{"id":48934,"date":"2026-04-29T08:25:10","date_gmt":"2026-04-29T08:25:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/48934\/"},"modified":"2026-04-29T08:25:10","modified_gmt":"2026-04-29T08:25:10","slug":"donald-trump-and-jimmy-kimmels-feud-a-timeline","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/48934\/","title":{"rendered":"Donald Trump and Jimmy Kimmel’s Feud: A Timeline"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tDonald Trump<\/a> has many enemies. The ayatollahs of Iran, Democratic politicians across America, windmills, and the phrase \u201cIs Pepsi OK?\u201d \u2014 to name a few. But no feud seems to brew more consistent passion within the commander in chief than his vendetta against late-night comedy, particularly against ABC\u2019s Jimmy Kimmel<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tIt\u2019s easy to forget that before he was a plague on our politics, Trump was a caricature for \u201cAmerican rich guy.\u201d Three wives, lots of money, a golden toilet, and loads of opinions. He was a regular guest on talk shows, radio, and even late-night television.<\/p>\n

\n\tOne of the major early personal sacrifices of Trump\u2019s decision to enter the Republican primaries as a right-wing nativist in 2015 was a break with the mostly supportive, ostensibly liberal social and media circles that had surrounded him during his time as the proverbial king of Manhattan. Late-night shows began to mock him, parody his voice and image, and criticize his campaign \u2014\u00a0and later his presidency. Kimmel has consistently been among Trump\u2019s most vocal roasters, and throughout Trump\u2019s second administration, the president\u2019s censorious tendencies dovetailed with his fixation on late-night comedians.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tIt\u2019s a long feud, dating back more than a decade at this point, but here\u2019s a breakdown of the dispute between Trump, and ABC\u2019s flagship comedian.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\t\tThe Trump administration cracks down on Disney after Kimmel makes joke about the president\u2019s age ahead of White House Correspondents\u2019 Dinner\t<\/p>\n

\n\tIn the aftermath of a shooting at the 2026 White House Correspondents\u2019 Dinner, the Trump administration became fixated on a monologue Kimmel delivered days before. Given that a professional comedian had not been invited to deliver the traditional roast of the president at the event, Kimmel\u2019s show staged their own<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tAt one point, Kimmel joked that First Lady Melania Trump had a \u201cglow like an expectant widow.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tKimmel had no way of knowing what would take place at the Correspondents\u2019 Dinner, but in its aftermath the first lady claimed that the joke had been a call to violence<\/a> against the president and not \u2014 as most assumed \u2014 a comment on his advanced age and declining health.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\t\tEditor\u2019s picks<\/p>\n

\n\t\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 wrote on Truth Social. \u201cJimmy Kimmel should be immediately fired by Disney and ABC.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tKimmel responded on his show Monday, telling viewers that it was \u201cobviously a joke about their age difference and the look of joy we see on her face every time they\u2019re together. It was a very light roast joke about the fact that he\u2019s almost 80 and she\u2019s younger than I am.\u201d Kimmel noted that there had been no outrage about his televised roast, which aired Thursday night, two days before the dinner.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tThe Trump administration was undeterred. On Tuesday, Brendan Carr<\/a>\u2019s Federal Communications Commission announced it would be directing ABC to file renewals<\/a> for all their broadcast licenses within the month \u2014 a forceful investigative, potentially punitive message rarely invoked by the agency.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\t\tKimmel tells Trump \u2018Quiet, piggy\u2019 as the president keeps calling for ABC to fire him\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI have honestly lost count of how many times the president has demanded I be pulled off the air,\u201d Kimmel told his audience<\/a> in November. \u201cTalk about a snowflake, this guy. Every five weeks, he flips out and wants me fired.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThe comments came in response to Trump\u2019s late-night rantings about Jimmy Kimmel Live<\/a>!\u2019s coverage of the Epstein files scandal. \u201cWhy does ABC Fake News keep Jimmy Kimmel, a man with NO TALENT and VERY POOR TELEVISION RATINGS, on the air?\u201d Trump raged<\/a>. \u201cGet the bum off the air.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\t\tRelated Content<\/p>\n

\n\tKimmel took it in stride. \u201cHow about this: I\u2019ll go when you go, okay? We\u2019ll be a team. Let\u2019s ride off into the sunset together like Butch Cassidy and the Suntan Kid \u2026 Until then, if I may borrow a phrase from you: Quiet, piggy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tTrump keeps attacking Kimmel, though, calling him a \u201chorrible\u201d<\/a> host a month later. \u201cThat is very hurtful. I thought we were friends,\u201d Kimmel responded. \u201cI don\u2019t know what\u2019s going on. He is really fixated. I\u2019m starting to think he might have a crush on me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\tTrump\u2019s FCC<\/a> gets ABC to kick Kimmel off the air following Charlie Kirk\u2019s assassination\t<\/p>\n

