After spending years campaigning to win a Nobel Peace Prize, U.S. President Donald Trump has finally snagged one—after Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado gave up her prestigious award and passed it on to the businessman-turned-politician.
Machado, 58, was named a Nobel Peace Prize recipient by the Norwegian Nobel Committee in October 2025, a decision that visibly irritated Trump, 79, who repeatedly argued he deserved the honor more.
Fast forward to Jan. 15, 2026, when Machado appeared at the White House and handed over her Nobel medal to the president—an irony-rich moment Trump readily embraced, accepting the framed prize without hesitation, as late-night hosts like Jimmy Kimmel were quick to note.
The former host of “The Apprentice” reality series later praised Machado on Truth Social, calling it an “honor” to meet her and describing her as a remarkable woman who has endured a great deal. He added that she presented him with her Nobel Peace Prize as a sign of “mutual respect,” thanking her for the gesture.
As Trump reveled in holding Machado’s medal, longtime tormenter Kimmel, 58, mocked him on Thursday’s episode of his ABC late-night show, likening the president to a baby in need of a binky.
“Rarely does a president yank a Nobel prize off of someone’s neck. He’s back in the Oval Office sucking on it like a pacifier,” the host, 58, told his audience before joking that Machado only left the White House with MAGA merchandise.
The “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” host also floated a tongue-in-cheek deal, suggesting Trump could collect the various Hollywood awards Kimmel has won throughout his career, adding another layer to the late-night jab.
“Mr. President, I have an offer I think you’re going to find difficult to refuse. If, and only if, you agree to pull ICE out of Minneapolis and put them back at the borders where they belong, I am prepared to offer you one of the following trophies that I have been honored with over the years,” Kimmel stated.
The Brooklyn-bred comic then brought out a table display with his Emmy Award, Clio Award, Webby Award, and Writers Guild of America Award as offerings to Trump. Kimmel closed the presentation by spotlighting his 2015 Soul Train Award for White Person of the Year.
“I will personally deliver any or even all of these to the Oval Office in exchange for leaving the people of Minneapolis alone,” he added.
The Minnesota city has become a hotbed of political activity following the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Renee Good on Jan. 7 at the hands of an ICE agent.
Kimmel’s tongue-in-cheek proposal to Trump got a lot of attention online as many commenters lightheartedly predicted which trophy the billionaire tycoon would have his eye on the most.
One person on Threads suggested, “You know Trump wants that White Person of the Year award.” Another like-minded individual posted, “Trump would absolutely go for that one.”
Among the many awards, some users joked that Trump would get the most mileage out of Kimmel’s Emmy — another honor he has never received.
“He might take the Emmy, since he never got one for ‘The Apprentice.’ He was super salty about that,” a third poster pointed out.
Trump’s business-themed reality show ran on NBC from 2004 to 2017 and racked up eight Emmy nominations—an impressive tally that, notably, never translated into a win. The real estate mogul was also trolled for his alleged promiscuous behavior as a pre-political socialite and media personality when someone on Threads quipped, “We all know Trump loves sloppy seconds.”
Kimmel earned a few attaboys for continuing to tease the president over his fixation with praise, even after previously being suspended. One post read, “This is the kind of trolling I’m into.” Another added, “I hope Jimmy Kimmel is in the history books for his brave trolling.”
Trump may not take up Kimmel’s facetious proposition to trade his awards for the removal of ICE agents off the American streets, but his pity present from Machado is just as symbolic as accepting the White Person of the Year award.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee later clarified that, despite Trump having the Nobel Peace Prize medal in his possession, he is not recognized by the organization as a Nobel Peace Prize laureate—and is unlikely ever to be.
“Once a Nobel Prize is announced, it cannot be revoked, shared, or transferred to others. The decision is final and stands for all time,” the Norwegian Nobel Committee declared in a statement.
Any expectation that Trump will humbly accept the Nobel Committee’s outright rejection that he can call himself a Peace Prize winner is likely a fool’s errand. In 2025, Trump had no qualms about essentially taking credit for the Nobel Prize-winning work of the three renowned physicists.
