Jimmy Kimmel on Monday paid tribute to one of America’s “greatest directors and patriots” Rob Reiner following the deaths of the Hollywood icon and his wife Michele.
Following a weekend of tragedies that included the deadly mass shootings at Bondi Beach and Brown University, the late night host emphasized that the country needed “compassion and leadership.”
He declared that President Donald Trump provided “none of it.”
Instead, Kimmel added, the president offered a brief moment of respect for Australians and shared his condolences (followed by a “things can happen”) for students at the Ivy League institution.
The comedian then read the entirety of Trump’s heavily criticized post that blamed Reiner — a staunch liberal and political activist — for his own death.
Reiner’s 32-year-old son, Nick, was booked for murder on Monday in the stabbing deaths of his parents.
“Just when you think he can’t go any lower, he somehow finds a way to do that,” said Kimmel of Trump.
He chalked up the president’s behavior to “this rush to pin the tail on the donkey” in pursuit of “the Trump-friendly narrative.”
Kimmel called out Trump’s “hateful and vile” message before reacting to a clip of the president doubling down on his attacks toward the director.
“That corroded brain is in charge of our lives. If you voted for that, it’s OK to reconsider. It’s perfectly fine,” Kimmel began.
“And I have to say, I know from my personal interactions with Rob Reiner that he would want us to keep pointing out the loathsome atrocities that continue to ooze out of this sick and irresponsible man’s mouth. And so we’re going to do that over and over again until the rest of us wake up.”
Check out more from Kimmel’s Monday monologue.