Jon Stewart on Donald Trump's Assertion of Not Knowing About His Personal MRI: 'It's An Impossibility'.
Comedy show hosts this week trained their comedic fire 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.
Jon Stewart's Pointed Commentary
Beginning his monologue, Jon Stewart focused on a inflammatory Truth Social message in which Trump referred to Minnesota Governor Tim Walz using a highly offensive ableist term. "On Thanksgiving?!" Stewart remarked. "Are you confusing that with your own personal grievance airing day?"
When questioned by reporters if he felt any remorse, 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, belly 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 addressed Trump's bizarre explanation of a recently disclosed medical scan. In an attempt to downplay worries, Trump claimed he had "zero knowledge" what part of his body was examined, remarking it "wasn’t the brain" because he "aced 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? ‘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 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 further ridiculed Trump's boast of a "perfect score" on the scan. "That’s how 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 increasing frustration among some former supporters. "Maga folks are starting to notice that Trump views them like livestock," he said, referencing anger about building a luxury ballroom over addressing affordability concerns.
"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 employed the offensive term against Governor Walz.
After Walz responded to "Release the MRI results," Trump promised do so, 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 official explanation—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 write that prescription next?"
Kimmel's Blunt Assessment
Jimmy Kimmel likewise condemned Trump's use of the slur. "See, he can be presidential when he wants to be!" he remarked sarcastically. "It's puzzling why he didn’t get that Nobel peace prize. It defies all logic."
Regarding Trump's subsequent statement that he thinks "there’s something wrong" with Walz, Kimmel was blunt: "another bold statement from the president of the middle school."
Kimmel also addressed Trump's claims of unprecedented approval ratings. "Which means it’s not just books he can’t read," Kimmel said, pointing to polling showing significant disapproval. "There are 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 in one instance, while simultaneously pardoning a man who sent a million pounds of cocaine to this country," said Kimmel. "But those people 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) constructing a venue to host formal dances," he summarized. "Promises made, pledges fulfilled."