First Lady Melania Trump is taking aim at late-night television host Jimmy Kimmel over a joke he made about her looking like an "expectant widow," days before the shooting incident at the White House Correspondents' Dinner on Saturday.
In a fiery statement Monday on social media, the first lady called Kimmel "a coward," and urged ABC to "take a stand" against the comedian.
"Kimmel’s hateful and violent rhetoric is intended to divide our country," Trump said. "His monologue about my family isn’t comedy- his words are corrosive and deepens the political sickness within America. People like Kimmel shouldn’t have the opportunity to enter our homes each evening to spread hate. A coward, Kimmel hides behind ABC because he knows the network will keep running cover to protect him. Enough is enough."
Kimmel made the joke two days before a gunman attempted to breach the ballroom where President Donald Trump and the first lady were joined by 2,400 other guests to celebrate the First Amendment and the White House press. However, it's not the first time Kimmel and ABC have faced criticism from a high-ranking political figure.
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Last year, President Trump repeatedly blasted Kimmel over controversial remarks he made following the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. The comedian was then briefly suspended from hosting his show "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" in September but returned a week later.
Trump has also taken aim at other late-night comedians over jokes he doesn't approve of. Earlier this year, he threatened to sue "The Daily Show" host Trevor Noah over a joke he made referencing Trump and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The president and the first lady have repeatedly sought to distance themselves from Epstein. Both have also denied having ever visiting the disgraced financier's island, where prosecutors say he trafficked and sexually abused underage girls.
