Jon Stewart, Seth Meyers, Jimmy Kimmel, and even the notoriously “not very political” Jimmy Fallon have crafted their careers by poking fun at the U.S. president.
Consequently, when Donald Trump declared a ban on news organizations CNN, MS NOW, and Politico from the White House last Friday, the late-night hosts reacted vigorously in defense of the First Amendment, which safeguards freedom of speech and the press.
Were they indignant? Absolutely. Were they humorous? That’s for you to decide.
“The White House press pool is more chaotic than the reflecting pool at this point,” remarked Jimmy Kimmel, whose humor has previously gotten him into hot water with the Trump administration.
“What he’s doing is downright un-American,” he stated on ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live!
“The five networks, including Fox, united to issue a statement emphasizing that the public’s right to receive accurate, independent information about its government is crucial…. Can you believe how far someone must fall for Fox News to come to CNN’s defense?” he continued.
Helipad event provides material for humor
Both Kimmel and NBC’s Seth Meyers highlighted how Trump’s media ban seemed to backfire when the White House press pool, which typically covers the president at official functions, declined to report on the inauguration of a new helicopter landing pad.
There were images of the ribbon-cutting from the White House’s own livestream, but no microphone was present to capture the president’s remarks. All that could be heard was the sound of the helicopter blades.
“The best part is, that noise is always the essence of what Trump is saying,” Meyers quipped.
Yesterday, the Trump administration issued a statement reaffirming its stance that “White House access is a privilege — not a right,” and dismissed assertions that the media ban infringed upon reporters’ First Amendment rights.
This argument was posed directly to Trump by some of the journalists who remained in the White House.
Behaving like a diva
Meyers aired a clip of Trump’s reply, asserting that the president “sounds like a fading Hollywood diva scolding a director for cutting her lines.”
Jimmy Fallon likened him to the host of The Traitors. “He even dressed like Alan Cumming to convey, ‘You’re banished from my castle.'”
He further suggested that the First Lady wished for her own banishment to escape her husband. “In a related note, Melania has just applied to be a reporter for CNN, MS NOW, and Politico,” Fallon joked.
On The Daily Show, Jon Stewart concentrated on Trump’s rationale for the media ban: his dissatisfaction with the negative coverage from those outlets.
Anger and disbelief
“Have you considered being a better president?” Stewart inquired. “I mean, give the press something positive to report on. Oh, here’s a positive story: I never thought my car could take $140 worth of gas in such a tiny tank!”
Stewart oscillated between anger and disbelief as he replayed clips of Trump justifying his media ban.
“Not for nothing, have we ever witnessed a president openly opposing the Constitution right from the Oval Office?”