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Late-night television hosts this week directed their focus on ex-President Donald Trump, criticizing his employment of a ableist slur and what they described as unconvincing attempts to alleviate growing questions about his cognitive health.

Jon Stewart's Scathing Critique

Beginning his monologue, Jon Stewart took aim at a inflammatory Truth Social message in which Trump described Minnesota Governor Tim Walz with a highly offensive ableist term. "On Thanksgiving?!" Stewart exclaimed. "Did you mix it up with Festivus?"

When asked later if he regretted the remark, Trump is said to have doubled down, insisting there was "a genuine problem" with the Democratic governor.

"Something wrong with him? With him?" Stewart retorted. "You sat with your family at Thanksgiving, stomach full of turkey and pie, enveloped in the love of your notorious associates, but your first thought was to Truth a slur at Tim Walz? And there’s something wrong with him?"

The comedian then addressed Trump's bizarre explanation of a recently disclosed MRI. In an attempt to downplay worries, Trump stated he had "no idea" what part of his body was examined, suggesting it "couldn't have been his brain" because he "aced a cognitive test."

"That’s not physically possible," Stewart countered. "Being completely unaware, it’s not possible. What would you say to the doctor? ‘No no no, don’t tell me. I want to find out at my MRI reveal party.’"

He continued, "Good grief, man, were you not curious at all? When they placed you in a tube for 30 to 45 minutes, you didn’t want to know what they might be doing? Or did you just think to yourself, ‘What a loud tanning bed’?"

Stewart further ridiculed Trump's assertion of a "perfect score" on the scan. "That’s how they score the MRIs," he joked. "It's either a big stamp, ‘Perfect,’ or you get in red ink, ‘See me.’"

Stephen Colbert's Witty Observations

On his own program, Stephen Colbert highlighted increasing frustration among some former supporters. "Maga folks are starting to notice that Trump views them like livestock," he remarked, referencing criticism over funding a gilded event space over tackling economic issues.

"In other news, Trump celebrated Thanksgiving in his traditional way – with racism," Colbert quipped, referring to an anti-immigrant rant from the weekend. "Amidst all of that nonsense," he recapped, the president also used the ableist slur against Governor Walz.

After Walz responded to "Make the scan public," Trump said he would do so, despite his claimed ignorance of what was scanned.

"Uh, here’s a theory: maybe the part that’s broken is the part that’s meant to retain that information," Colbert suggested.

He then poked fun at the subsequent official explanation—a doctor's letter stating the MRI was for preventative screening. "Alright, that's reasonable," Colbert conceded. "Men in his age group also benefit from retiring, so … can we write that prescription next?"

Jimmy Kimmel's Direct Criticism

Jimmy Kimmel also blasted Trump's choice of words. "See, he can be presidential when he wants to be!" he joked. "It's puzzling why he didn’t get that Nobel peace prize. It defies all logic."

Regarding Trump's follow-up comment that he thinks "there is a problem" with Walz, Kimmel was direct: "yet another profound insight from the president of the eighth grade."

Kimmel also touched on Trump's claims of record-high approval ratings. "Which means it’s not just books he can’t read," Kimmel remarked, noting survey data showing significant disapproval. "There are gas station bathrooms on Yelp with better reviews than Donald Trump right now."

The host finished by criticizing Trump's pledge to pardon a imprisoned former Honduran president. "Critics have noted the staggering contradiction of Trump taking a hard line in one instance, while simultaneously pardoning a man who shipped a massive quantity of cocaine to this country," said Kimmel. "But those people are just haters and losers, you know? Relax!"

"During his campaign, Trump made it very clear: his key goals were a) pardoning drug kingpins and b) building a place to host formal dances," he summarized. "Commitments stated, promises kept."