The Daily Show host on Trump's Assertion of Not Knowing About His Own MRI: 'That’s Not Physically Possible'.
Comedy show hosts this week directed their focus on ex-President Donald Trump, criticizing his use of an ableist slur and portrayed as unconvincing attempts to alleviate public concerns about his mental fitness.
The Daily Show's Pointed Commentary
Beginning his monologue, Jon Stewart focused on a controversial post in which Trump referred to Minnesota Governor Tim Walz with a highly offensive ableist term. "On the holiday?!" Stewart remarked. "Did you mix it up with Festivus?"
When asked later if he felt any remorse, Trump reportedly 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 notorious associates, but your first thought 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 medical scan. In an attempt to downplay worries, Trump claimed he had "zero knowledge" what part of his body was even scanned, suggesting it "couldn't have been his brain" because he "took a cognitive test."
"That’s not physically possible," Stewart countered. "To have no idea, it’s not possible. What would you say to the doctor? ‘Wait, stop, don’t tell me. I want to find out at my scan unveiling celebration.’"
He added, "For God’s sakes, man, were you not the least bit interested? When they placed you 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 further ridiculed Trump's boast of a "perfect score" on the scan. "Apparently, that's the way they score the MRIs," he quipped. "It's either a big stamp, ‘Perfect,’ or you get in red ink, ‘We need to talk.’"
The Late Show's Witty Observations
On his own program, Stephen Colbert pointed out growing discontent among some one-time allies. "Maga folks are starting to notice that Trump views them like meat animals," he said, citing anger about funding a gilded event space over tackling economic issues.
"In other news, Trump celebrated Thanksgiving in his traditional way – with racism," Colbert quipped, alluding to an anti-immigrant rant from the weekend. "Somewhere in all of that nonsense," he summarized, the president also used the ableist slur against Governor Walz.
After Walz challenged him to "Make the scan public," Trump said he would release them, despite his stated unawareness 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 noted.
He then mocked the follow-up 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?"
Kimmel's Direct Criticism
Jimmy Kimmel likewise condemned Trump's choice of words. "Look, he is capable of being 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 follow-up comment that he thinks "there’s something wrong" with Walz, Kimmel was direct: "yet another profound insight from the president of the eighth grade."
Kimmel also addressed Trump's insistence of record-high approval ratings. "Which means it’s not just books he can’t read," Kimmel said, noting survey data 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 former Honduran president. "Critics have noted 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. "But those people are just haters and losers, you know? Lighten up!"
"When he was running, Trump made it perfectly obvious: his top priorities were a) pardoning drug kingpins and b) constructing a venue to ballroom dance," he summarized. "Promises made, pledges fulfilled."