The ongoing tension between Donald Trump and Jimmy Kimmel shows no signs of easing. The television host and the former president have been openly criticizing each other in recent times.
The discord began when ABC temporarily suspended Kimmel due to remarks he made about Charlie Kirk and Trump. Trump expressed satisfaction over the suspension, but Kimmel soon resumed his show, responding with his own criticisms.
When “Jimmy Kimmel Live” returned on Tuesday, September 23, Kimmel tackled the controversy surrounding him during his much-anticipated opening monologue. Addressing Trump, Kimmel remarked, “You almost have to feel sorry for him, he tried his best to cancel me, and instead he forced millions of people to watch the show.”
Kimmel further commented, “The president of the United States made it very clear he wants to see me and the hundreds of people who work here fired from our jobs. Our leader celebrates Americans losing their livelihoods because he can’t take a joke.” The following day, he labeled Trump a ‘bully.’
Recently, Kimmel mocked Trump again following an awkward moment involving Trump and First Lady Melania Trump at the UN headquarters in New York. As Melania led the way onto an escalator, it unexpectedly stopped, forcing the couple and their entourage to take the stairs instead.
Trump criticized the UN afterward, asserting that the incident ‘would have been a disaster’ if they hadn’t held onto the handrail. He demanded the arrest of those responsible, stating on Truth Social: “This was absolutely sabotage, as noted by a day’s earlier ‘post’ in The London Times that said UN workers ‘joked about turning off an escalator.’ The people that did it should be arrested!”
While Trump did not find humor in the situation, many others, including Kimmel, did.
On September 26, Kimmel posted a photo of his sidekick Guillermo Rodriguez on an escalator, captioned: “Headed to Brooklyn! Escalator is working great!”
Kimmel is set to film several shows at the Brooklyn Academy of Music next week, airing from Monday, September 29, to Friday, October 3. He humorously noted the show’s temporary move from California, joking that they have to ‘stay on the move so the FCC can’t get us’.