Donald and Melania Trump both called for ABC to fire Jimmy Kimmel on Monday after a joke last week in which the late-night comic described the first lady as having \u201cthe glow of an expectant widow.\u201d<\/p>\n
The remark about the president\u2019s wife was part of a routine on Thursday\u2019s \u201cJimmy Kimmel Live\u201d where the host pretended to deliver a comedy routine at the White House Correspondents\u2019 Association dinner. That event two nights later was cut short when a man armed with guns and knives<\/a> tried to enter the Washington ballroom where the Trumps and much of the nation\u2019s political leadership had gathered.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople like Kimmel shouldn\u2019t have the opportunity to enter our homes each evening to spread hate,\u201d Melania Trump said in a social media post later echoed by her husband.<\/p>\n There was no immediate comment from ABC.<\/p>\n Trump has long been on receiving end of Kimmel\u2019s routines<\/p>\n Kimmel has long targeted the president in his comedy, and he doubled down after a run-in with the administration last fall. Kimmel was suspended<\/a> by ABC and some of the network\u2019s affiliates said they would take him off the air following a comment made about assassinated conservative leader Charlie Kirk, moves encouraged by Trump\u2019s FCC chairman, Brendan Carr. ABC and the stations later brought Kimmel back<\/a>.<\/p>\n Upon his return, Kimmel said that by saying that \u201cmany in MAGA land are working very hard to capitalize on the murder of Charlie Kirk,\u201d he was not trying to make light of Kirk\u2019s killing and didn\u2019t want to leave that impression. He did not apologize, however, and he criticized station owners who took him off the air before later relenting.<\/p>\n Shortly after the incident, ABC signed Kimmel<\/a> to a one-year contract extension that is due to keep him on the air until May 2027. His show has aired on the network since January 2003.<\/p>\n His late-night competitor Stephen Colbert \u2014 another frequent Trump critic \u2014 is seeing his CBS show end<\/a> next month.<\/p>\n Dressed in a tux and standing behind a podium Thursday, Kimmel pretended to deliver a comic routine for the WHCA dinner. His speech had false \u201ccutaways\u201d to the Trumps and others, taken from video clips.<\/p>\n He noted Melania in the \u201caudience,\u201d saying, \u201cMrs. Trump, you have a glow like an expectant widow.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI appreciate that so many people are incensed by Kimmel\u2019s despicable call to violence, and normally would not be responsive to anything that he said but, this is something far beyond the pale,\u201d the president said on his Truth Social platform. \u201cJimmy Kimmel should be immediately fired\u201d by ABC and its parent Walt Disney Co., he said.<\/p>\n His wife said Kimmel\u2019s \u201chateful and violent rhetoric\u201d is intended to divide the country. \u201cA coward, Kimmel hides behind ABC because he knows the network will keep running cover to protect him,\u201d Melania Trump wrote. \u201cEnough is enough. It is time for ABC to take a stand.\u201d<\/p>\n White House press secretary also weighs in<\/p>\n White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said it was part of a campaign of rhetoric from Democrats and some in the media that \u201chas helped to legitimize this violence.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWho in their right mind says a wife would be glowing over the potential murder of her beloved husband?\u201d Leavitt said. There was no indication that Kimmel was referring to violence.<\/p>\n The National Religious Broadcasters association filed a complaint with the Federal Elections Commission, asking the agency to investigate ABC.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re seeing a pattern of violence in this country that didn\u2019t appear overnight,\u201d said Troy Miller, NRB\u2019s president and CEO. \u201cWhen influential voices joke about death or treat political opponents as disposable, it contributes to a culture where violence feels thinkable to the already unstable.\u201d<\/p>\n During his routine, Kimmel noted Melania Trump\u2019s birthday Sunday, saying, \u201cShe\u2019s planning to celebrate at home the same way she always does \u2014 looking out a window and whispering, \u2018What have I done?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n He also said: \u201cBefore we go any further, Melania, this is Donald. Donald, this is Melania. That was my impression of Jeffrey Epstein.\u201d<\/p>\n Cole Tomas Allen<\/a>, the California man arrested after attempting to rush into the correspondents\u2019 dinner on Saturday, was charged Monday with the attempted assassination of the president.<\/p>\n ___<\/p>\n Associated Press correspondent Jesse Bedayn in Austin, Texas, contributed to this report. David Bauder writes about the intersection of media and entertainment for the AP. Follow him at http:\/\/x.com\/dbauder<\/a> and https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/dbauder.bsky.social<\/a>.<\/p>\n