Jon Stewart on Trump's Assertion of Being Unaware Regarding His Personal MRI: 'That’s Not Physically Possible'.
Late-night television hosts recently directed their focus on ex-President Donald Trump, criticizing his employment of a derogatory term and portrayed as unconvincing attempts to alleviate growing questions about his cognitive health.
The Daily Show's Pointed Commentary
Kicking off the week, Jon Stewart focused on a inflammatory Truth Social message in which Trump described Minnesota Governor Tim Walz using a widely condemned ableist term. "On the holiday?!" Stewart exclaimed. "Are you confusing that with your own personal grievance airing day?"
When questioned by reporters if he felt any remorse, Trump reportedly intensified his attack, insisting there was "a genuine problem" with the Democratic 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 initial instinct was to post an insult at Tim Walz? And there’s something wrong with him?"
The host then turned to Trump's bizarre explanation of a recently revealed medical scan. In an attempt to downplay worries, Trump claimed he had "zero knowledge" what part of his body was examined, suggesting it "wasn’t the brain" because he "took a cognitive test."
"That’s not physically possible," Stewart countered. "Being completely unaware, it’s not possible. What would you say to the doctor? ‘No no no, 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 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, ‘What a loud tanning bed’?"
Stewart also mocked Trump's assertion of a "flawless result" on the scan. "Apparently, that's the way they score the MRIs," he joked. "You either get a big stamp, ‘Perfect,’ or you get in red ink, ‘See me.’"
Stephen Colbert's Witty Observations
On his own program, Stephen Colbert highlighted increasing frustration 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 affordability concerns.
"Elsewhere, Trump celebrated Thanksgiving in his customary fashion – with racism," Colbert noted, referring 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 "Release the MRI results," Trump promised 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 meant to retain that information," Colbert suggested.
He then poked fun at the follow-up White House justification—a medical note stating the MRI was for preventative screening. "OK, fair enough," Colbert conceded. "Men in his age group also benefit from retiring, so … can we get that ordered next?"
Jimmy Kimmel's Blunt Assessment
Jimmy Kimmel also condemned Trump's choice of words. "Look, he is capable of being presidential when he wants to be!" he joked. "It's puzzling why he didn’t get that Nobel peace prize. It defies all logic."
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 addressed Trump's claims of record-high approval ratings. "This indicates it’s not just books he can’t read," Kimmel said, noting polling 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 highlighting Trump's promise to grant clemency to a convicted former Honduran president. "Now some have pointed out the unbelievable hypocrisy of Trump tough on drugs in one instance, while at the same time freeing a man who sent 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) building a place to host formal dances," he summarized. "Promises made, promises kept."