Jon Stewart on Donald Trump's Claim of Being Unaware About His Own MRI: 'That’s Not Physically Possible'.
Comedy show hosts recently trained their comedic fire on former President Donald Trump, criticizing his use of an ableist slur and portrayed as unconvincing attempts to address public concerns about his mental fitness.
The Daily Show's Pointed Commentary
Kicking off the week, Jon Stewart took aim at a inflammatory Truth Social message in which Trump referred to Minnesota Governor Tim Walz with a highly offensive ableist term. "On Thanksgiving?!" Stewart remarked. "Did you mix it up with your own personal grievance airing day?"
When questioned by reporters if he felt any remorse, Trump is said to have doubled down, insisting there was "something seriously wrong" with the governor.
"Something wrong with him? With him?" Stewart retorted. "You were sitting with your family at Thanksgiving, belly full of turkey and pie, enveloped in the love of your extended crime family, 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 peculiar account of a recently revealed MRI. In an attempt to downplay worries, Trump claimed he had "zero knowledge" what part of his body was even scanned, suggesting it "wasn’t the brain" because he "aced a cognitive test."
"That’s not physically possible," 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 30 to 45 minutes, 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. "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.’"
The Late Show's Witty Observations
On his own program, Stephen Colbert pointed out increasing frustration among some one-time allies. "Certain supporters are starting to notice that Trump views them like livestock," he said, referencing anger about building a gilded event space over addressing economic issues.
"In other news, Trump celebrated Thanksgiving in his customary fashion – with racism," Colbert quipped, referring to an anti-immigrant rant from the weekend. "Amidst all of that nonsense," he summarized, the president employed the ableist slur against Governor Walz.
After Walz challenged him to "Make the scan public," Trump promised do so, despite his claimed ignorance of what was scanned.
"Uh, here’s a theory: maybe the part that’s malfunctioning is the part that’s supposed to know," Colbert suggested.
He then mocked the subsequent official explanation—a doctor's letter stating the MRI was for preventative screening. "OK, fair enough," Colbert said. "People his age also benefit from retiring, so … can we get that ordered next?"
Kimmel's Direct Criticism
Jimmy Kimmel also 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: "yet another profound insight from the president of the eighth grade."
Kimmel also touched on Trump's insistence of unprecedented approval ratings. "This indicates it’s not just books he can’t read," Kimmel said, noting survey data showing significant disapproval. "You can find gas station bathrooms on Yelp with better reviews than Donald Trump right now."
The host concluded by highlighting Trump's promise to grant clemency to a convicted international drug trafficker. "Now some have pointed out the unbelievable hypocrisy of Trump taking a hard line in one instance, while simultaneously pardoning a man who shipped a million pounds of cocaine to this country," said Kimmel. "Such individuals are just haters and losers, you know? Relax!"
"When he was running, Trump made it very clear: his key goals were a) pardoning drug kingpins and b) building a place to ballroom dance," he summarized. "Promises made, pledges fulfilled."