Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel has responded to U.S. President Donald Trump's demand for his firing over a joke about First Lady Melania Trump made days before the White House Correspondents' dinner.
Kimmel's Response to Trump
On Monday night, Kimmel addressed the controversy during his monologue, explaining that the joke was about the age difference between the president and first lady. 'It was obviously a joke about their age difference,' Kimmel said. 'It was a very light roast joke about the fact that he's almost 80 and she's younger than I am. It was not by any stretch of the definition a call to assassination, and they know that.'
Kimmel also responded to Melania's criticism, agreeing that 'hateful and violent rhetoric is something we should reject.' He added, 'I think a great place to start to dial that back would be to have a conversation with your husband about it.'
The Joke in Question
During Thursday's episode of 'Jimmy Kimmel Live,' Kimmel portrayed himself as the emcee of the White House Correspondents' dinner in a comedic sketch. He appeared to address Melania in the audience, stating she looked 'beautiful' and that she had 'a glow like an expectant widow.'
Melania's Criticism
Melania Trump took to social media to condemn Kimmel, writing on X: 'People like Kimmel shouldn't have the opportunity to enter our homes each evening to spread hate. His monologue about my family isn't comedy – his words are corrosive and deepens the political sickness within America. How many times will ABC's leadership enable Kimmel's atrocious behaviour at the expense of our community?'
President Trump echoed his wife's sentiments on Truth Social, calling for Kimmel to be fired: 'I appreciate that so many people are incensed by Kimmel's despicable call to violence, and normally would not be responsive to anything that he said but, this is something far beyond the pale. Jimmy Kimmel should be immediately fired by Disney and ABC.'
Longstanding Feud
This is not the first time Kimmel has been targeted by Trump. Last September, Kimmel was briefly suspended from his show after he suggested that Trump's MAGA movement was exploiting the assassination of Charlie Kirk for political gain. The suspension sparked a debate over free speech.
During Monday's monologue, Kimmel pointed out that Trump was once a fan, showing a 2010 clip from a Samsung event where Trump praised him: 'I'm also here to support Jimmy. I love Jimmy.'
