President Donald Trump is a man who never lets a grudge go, especially when he’s the punchline. From his first term to his second, he’s bristled at late-night comedians who can’t resist making him the butt of their jokes.
His ongoing feud with ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel is epic.
Now he’s going after comedian Seth Meyers and his NBC show “Late Night With Seth Meyers.”
Trump took to social media early Wednesday to address a “sick rumor” even though it was far from a rumor and happened some time ago, but no one clued him in.
“There is a sick rumor going around that Fake News NBC extended the contract of one of the least talented Late Night television hosts out there, Seth Meyers,” Trump huffed on his Truth Social platform during one of his 2 a.m. rant sessions.
“He has no Ratings, Talent, or Intelligence, and the Personality of an insecure child. So, why would Fake News NBC extend this dope’s contract. I don’t know, but I’ll definitely be finding out!!!” the president proclaimed.
No super sleuth needed here. And there’s nothing much to find out. NBC extended Meyers’ contract in May … of 2024 until 2028.
“We’re so happy to continue this legacy franchise with Seth at the helm and watch him continue to elevate the success of ‘Late Night,’” NBCUniversal Entertainment EVP Katie Hockmeyer announced in a statement at the time.
It looks like Meyers will be around at least as long as Trump, who’s second term ends in January 2029, and probably even longer. And Trump just inadvertently gave him even more ammunition.
Social media erupted with fury over Trump’s seeming threat or promise, depending on your angle, to take time away from his presidential duties to look into such matters. Others accused him of projecting his own view of himself onto Meyers.
“Insecure child threatens to investigate a beloved media star who refuses to flatter him,” this Threads user commented.
“So now he’s gonna tell NBC who to fire? His ego knows no bounds, “ Cindy Belk observed on Threads.
“This is the President of the United States expressing concerns about a network extending the contract of a comedian. Doesn’t he have better things to do. If he would focus as much attention on the economy, it wouldn’t be so F***** up now,” David Rector posted.
“This coming from America’s most insecure toddler!!! Baby Donnie not happy. May Seth Meyer’s ratings soar. America you have your assignment,” Bill Cornell pointed out.
“He’s beyond ridiculous! Why are you interested in someone’s employment contract? Oh, wait. He must have hurt his thin skinned feelings,” this Threads poster said.
Trump has had a vendetta against Meyers dating back to the 2011 White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, an annual fundraiser that includes a roast of the president. Meyers, who was the head writer for “Saturday Night Live” and a host of the show’s ‘Weekend Update” mock newscast, delivered a series of jokes about Trump, who was still hosting “The Apprentice” at the time.
“Donald Trump has been saying that he will run for president as a Republican, which is surprising, since I just assumed he was running as a joke,” Meyers quipped
Trump was sitting in the audience simmering as the room laughed at Meyers’ jokes as they kept coming. At least he can thank Obama for not piling on. Clips show Obama restrained and poised, despite the uproar from the crowd.
“Donald Trump often appears on Fox, which is ironic because a fox often appears on Trump’s head,” Meyers continued to roaring laughter.
But this line is what many believed would set the stage for an unlikely victory some didn’t see coming.
“Gary Busey [‘Lethal Weapon’ actor] said recently that Donald Trump would make a great president, of course he said the same thing about an old birdcage he found,” continued Meyers blithely unaware of the longterm impact of his stinging words.
“This was the night it all started. Everyone laughing at him and then the rage started,” said one Threads user in response to the viral resurfaced clip.
Another added, “I’m going to be honest, I can’t stand to watch this, because I truly do believe this is when he decided that he was going to be president. I ain’t blaming Seth Meyers, I’m just saying.”
“I don’t think that Trump liked that. And now, 10 years later, he is still out for revenge for that night…” added another.
Late-night comedians have taken Trump on and continued to do so ever since he rode down his golden elevator in Trump Tower on June 16, 2015, to announce his presidential candidacy. The lampooning hasn’t stopped even as they watched Paramount refuse to renew comedian Stephen Colbert’s contract, which critics contend Trump played a pivotal part in, although other reports claim Trump had no hand in it.
But Paramount announced the end of “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” after settling a $16 million lawsuit with Trump over a “60 Minutes” interview with former Democratic presidential candidate and former Vice President Kamala Harris. At the time, the network needed a federal sign-off for a multi-billion-dollar deal with Hollywood Studio Skydance. It was approved shortly after CBS settled with Trump.
Trying to bully media networks after coverage he doesn’t like and making demands on who to fire and who to hire is similar to other recent moves the President has made, which critics call “authoritarian” in nature.
Just last week Trump said he told the CEO of the American technology company Intel he wanted a 10 percent stake in the company, and, in a highly unusual move, Intel ceded an unprecedented amount of control, 10 percent of the company, over to the federal government.
Trump has also bullied and browbeat colleges, universities and corporate America to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion programs or face intense government scrutiny. Many have already given in and shuttered these programs.
After running a few rerun episodes in late August, Meyers is expected to return after Labor Day with an arsenal of goodies to choose from, thanks to Trump.
