🔗 Share this article

Late-night television hosts this week directed their focus on ex-President Donald Trump, criticizing his use of an derogatory term and what they described as feeble efforts to address public concerns about his mental fitness.

Jon Stewart's Pointed Commentary

Kicking off the week, Jon Stewart focused on a inflammatory Truth Social message in which Trump referred to Minnesota Governor Tim Walz with a widely condemned 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, insisting 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, 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 comedian then addressed Trump's peculiar account of a recently revealed MRI. In an attempt to downplay worries, Trump claimed he had "no idea" what part of his body was examined, suggesting it "couldn't have been his brain" because he "aced a cognitive test."

"That is an impossibility," 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 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 also mocked Trump's boast of a "perfect score" 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 highlighted increasing frustration among some former supporters. "Certain supporters are starting to notice that Trump views them like livestock," he said, citing anger about funding a gilded event space over tackling affordability concerns.

"In other news, Trump celebrated Thanksgiving in his customary fashion – with racism," Colbert noted, alluding to an anti-immigrant rant from the weekend. "Somewhere in all of that nonsense," he summarized, the president employed the offensive term 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.

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

He then poked fun at the follow-up official explanation—a doctor's letter stating the MRI was for preventative screening. "Alright, that's reasonable," Colbert said. "Men in his age group also benefit from retiring, so … can we get that ordered 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 is a problem" with Walz, Kimmel was blunt: "another bold statement from the president of the middle school."

Kimmel also touched on Trump's insistence of unprecedented approval ratings. "Which means it’s not just books he can’t read," Kimmel said, noting survey data showing significant disapproval. "There are gas station bathrooms on Yelp with higher approval ratings than Donald Trump right now."

The host concluded by highlighting Trump's pledge to pardon a imprisoned international drug trafficker. "Critics have noted the staggering contradiction of Trump taking a hard line elsewhere, while simultaneously pardoning a man who shipped 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 top priorities were a) granting clemency to cartel leaders and b) constructing a venue to host formal dances," he summarized. "Commitments stated, pledges fulfilled."