Jon Stewart on Donald Trump's Claim of Being Unaware Regarding His Personal MRI: 'It's An Impossibility'.
Comedy show hosts this week directed their focus on ex-President Donald Trump, criticizing his employment of a derogatory term and what they described as unconvincing attempts to alleviate public concerns about his cognitive health.
The Daily Show's Pointed Commentary
Kicking off the week, Jon Stewart focused on a controversial post in which Trump described Minnesota Governor Tim Walz with a widely condemned ableist term. "On the holiday?!" Stewart remarked. "Did you mix it up with your own personal grievance airing day?"
When asked later if he regretted the remark, Trump is said to have doubled down, stating there was "something seriously wrong" with the governor.
"Something wrong with him? With him?" Stewart retorted. "You sat 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 Truth a slur at Tim Walz? And there’s something wrong with him?"
The comedian then turned to Trump's bizarre explanation of a recently disclosed MRI. In an effort to downplay worries, Trump claimed 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 shot back. "Being completely unaware, 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, "Good grief, man, were you not the least bit interested? 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, ‘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. "It's either 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 one-time allies. "Certain supporters are starting to notice that Trump views them like meat animals," he said, referencing anger about building a luxury ballroom over tackling economic issues.
"In other news, Trump celebrated Thanksgiving in his traditional way – with racism," Colbert noted, referring to an anti-immigrant rant 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 said he would release them, despite his stated unawareness of what was scanned.
"Uh, here’s a theory: 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. "Men in his age group also benefit from retiring, so … can we write that prescription next?"
Kimmel's Direct Criticism
Jimmy Kimmel likewise blasted Trump's use of the slur. "Look, he is capable of being presidential when he wants to be!" he joked. "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 is a problem" with Walz, Kimmel was blunt: "another bold statement from the president of the middle school."
Kimmel also touched on Trump's claims of record-high approval ratings. "This indicates it’s not just books he can’t read," Kimmel remarked, pointing to survey data showing high negative ratings. "There are gas station bathrooms on Yelp with higher approval ratings than Donald Trump right now."
The host concluded by highlighting 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 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? Relax!"
"During his campaign, Trump made it very clear: his top priorities were a) granting clemency to cartel leaders and b) building a place to ballroom dance," he added. "Promises made, promises kept."