What To Know
- Jimmy Kimmel expressed skepticism about Donald Trump’s sudden support for releasing the Epstein files, suggesting there may be ulterior motives behind the shift.
- Kimmel noted that despite an overwhelming House vote to release the files, Trump and the Department of Justice could still withhold information.
- He also criticized Trump for calling a female reporter “piggy” when questioned about the Epstein files, highlighting the lack of media attention to the incident.
Jimmy Kimmel has suspicions about Donald Trump‘s sudden change of heart regarding the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files, saying on Tuesday’s (November 18) Jimmy Kimmel Live! that “something’s fishy.”
During his opening monologue, the late-night host spoke about the House voting 427-1 to release the Epstein files on Tuesday, just days after the President shifted his stance and urged Congress to pass the petition that would allow for the release of the files.
“The goal was to have the bill pass by such a large margin that Trump can’t put his little orange thumb on the scale and give it the old Cheeto veto,” Kimmel said. “But make no mistake: This isn’t over. He’s not giving up easily. If anyone thinks he’s gonna release all the Epstein files, I’ve got a beautiful East Wing of the White House to sell you.”
Kimmel added that even after “an almost unanimous vote,” Trump and his “cronies in the Department of Justice” could still withhold information under the guise of protecting ongoing investigations and national security.
“The DOJ can withhold entire documents, photos, and/or video,” he continued. “But they would never do anything like that, would they? They’re sworn to protect the Constitution of the United States!”
“Something’s fishy,” Kimmel stated. “Trump rolled over faster than that dog Ghislaine Maxwell gets to play with in her country club prison.”
Kimmel was referencing Maxwell, a known associate of the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who was sentenced to 20 years in prison for grooming underage girls for the disgraced financier. In August, she was moved to a minimum-security prison camp in Texas, not long after she claimed she “never witnessed” Trump in “any inappropriate setting.”
Elsewhere in his monologue, Kimmel touched on Trump snapping at a reporter aboard Air Force One on Friday. In a viral clip, Trump told a female reporter, “Quiet, piggy,” after she asked a question about the Epstein files.
“He said ‘Quiet, piggy’ to a reporter, and it barely made the news,” Kimmel said. “If a man spoke like that to a female coworker in a workplace harassment training video, you’d go, ‘Ah, that’s over the top. Nobody would do that.’ If the pilot on Air Force One behaved like the President, he wouldn’t be allowed to fly the plane!”
You can watch Kimmel’s full opening monologue above and let us know your thoughts below.
Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Weeknights, 11:35 pm ET/PT, ABC