Jimmy Kimmel has declined to apologise for a joke he made about Melania Trump days before the White House correspondents' dinner shooting, after both the first lady and Donald Trump called for him to be fired. The joke, made during a skit on his show, described Melania Trump as glowing 'like an expectant widow'.
Melania Trump accused Kimmel of 'hateful and violent rhetoric' and 'atrocious behaviour' in a post on X, urging ABC to take a stand. Donald Trump echoed her call on Truth Social, saying Kimmel should be 'immediately fired by Disney and ABC'.
In his Monday night monologue, Kimmel defended the joke, saying it was made three days before the alleged assassination attempt and was a 'very light roast' about the age difference between Donald and Melania Trump. He argued it was not a call to assassination, noting his long history of speaking out against gun violence.
Kimmel also pointed to a comment by White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, who said before the dinner that 'there will be some shots fired tonight', suggesting that such rhetoric should also be scrutinised. He expressed sympathy for those at the dinner, calling the event 'traumatic and scary'.
The incident follows a previous controversy in September, when ABC suspended Kimmel after FCC chair Brendan Carr threatened the network over jokes about the president. Kimmel was later reinstated amid allegations of attacks on free speech.
