Jon Stewart on Donald Trump's Claim of Not Knowing About His Own MRI: 'That’s Not Physically Possible'.
Late-night television hosts this week trained their comedic fire on ex-President Donald Trump, criticizing his employment of a ableist slur and portrayed as feeble efforts to address growing questions about his cognitive health.
Jon Stewart's Pointed Commentary
Kicking off the week, Jon Stewart focused on a controversial post in which Trump referred to Minnesota Governor Tim Walz using a highly offensive ableist term. "On Thanksgiving?!" Stewart remarked. "Are you confusing that with Festivus?"
When questioned by reporters if he felt any remorse, Trump is said to have intensified his attack, insisting there was "a genuine problem" with the Democratic governor.
"Something wrong with him? With him?" Stewart responded. "You were sitting with your family at Thanksgiving, belly full of turkey and pie, enveloped in the love of your notorious associates, but your first thought was to Truth a slur at Tim Walz? And there’s something wrong with him?"
The host then turned to Trump's peculiar account of a recently disclosed medical scan. In an attempt to dismiss concerns, Trump stated he had "no idea" what part of his body was examined, suggesting it "couldn't have been his brain" because he "took a cognitive test."
"That is an impossibility," Stewart countered. "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, "For God’s sakes, man, were you not curious at all? When they placed you 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 boast of a "flawless result" 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.’"
Stephen Colbert's Witty Observations
On his own program, Stephen Colbert highlighted growing discontent among some former supporters. "Maga folks are starting to notice that Trump views them like meat animals," he said, referencing anger about funding a luxury ballroom over addressing affordability concerns.
"In other news, Trump celebrated Thanksgiving in his customary fashion – with racism," Colbert quipped, referring to an inflammatory post from the weekend. "Amidst all of that nonsense," he summarized, the president employed the offensive term against Governor Walz.
After Walz responded to "Release the MRI results," Trump said he would do so, despite his claimed ignorance of what was scanned.
"Well, here's an idea: maybe the part that’s broken is the part that’s supposed to know," Colbert suggested.
He then poked fun at the subsequent official explanation—a medical note stating the MRI was for routine evaluation. "OK, fair enough," Colbert conceded. "Men in his age group also benefit from retiring, so … can we get that ordered next?"
Jimmy Kimmel's Direct Criticism
Jimmy Kimmel also condemned Trump's choice of words. "Look, he is capable of being 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’s something wrong" with Walz, Kimmel was blunt: "yet another profound insight from the president of the middle school."
Kimmel also addressed Trump's claims of unprecedented approval ratings. "This indicates it’s not just books he can’t read," Kimmel said, pointing to polling showing high negative ratings. "You can find gas station bathrooms on Yelp with higher approval ratings than Donald Trump right now."
The host concluded by criticizing Trump's promise to grant clemency to a imprisoned 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. "Such individuals are just detractors, you know? Relax!"
"During his campaign, Trump made it very clear: his top priorities were a) pardoning drug kingpins and b) constructing a venue to ballroom dance," he summarized. "Promises made, promises kept."