Jon Stewart on Trump's Claim of Being Unaware Regarding His Own MRI: 'That’s An Impossibility'.
Late-night television hosts recently directed their focus on former President Donald Trump, criticizing his use of an derogatory term and portrayed as feeble efforts to alleviate public concerns about his mental fitness.
The Daily Show's Scathing Critique
Beginning his monologue, Jon Stewart focused on a inflammatory Truth Social message in which Trump referred to Minnesota Governor Tim Walz using a widely condemned slur. "On the holiday?!" Stewart remarked. "Did you mix it up with Festivus?"
When asked later if he regretted the remark, Trump is said to have intensified his attack, stating there was "a genuine problem" with the governor.
"Something wrong with him? With him?" Stewart retorted. "You were sitting with your family at Thanksgiving, stomach full of turkey and pie, surrounded by the love of your notorious associates, but your initial instinct was to post an insult at Tim Walz? And there’s something wrong with him?"
The host then turned to Trump's peculiar account of a recently disclosed MRI. In an attempt to downplay worries, 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’s not physically possible," Stewart countered. "To have no idea, it’s not possible. What could you possibly say to the doctor? ‘Wait, stop, don’t tell me. I want to find out at my scan unveiling celebration.’"
He continued, "For God’s sakes, man, were you not the least bit interested? 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, ‘This is a noisy tanning bed’?"
Stewart also mocked Trump's boast of a "perfect score" on the scan. "That’s how they score the MRIs," he quipped. "You either get a big stamp, ‘Perfect,’ or you get in red ink, ‘See me.’"
The Late Show's Satirical Take
On his own program, Stephen Colbert pointed out growing discontent among some former supporters. "Maga folks are starting to notice that Trump treats them like livestock," he remarked, referencing criticism over funding a gilded event space over tackling affordability concerns.
"Elsewhere, Trump celebrated Thanksgiving in his traditional way – with racism," Colbert noted, referring to an inflammatory post from the weekend. "Somewhere in all of that nonsense," he recapped, the president also used the ableist slur against Governor Walz.
After Walz challenged him to "Make the scan public," Trump promised 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 meant to retain that information," Colbert suggested.
He then poked fun at the follow-up White House justification—a doctor's letter stating the MRI was for routine evaluation. "OK, fair enough," Colbert said. "Men in his age group also benefit from retiring, so … can we get that ordered next?"
Jimmy Kimmel's Direct Criticism
Jimmy Kimmel also blasted Trump's choice of words. "See, he can be presidential when he wants to be!" he remarked sarcastically. "It's puzzling why he didn’t get that Nobel peace prize. It makes no sense."
Regarding Trump's subsequent statement that he thinks "there is a problem" with Walz, Kimmel was direct: "another bold statement from the president of the middle school."
Kimmel also touched on Trump's claims of record-high approval ratings. "Which means it’s not just books he can’t read," Kimmel remarked, noting survey data showing high negative ratings. "There are gas station bathrooms on Yelp with better reviews than Donald Trump right now."
The host concluded by highlighting Trump's pledge to pardon a imprisoned international drug trafficker. "Now some have pointed out the staggering contradiction of Trump taking a hard line elsewhere, while at the same time freeing a man who shipped a million pounds of cocaine to this country," said Kimmel. "Such individuals are just detractors, you know? Lighten up!"
"When he was running, Trump made it perfectly obvious: his key goals were a) pardoning drug kingpins and b) constructing a venue to host formal dances," he added. "Commitments stated, promises kept."