In February of 2025, back when Elon Musk was still looming over Trump’s shoulders, he attended a Conservative Political Action Conference on behalf of DOGE and yapped about the imaginary “war on comedy” (the same conference he wielded that “chainsaw for bureaucracy” around and chanted about slashing the federal government). “The left wanted to make comedy illegal,” Musk told the crowd, “You can’t make fun of anything. Comedy sucks.”

“Legalize comedy,” he declared as the audience of conservatives erupted in applause.

Fast forward to this week—Musk is long gone and preoccupied in court, and the Trumps are once again attacking late-night comedians, suggesting that a joke was responsible for the shooting at Saturday’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner.

Last Thursday, Jimmy Kimmel Live! aired a skit in which Kimmel delivered the roast-style monologue that comedians traditionally give at WHCDs of years past. In the skit, he joked that Melania Trump had “a glow like an expectant widow.” After the shooting—and five days after the joke originally aired—Melania demanded ABC take action against Kimmel.

“Kimmel’s hateful and violent rhetoric is intended to divide our country,” the First Lady wrote on Twitter. “His monologue about my family isn’t comedy- his words are corrosive and deepen the political sickness within America.”

“Enough is enough,” she concluded. The next day, her husband ranted to Truth, agreeing with Melania’s demands. 

“Jimmy Kimmel, who is in no way funny as attested to by his terrible Television Ratings, made a statement on his Show that is really shocking,” Trump wrote. “A day later a lunatic tried entering the ballroom of the White House Correspondents Dinner, loaded up with a shotgun, handgun, and many knives. He was there for a very obvious and sinister reason. I appreciate that so many people are incensed by Kimmels despicable call to violence, and normally would not be responsive to anything that he said but, this is something far beyond the pale. Jimmy Kimmel should be immediately fired by Disney and ABC.” In September, ABC suspended Kimmel when Trump imposed similar pressure after Kimmel joked that MAGA rushed “to score political points” from the murder of Charlie Kirk.

Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt reiterated the Trumps’ rants, telling the press on Monday that Kimmel’s rhetoric “led crazy people to believe crazy things, and they are inspired to commit violence because of those words.” Hm… I seem to remember a different sentiment from Leavitt just a few weeks ago…After a journalist from the Wall Street Journal questioned an anecdote from Trump about diet soda killing cancer, Leavitt responded, “Get a better sense of humor.” Can she share that same advice with the president? 

Alas, the Trumps’ call to fire Kimmel confirms yet again what we already know to be true: When the “hateful rhetoric” comes from the left side of the aisle, it’s “inciting violence” and goading the assassination of the president, but when it comes from the right, it’s free speech. (and when it comes from the president, it’s just another Wednesday). 

You know what’s worse than a throwaway joke about the president being old? Being mentioned in the Epstein files 5,000 times! Just food for thought.

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