimmel also addressed Trump's claims of record-high approval ratings. "This indicates it’s not just books he can’t read," Kimmel said, noting polling showing high negative ratings. "There are gas station bathrooms on Yelp with better reviews than Donald Trump right now."

The host concluded by criticizing Trump's promise to grant clemency to a imprisoned international drug trafficker. "Critics have noted the unbelievable hypocrisy of Trump taking a hard line in one instance, while simultaneously pardoning a man who shipped a massive quantity of cocaine to this country," said Kimmel. "But those people are just detractors, you know? Relax!"

"When he was running, Trump made it very clear: his top priorities were a) pardoning drug kingpins and b) building a place to ballroom dance," he summarized. "Promises made, promises kept."