\n\tIn the aftermath of the assasination for Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk, right wingers rushed to punish critics of the slain activist \u2014 forcing hundreds of people<\/a> out of their jobs over even mild critiques of Kirk.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tOn September 17, ABC and Nexstar announced that \u201cJimmy Kimmel Live! will be preempted indefinitely.\u201d Nexstar claimed that the suspension had been prompted by allegedly \u201coffensive and insensitive\u201d comments Kimmel made about Kirk.\u00a0 The decision came after public pressure<\/a> from Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr, who threatened<\/a> the network\u2019s broadcast licenses.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tBut Kimmel had not criticized Kirk at all. He had explicitly condemned the killing<\/a> and criticized MAGA voices for rushing to capitalize on the tragedy and \u201cdesperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it.\u201d Kimmel, like much of the nation, had misidentified the politics of the shooter in his initial response.<\/p>\n

\n\tHe was kept off air for a week, with Trump saying<\/a> the indefinite suspension was \u201cGreat News for America\u201d and congratulating the network \u201cfor finally having the courage to do what had to be done.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tAfter widespread public outrage forced the network<\/a> to reinstate Kimmel, the president threatened to sue ABC in retaliation<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI think maliciously, mischaracterized,\u201d Kimmel would later say<\/a> of the controversial monologue that prompted the dispute. \u201cI just saw it as distortion on the part of some of the right-wing media networks and I aimed to correct it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\tTrump warns Kimmel that he\u2019s \u201cnext\u201d amid Stephen Colbert cancellation\u00a0\t<\/p>\n

\n\tIn the summer of 2025, CBS announced that The Late Show with Stephen Colbert would not be renewed<\/a>, despite the host having signed a contract extension through 2026. The cancellation came amidst a major merger between Sydance Media and Paramount Global \u2014 the parent company of CBS owned by pro-Trump billionaire Larry Ellison.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tAs Trump celebrated the cancellation, he wrote on Truth Social<\/a> that he loved that \u201cColbert\u2019 got fired. His talent was even less than his ratings. I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next. Has even less talent than Colbert!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\t\tTrump confuses Al Pacino for Kimmel\t<\/p>\n

\n\tKimmel keeps making fun of Trump on his late-night show, and Trump keeps responding. A month after the Oscars, Trump joked about the Stormy Daniels scandal, to which Trump posted another rant on Truth Social, blaming Kimmel<\/a> for Al Pacino\u2019s unorthodox announcement that Oppenheimer won Best Picture.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cStupid Jimmy Kimmel, who still hasn\u2019t recovered from his horrendous performance and big ratings drop as Host of The Academy Awards, especially when he showed he suffered from TDS, commonly known as TRUMP DERANGEMENT SYNDROME, to the entire World by reading on air my TRUTH about how bad a job he was doing that night, right before he stumbled through announcing the biggest award of all, \u2018Picture of the Year,\u2019\u201d Trump wrote. \u201cIt was a CLASSIC CHOKE, one of the biggest ever in show business, and to top it off, he forgot to say the famous and mandatory line, \u2018AND THE WINNER IS.\u2019 Instead he stammered around as he opened the envelope.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\tTrump attacks Kimmel during the Oscars in 2024\t<\/p>\n

\n\tTrump ranted against Kimmel as the late-night host was emceeing the 2024 Oscars. \u201cHas there EVER been a WORSE HOST than Jimmy Kimmel at The Oscars,\u201d he wrote<\/a>. \u201cHis opening was that of a less than average person trying too hard to be something which he is not, and never can be.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cAlso a really bad politically correct show tonight, and for years \u2014 Disjointed, boring, and very unfair,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

\n\tBecause Trump attacked him during the ceremony, Kimmel was able to respond in real time, in front of an audience of millions. Kimmel pulled out his phone and read Trump\u2019s post to the audience, to laughter and applause. \u201cSee if you can guess which former president just posted that on Truth Social?\u201d he said, adding, \u201cIsn\u2019t it past your jail time?\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tTrump later claimed to Fox News that Kimmel reading the post worked to his favor. \u201cI said, \u2018This guy\u2019s even dumber than I thought,\u2019\u201d Trump said<\/a>. \u201cThe thing went viral, it\u2019s been all over the world now, and all he had to do is keep his mouth shut.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\tKimmel continues making fun of Trump for the rest of his first term\t<\/p>\n

