The Daily Show host on Trump's Assertion of Being Unaware Regarding His Own MRI: 'That’s Not Physically Possible'.
Comedy show hosts recently directed their focus on ex-President Donald Trump, lambasting his employment of a ableist slur and what they described as feeble efforts to address growing questions about his cognitive health.
Jon Stewart's Scathing Critique
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 the holiday?!" Stewart remarked. "Did you mix it up with Festivus?"
When asked later if he felt any remorse, Trump is said to have doubled down, stating there was "a genuine problem" with the governor.
"The issue is with him? With him?" Stewart retorted. "You were sitting with your family at Thanksgiving, stomach full of turkey and pie, enveloped in the love of your extended crime family, but your initial instinct was to Truth a slur at Tim Walz? And there’s something wrong with him?"
The comedian then turned to Trump's peculiar account of a recently revealed MRI. In an effort to dismiss concerns, Trump claimed he had "no idea" what part of his body was even scanned, remarking it "couldn't have been his brain" because he "took a cognitive test."
"That is an impossibility," Stewart shot back. "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 MRI reveal party.’"
He continued, "Good grief, man, were you not curious at all? When they laid you down 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, ‘This is a noisy tanning bed’?"
Stewart also mocked Trump's boast of a "flawless result" on the scan. "Apparently, that's the way they score the MRIs," he joked. "It's either a big stamp, ‘Perfect,’ or you get in red ink, ‘We need to talk.’"
Stephen Colbert's Satirical Take
On his own program, Stephen Colbert pointed out growing discontent among some former supporters. "Certain supporters are starting to notice that Trump views them like meat animals," he said, citing anger about building a luxury ballroom over addressing economic issues.
"Elsewhere, Trump celebrated Thanksgiving in his traditional way – with racism," Colbert noted, referring to an inflammatory post from the weekend. "Amidst all of that nonsense," he recapped, the president employed the offensive term against Governor Walz.
After Walz challenged him to "Release the MRI results," Trump said he would release them, despite his stated unawareness of what was scanned.
"Well, here's an idea: maybe the part that’s malfunctioning is the part that’s supposed to know," Colbert noted.
He then poked fun at the subsequent White House justification—a doctor's letter stating the MRI was for routine evaluation. "Alright, that's reasonable," Colbert conceded. "People his age also benefit from retiring, so … can we write that prescription next?"
Kimmel's Direct Criticism
Jimmy Kimmel likewise condemned Trump's use of the slur. "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 defies all logic."
Regarding Trump's follow-up comment that he thinks "there’s something wrong" with Walz, Kimmel was blunt: "another bold statement 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 remarked, noting survey data showing significant disapproval. "There are gas station bathrooms on Yelp with higher approval ratings than Donald Trump right now."
The host finished by criticizing Trump's promise to grant clemency to a convicted former Honduran president. "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. "But those people are just detractors, you know? Lighten up!"
"When he was running, Trump made it very clear: his key goals were a) pardoning drug kingpins and b) constructing a venue to host formal dances," he added. "Promises made, pledges fulfilled."