Jimmy Kimmel Live returned last night after a week-long suspension, much to the delight of the general public. One person who was not a fan, however, was Donald Trump.
The president responded to Jimmy Kimmel’s comeback with a rant on Truth Social, declaring that he intends to sue the late-night show’s network. “I can’t believe ABC Fake News gave Jimmy Kimmel his job back,” Trump wrote. “The White House was told by ABC that his Show was cancelled! Something happened between then and now because his audience is GONE, and his ‘talent’ was never there.”
He continued, “Why would they want someone back who does so poorly, who’s not funny, and who puts the Network in jeopardy by playing 99% positive Democrat GARBAGE. He is yet another arm of the DNC and, to the best of my knowledge, that would be a major Illegal Campaign Contribution. I think we’re going to test ABC out on this. Let’s see how we do. Last time I went after them, they gave me $16 Million Dollars. This one sounds even more lucrative. A true bunch of losers! Let Jimmy Kimmel rot in his bad Ratings.”
Last week, ABC and Disney abruptly suspended the long-running late-night series, citing an “ill-timed and thus insensitive” monologue in which the comedian criticized right-wingers for trying to “score political points” off the murder of Charlie Kirk. Jimmy Kimmel kept quiet in the days that followed, while Hollywood raised its voice on his behalf.
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During his monologue last night, Kimmel thanked his many supporters, including “the people who don’t support my show and what I believe, but support my right to share those beliefs anyway.” He acknowledged, emotionally, that “it was never my intention to make light of the murder of a young man.”
The host also criticized the Trump administration’s attempts to pull him from the air. “I barely paid attention in school, but one thing I did learn from Lenny Bruce and George Carlin and Howard Stern is that a government threat to silence a comedian the president doesn’t like is anti-American,” he said. “And I am so glad we have some solidarity on that from the right and the left and from those in the middle, like Joe Rogan, maybe the silver lining from this is we found one thing we can agree on, and maybe we’ll even find another one. Maybe we can get a little bit closer together.”
With Jimmy Kimmel Live, FCC chairman Brendan Carr claimed that Kimmel was attempting to push the narrative that Kirk’s shooter “was somehow a MAGA or Republican-motivated person,” again calling it “sick.” Carr’s contributions to the fragmented framing of the monologue allowed the pressure campaign from the Trump administration, as well as conservatives in the media, to take deeper root.
Kimmel and Trump have had a long-standing feud, and both often take shots at each other publicly. Last year while hosting the Oscars, Kimmel read one of Trump’s Truth Social posts during the ceremony, quipping, “Thank you, President Trump. Thank you for watching, I’m surprised you’re still up — isn’t it past your jail time?” Trump later called Kimmel a “dope” and “one of the dumbest human beings ever.”
In April, Kimmel told Rolling Stone he enjoys amping Trump up. “I think most comedians have a strong sense of justice, and he violates that so frequently,” Kimmel said. “I know we should be hardened to it by now, but I’m not. It is shocking to me; it seems like a comic-book villain. He seems like the kind of character that would flame out after a few years, but the fact that he’s still with us is remarkable. A year ago, I would’ve said I’m hoping to show people who aren’t paying attention to the news what’s actually going on, and hoping to change things that way. Obviously, that didn’t have enough impact before the election, so now I see myself more as a place to scream.”
From Rolling Stone US
