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Late-night television hosts this week trained their comedic fire on ex-President Donald Trump, criticizing his use of an ableist slur and portrayed as feeble efforts to address public concerns about his mental fitness.

Jon Stewart's Scathing Critique

Beginning his monologue, Jon Stewart took aim at a inflammatory Truth Social message in which Trump referred to Minnesota Governor Tim Walz using a highly offensive ableist term. "On Thanksgiving?!" Stewart exclaimed. "Did you mix it up with Festivus?"

When asked later if he regretted the remark, Trump reportedly doubled down, stating there was "something seriously wrong" with the Democratic governor.

"Something wrong with him? With him?" Stewart responded. "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 initial instinct was to post an insult at Tim Walz? And there’s something wrong with him?"

The comedian then addressed Trump's bizarre explanation of a recently disclosed MRI. In an effort to downplay worries, Trump stated he had "no idea" what part of his body was even scanned, remarking it "wasn’t the brain" because he "took a cognitive test."

"That is an impossibility," Stewart countered. "To have no idea, it’s not possible. What could you possibly say to the doctor? ‘Wait, stop, don’t tell me. I want to find out at my MRI reveal party.’"

He continued, "For God’s sakes, man, were you not the least bit interested? When they placed you in a tube for a half an hour, 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 "perfect score" on the scan. "Apparently, that's the way they score the MRIs," he joked. "It's either a big stamp, ‘Perfect,’ or you get in red ink, ‘See me.’"

The Late Show's Satirical Take

On his own program, Stephen Colbert highlighted increasing frustration among some former supporters. "Certain supporters are starting to notice that Trump views them like meat animals," he remarked, referencing criticism over funding a luxury ballroom over tackling affordability concerns.

"Elsewhere, Trump celebrated Thanksgiving in his traditional way – with racism," Colbert noted, alluding 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 responded to "Release the MRI results," Trump promised do so, despite his claimed ignorance of what was scanned.

"Uh, here’s a theory: maybe the part that’s broken is the part that’s meant to retain that information," Colbert noted.

He then poked fun at the follow-up White House justification—a medical note stating the MRI was for preventative screening. "Alright, that's reasonable," Colbert conceded. "Men in his age group also benefit from retiring, so … can we get that ordered next?"

Kimmel's Blunt Assessment

Jimmy Kimmel also blasted Trump's use of the slur. "See, he can be presidential when he wants to be!" he joked. "I wonder why he didn’t get that Nobel peace prize. It makes no sense."

Regarding Trump's subsequent statement 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 addressed Trump's insistence of unprecedented approval ratings. "Which means it’s not just books he can’t read," Kimmel remarked, noting polling showing significant disapproval. "There are gas station bathrooms on Yelp with higher approval ratings than Donald Trump right now."

The host finished by highlighting Trump's pledge to pardon a convicted former Honduran president. "Now some have pointed out the unbelievable hypocrisy of Trump tough on drugs elsewhere, while simultaneously pardoning a man who sent a massive quantity of cocaine to this country," said Kimmel. "Such individuals are just haters and losers, you know? Lighten up!"

"During his campaign, Trump made it perfectly obvious: his key goals were a) granting clemency to cartel leaders and b) constructing a venue to ballroom dance," he summarized. "Commitments stated, pledges fulfilled."