Featured Image Credit: Mandel NGAN / AFP via Getty Images
Topics: Donald Trump, Melania Trump, Jimmy Kimmel
Phoebe Tonks
Topics: Donald Trump, Melania Trump, Jimmy Kimmel
Donald Trump has publicly backed his wife Melania’s calls to fire Jimmy Kimmel from ABC after the late night talk show made a dark joke that called her an ‘expectant widow.’
The incident first unfolded on Thursday night, when Kimmel fronted a segment on his late night talk show that featured an ‘alternative roast’ of the President ahead of the White House Correspondent’s Dinner.
Traditionally, the annual event is hosted by a comedian, and allows some back and forth lighthearted mockery between the President and press members in attendance.
Yet this year, Trump had opted to have mentalist Oz Perlman host instead, with Kimmel failing to even get an invite to the prestigious event.
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In light of the snub, Kimmel staged his own ‘mock’ version of the event live on air, which featured several brutal jabs at the president over everything from his weight and recent AI Jesus images, through to criticising Melania Trump for being ‘motionless’ alongside the especially dark ‘expectant widow’ jibe.
The latter would eventually be perceived as especially twisted, as just two days later at the dinner itself, an active shooter attempted to murder the president.
Understandably, Melania was less than impressed, and on Monday called for ABC to remove Kimmel from his show.
"Kimmel’s hateful and violent rhetoric is intended to divide our country. His monologue about my family isn’t comedy- his words are corrosive and deepens the political sickness within America," she said in a statement.
And just a few hours later, Trump himself also echoed the sentiment on Truth Social when he fully backed his wife’s desire to have Kimmel sacked.
"Wow, Jimmy Kimmel, who is in no way funny as attested to by his terrible Television Ratings, made a statement on his Show that is really shocking. He showed a fake video of the First Lady, Melania, and our son, Barron, like they were actually sitting in his studio, listening to him speak, which they weren’t, and never would be," Trump began his long-winded post.
"He then stated, 'Our First Lady, Melania, is here. Look at Melania, so beautiful. Mrs. Trump, you have a glow like an expectant widow,'" Trump continued. "A day later a lunatic tried entering the ballroom of the White House Correspondents Dinner, loaded up with a shotgun, handgun, and many knives. He was there for a very obvious and sinister reason.”
31 year old suspect Cole Allen rushed through a security checkpoint on Saturday evening, armed with multiple weapons and firing several shots at the annual gala, before he was safely and swiftly detained by secret service agents and law enforcement.
He was charged with attempting to assassinate the president on Monday as well as two federal gun charges.
"I appreciate that so many people are incensed by Kimmel’s despicable call to violence, and normally would not be responsive to anything that he said but, this is something far beyond the pale," Trump said. "Jimmy Kimmel should be immediately fired by Disney and ABC. Thank you for your attention to this matter!"