US President Donald Trump has called on ABC to fire late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel for joking that Melania Trump is “glowing like a future widow” on the eve of the shooting in Washington.
This is reported by CNN.
On April 23, Kimmel performed a sketch about the traditional White House Correspondents' Association dinner on his evening show “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” The publication explains that usually a comedian performs at this event, and the sketch was based on what would happen if Kimmel were invited to play this role. As part of the performance, the host said that Melania Trump “glows like a future widow.”
A few days later, on April 25, a gunman entered the Washington Hill Hotel in Washington, D.C., where at least 2,600 people, including the Trumps, were attending a White House Correspondents' Association dinner. During the event, the gunman opened fire with a shotgun at security personnel.
On April 27, Donald Trump called for Kimmel to be fired for a comment he made on the show.
“Jimmy Kimmel should be fired immediately by Disney and ABC,” Trump wrote on the Truth Social network, adding that the joke was a “disgusting call to violence.”
Melania Trump also reacted to the host's joke.
“His monologue about my family is not comedy. His words are poisonous and are deepening the political sickness in America. People like Kimmel should not be allowed to enter our homes every night to spread hate. A coward, Kimmel is hiding behind ABC because he knows the network will cover for him. Enough is enough. It's time for ABC to take a stand. How much longer will ABC management allow Kimmel to engage in such disgusting behavior at the expense of our community?” she wrote in X.
White House press secretary Caroline Leavitt called Kimmel's words “completely insane” and added that such rhetoric “makes crazy people believe crazy things and inspires them to commit violence.”
Representatives for ABC and Kimmel have not yet responded to CNN's requests for comment.
What is known about the shooting in Washington
On the evening of April 25, US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump were urgently evacuated from the White House Correspondents' Association dinner in Washington after a gunman opened fire with a rifle at security personnel.
According to CNN, the suspect in the attack is 31 years old. He worked as a teacher and video game developer in Southern California and lives in the Los Angeles suburb of Torrance.
US President Donald Trump said he made security personnel move more slowly during the evacuation of a party at the Washington Hilton because he wanted to see what was happening.
On April 27, defendant Cole Allen was charged with three criminal counts in the attempted assassination of US President Donald Trump. The charges include attempted assassination of the president, illegal transportation of a firearm with the intent to commit a violent crime, and use of a weapon to commit a criminal act.