\n\tThe jokes keep on coming, but Trump rarely responds specifically to Kimmel. His outbursts are usually directed towards late-night comedians, in general, as, well\u2026they\u2019re all making fun of him incessantly. During this time period, Kimmel had former adult film star Stormy Daniels identify Trump\u2019s penis in a lineup of mushrooms<\/a>, delivered monologues about the impeachment efforts <\/a>against the president, slammed Trump and Republicans over their inaction<\/a> in response to mass shootings, and skewered the president\u2019s reelection campaign<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n\tIt was later reported<\/a> that in 2019 Trump asked the Justice Department if they could \u201cprobe or mitigate\u201d Kimmel, Saturday Night Live, and other late-night institutions making jokes about it.<\/p>\n

\t\tTrump tries to have Disney crack down on Kimmel\t<\/p>\n

\n\tRolling Stone reported in 2023<\/a> that in at least two separate phone calls after Trump had been in office for a year, his administration made clear to Disney \u2014 ABC\u2019s parent company \u2014 that the president wanted Kimmel reined in. The calls came at Trump\u2019s direction, after he had been incensed by Kimmel\u2019s jokes at his expense.<\/p>\n

\n\tIn response to Rolling Stone\u2019s story five years later, Kimmel joked: \u201cPresident Karen demanded to speak to my manager.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cYou\u2019d think the guy who fathered Eric and Don Jr. would know how to handle jokes,\u201d he added.\u00a0 \u201cUsually when [Trump] wants somebody to stop talking about him, he pays them $130,000 \u2014 he wanted me to do it for nothing!\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\tKimmel\u2019s emotional appeal for health care after Trump took office\t<\/p>\n

\n\tTrump and Kimmel\u2019s mutually beneficial relationship during the campaign started to turn into a feud after Trump took office. In May, Kimmel gave an emotional monologue about a heart condition his then-infant had had to undergo surgery to treat, and the importance of health care access for families amid Republicans\u2019 push to repeal the Affordable Care Act. Trump\u2019s attacks on immigration, the repeal of DACA, and a whole slew of other policies would only up the tension.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tTrump would go on to complain about the coverage he was receiving from shows where he had for years been a welcome guest. \u201cLate Night host are dealing with the Democrats for their very \u2018unfunny\u2019 & repetitive material, always anti-Trump! Should we get Equal Time?\u201d Trump wrote<\/a> in October 2017. \u201cMore and more people are suggesting that Republicans (and me) should be given Equal Time on T.V. when you look at the one-sided coverage?\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\tJimmy Kimmel Live! during the 2016 campaign\t<\/p>\n

\n\tTrump, then a candidate for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination, pulled out of a planned appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live! in late 2015. Kimmel told viewers that the real estate mogul had cited a \u201cmajor political commitment\u201d and joked that he would show the audience a \u201cbasketball dipped in cologne\u201d as a replacement guest.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\t\tTrending Stories<\/p>\n

\n\tTwo months later, Trump finally made it onto the show<\/a>. The host asked him to respond to criticism of former NFL quarterback Tom Brady about their apparent friendship, ribbed him over hyperbolic health reports from his personal doctor, and presented him with a parody children\u2019s book about \u201cwinners\u201d and \u201csad little losers.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tAs the campaign progressed,\u00a0 Kimmel \u2014 along with virtually every other late-night host \u2014 adopted the new blundering candidate as an easy target for his monologues and jokes. After Trump\u2019s upset victory, Kimmel told viewers that Trump himself was probably surprised that he would, in fact, become president. \u201cHis plan was to go home to Mar-a-Lago, play 5,000 rounds of golf, phone into Trump TV every morning for 10 years, then die on the toilet,\u201d Kimmel said<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Donald Trump has many enemies. The ayatollahs of Iran, Democratic politicians across America, windmills, and the phrase \u201cIs…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":48935,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[8315,12081,12,8316,7501,12532,74],"class_list":{"0":"post-48934","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-donald-trump","8":"tag-brendan-carr","9":"tag-controversy","10":"tag-donald-trump","11":"tag-fcc","12":"tag-jimmy-kimmel","13":"tag-jimmy-kimmel-live","14":"tag-trump"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@people\/116487043602085380","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48934","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48934"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48934\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/48935"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48934"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48934"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48934"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}