George Clooney is defending Jimmy Kimmel against backlash over a resurfaced joke from the late-night host that aged poorly in the wake of the shooting at the White House Correspondents' Dinner.
Kimmel joked that First Lady Melania Trump looked like an "expectant widow" in a monologue that aired Thursday, just two days before shots were fired at Saturday's event which authorities are investigating as a possible third assassination attempt on President Donald Trump. The comedian's days-old quip resurfaced after the shooting, leading to calls from the President and First Lady for ABC to "take a stand" and fire Kimmel, whose show was temporarily suspended last year after pressure from Trump's administration.
Clooney stood up for Kimmel and said that "jokes are jokes" during Monday's Chaplin Award Gala. The Democrat actor compared Kimmel's quip to a pre-dinner remark by White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt that also resurfaced out of context online after the shooting.
"Jimmy's a comedian, and I would argue that Karoline Leavitt didn't mean shots should be fired," Clooney said, according to Variety. "She was making a joke. Fair enough. You look at that side and go, 'Well, jokes are jokes.' But the rhetoric is a little dangerous. And we've seen it a lot lately."
While heading into the WHCD, Leavitt had said on the red carpet Saturday that she was anticipating "some shots fired tonight in the room," referring to fiery political remarks that Donald was expected to make during the gala.
Clooney said the extreme rhetoric "can be toned down." He added: "When one side is calling anyone they disagree with traitors to the country, which is a charge that's punishable by death, just because they don't agree with someone, I think the rhetoric is a little too heated."
The Ocean's 11 actor went on to say that he will "always have faith in the press" because his father is a journalist. "I also think that you're not supposed to have a good relationship with government," he said. "You're supposed to be questioning them. The people that I support — the Democrats. So, I'm a Democrat. I make no apologies for it. The people that I support — Bill Clinton, Barack Obama — they didn't enjoy getting chased down by reporters. People in power don't like to have to answer all the questions in the world."
"That's fair. They shouldn't enjoy it. And the reporters should make sure that they hold people's feet to the fire. That's the rules. That's what Jefferson talked about in 1787. We need to be able to have a free and fair press."
Kimmel used his monologue during Monday's show to defend his joke, which he said was aimed to poke fun at the age difference between the Trumps, not call for political violence. "I've been very vocal for many years, speaking out against gun violence, in particular," Kimmel said on the show. "I agree that hateful and violent rhetoric is something we should reject."
Following Donald and Melania's calls for ABC to take action against Kimmel, a complaint has been filed with the FCC calling for an investigation into the late-night host.
