Donald Trump exploded on late-night television host Seth Meyers Saturday (November 1), branding him a “deranged lunatic” and suggesting his anti-Trump comedy might be “illegal.”
Trump’s fury erupted on Truth Social after Meyers mocked Trump’s obsession with aircraft carrier catapults during Thursday’s (October 30) episode of Late Night with Seth Meyers. The comedian had played clips of Trump’s recent speech to military members aboard the USS George Washington in Japan, where the president complained about electromagnetic catapults versus steam-powered ones.
“Seth Meyers of NBC may be the least talented person to ‘perform’ in the history of television. In fact, he may be the WORST to perform, live or otherwise,” Trump wrote in his Truth Social rant.
Trump continued his attack, claiming he watched Meyers’ show “for the first time in years” and was appalled by the comedian’s extended segment about catapults. “In it, he talked endlessly about electric catapults on aircraft carriers which I complain about as not being as good as much less expensive steam catapults.”
“On and on he went, a truly deranged lunatic,” Trump added, before questioning why NBC continues to employ Meyers.
Trump’s most controversial claim came when he suggested Meyers’ criticism crossed legal boundaries: “NO TALENT, NO RATINGS” and is “100 [percent] ANTI-TRUMP, WHICH IS PROBABLY ILLEGAL.”
Meyers had joked that Trump “spends more time thinking about catapults than Wile E Coyote” and performed an impression of the president complaining about military modernization. The comedian also mocked Trump’s broader Asia trip, saying it gave him “the royal treatment he so desperately craves.”
This marks the latest escalation in Trump’s war against late-night television. In September, he declared Meyers would be the “next” host to face cancelation following Jimmy Kimmel’s brief suspension. “That leaves Jimmy and Seth, two total losers, on Fake News NBC,” Trump had written.
The attacks apparently rattled Meyers, with industry insiders reporting the host “has been freaking out” over Trump’s threats. Television experts have suggested Meyers could indeed be next to go as networks shift away from politically charged content.
But Meyers hasn’t backed down, accusing the Trump administration of “pursuing a crackdown on free speech” and offering mock praise for the president during Kimmel’s suspension crisis. “I just want to say, before we get started here, that I’ve always admired and respected Mr Trump,” Meyers joked to audience laughter.
The comedian maintained his defiant stance: “It is a privilege and an honor to call Jimmy Kimmel my friend, in the same way that it’s a privilege and honor to do this show every night. I wake up every day, I count my blessings that I live in a country that at least purports to value freedom of speech, and we’re gonna keep doing our show the way we’ve always done it: with enthusiasm and integrity.”
Trump has long complained about the Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS) on Ford-class carriers, preferring the older steam-driven catapults. During his USS George Washington speech, he asked military members which system they preferred, prompting shouts of “Steam” from the audience.
“They’re spending billions of dollars to build stupid electric,” Trump told the troops. “And the problem, when it breaks, you have to send up to MIT, get the most brilliant people in the world, fly them out, it’s ridiculous. The steam they said they could fix with a hammer and a blowtorch and it works just as well if not better.”