🔗 Share this article

Late-night television hosts this week trained their comedic fire on former President Donald Trump, criticizing his use of an ableist slur and what they described as feeble efforts to address public concerns about his cognitive health.

The Daily Show's Scathing Critique

Beginning his monologue, Jon Stewart took aim at a controversial post in which Trump referred to Minnesota Governor Tim Walz with a highly offensive slur. "On the holiday?!" Stewart remarked. "Are you confusing that with Festivus?"

When questioned by reporters if he regretted the remark, Trump reportedly intensified his attack, insisting there was "a genuine problem" with the governor.

"Something wrong 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 post an insult at Tim Walz? And there’s something wrong with him?"

The host then addressed Trump's bizarre explanation of a recently revealed MRI. In an effort to dismiss concerns, Trump stated he had "zero knowledge" what part of his body was examined, remarking it "wasn’t the brain" because he "aced a cognitive test."

"That is an impossibility," Stewart countered. "Being completely unaware, it’s not possible. What would you say to the doctor? ‘No no no, don’t tell me. I want to find out at my scan unveiling celebration.’"

He continued, "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 further ridiculed Trump's assertion of a "flawless result" on the scan. "Apparently, that's the way 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 pointed out increasing frustration among some one-time allies. "Maga folks are starting to notice that Trump views them like livestock," he remarked, citing criticism over building a luxury ballroom over addressing affordability concerns.

"Elsewhere, Trump celebrated Thanksgiving in his traditional way – with racism," Colbert quipped, alluding to an inflammatory post from the weekend. "Amidst all of that nonsense," he recapped, the president also used the offensive term against Governor Walz.

After Walz challenged him to "Make the scan public," Trump said he would release them, despite his stated unawareness of what was scanned.

"Uh, here’s a theory: maybe the part that’s broken is the part that’s meant to retain that information," Colbert noted.

He then mocked the follow-up White House justification—a medical note 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?"

Jimmy Kimmel's Blunt Assessment

Jimmy Kimmel also blasted Trump's choice of words. "See, he can be presidential when he wants to be!" he joked. "I wonder 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: "yet another profound insight from the president of the middle school."

Kimmel also addressed Trump's insistence of unprecedented approval ratings. "This indicates it’s not just books he can’t read," Kimmel remarked, pointing to survey data showing significant disapproval. "There are gas station bathrooms on Yelp with better reviews than Donald Trump right now."

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

"During his campaign, Trump made it very clear: his key goals were a) pardoning drug kingpins and b) constructing a venue to host formal dances," he summarized. "Commitments stated, promises kept."