Comedy show hosts recently trained their comedic fire on former President Donald Trump, lambasting his use of an derogatory term and portrayed as feeble efforts to alleviate growing questions about his mental fitness.
The Daily Show's Scathing Critique
Beginning his monologue, Jon Stewart focused on a inflammatory Truth Social message in which Trump described Minnesota Governor Tim Walz with a widely condemned slur. "On the holiday?!" Stewart remarked. "Are you confusing that with your own personal grievance airing day?"
When questioned by reporters if he regretted the remark, Trump is said to have intensified his attack, stating there was "a genuine problem" 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 initial instinct was to Truth a slur at Tim Walz? And there’s something wrong with him?"
The comedian then addressed Trump's bizarre explanation of a recently revealed medical scan. 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 "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? ‘No no no, don’t tell me. I want to find out at my MRI reveal party.’"
He added, "Good grief, man, were you not the least bit interested? When they laid you down in a tube for a half an hour, you didn’t want to know what they might be doing? Or did you just think to yourself, ‘What a loud tanning bed’?"
Stewart also mocked Trump's assertion of a "perfect score" on the scan. "That’s how they score the MRIs," he quipped. "It's either a big stamp, ‘Perfect,’ or you get in red ink, ‘We need to talk.’"
Stephen Colbert's Witty Observations
On his own program, Stephen Colbert highlighted increasing frustration among some one-time allies. "Maga folks are starting to notice that Trump views them like meat animals," he remarked, citing anger about funding a luxury ballroom over tackling economic issues.
"In other news, Trump celebrated Thanksgiving in his traditional way – with racism," Colbert quipped, alluding to an anti-immigrant rant from the weekend. "Amidst all of that nonsense," he recapped, the president also used the ableist slur against Governor Walz.
After Walz responded to "Make the scan public," Trump said he would do so, despite his stated unawareness of what was scanned.
"Well, here's an idea: maybe the part that’s malfunctioning is the part that’s supposed to know," Colbert noted.
He then poked fun at the subsequent White House justification—a medical note stating the MRI was for preventative screening. "OK, fair enough," Colbert conceded. "People his age also benefit from retiring, so … can we get that ordered next?"
Jimmy Kimmel's Blunt Assessment
Jimmy Kimmel likewise condemned Trump's use of the slur. "See, he can be presidential when he wants to be!" he remarked sarcastically. "I wonder why he didn’t get that Nobel peace prize. It makes no sense."
Regarding Trump's follow-up comment that he thinks "there is a problem" with Walz, Kimmel was blunt: "another bold statement from the president of the middle school."
Kimmel also addressed Trump's claims of unprecedented approval ratings. "Which means it’s not just books he can’t read," Kimmel said, noting survey data showing high negative ratings. "There are 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 convicted former Honduran president. "Now some have pointed out the unbelievable hypocrisy of Trump taking a hard line in one instance, while simultaneously pardoning a man who sent a million pounds of cocaine to this country," said Kimmel. "Such individuals are just haters and losers, you know? Lighten up!"
"During his campaign, Trump made it very clear: his top priorities were a) pardoning drug kingpins and b) building a place to host formal dances," he summarized. "Commitments stated, pledges fulfilled."
