Jimmy Kimmel Accuses Donald Trump of Calling for His Firing to 'Distract' From the Epstein Files

As the feud between the two escalates, late-night host Jimmy Kimmel accused President Donald Trump of calling for his firing as a tactic to distract the public from unreleased "Trump-Epstein files" and other political controversies.

Kimmel’s comments were a direct response to a Truth Social post where Trump pressured ABC to fire the "seriously unfunny" host "soon," citing supposedly low television ratings.

Kimmel retorted that if low ratings were a fireable offense, "we should both be out of a job," referencing the president's own dipping approval numbers.

“If incompetently presiding over not just one of but the lowest rating in history is why I should be fired, we should both be out of a job,” Kimmel quipped during his Thursday, April 30, monologue, pointing to Trump’s abysmal approval ratings.

Trump’s current net approval rating (-19 points) is lower than at the same point in his first term, when it was approximately -13 points.

Kimmel aired a montage of clips of a “very prominent Republican” railing against “censorship” and “cancel culture” on the campaign trail while celebrating “free speech,” who was very evidently the president.

“I hate to say this, and I hope it doesn’t get me in trouble: I’m starting to think Donald Trump might be a hypocrite,” said Kimmel, who then hilariously called for a “ceasefire.”

The late-night host argued that the renewed attacks were part of a pattern aimed at shifting focus from several key issues, including the Jeffrey Epstein scandal.

He suggested that the petulant POTUS’ persistence in trying to get him fired is to “distract us from the Trump-Epstein files” and the “illegal war he started” in Iran.

Kimmel claimed Trump’s attorney general is refusing to release files related to Epstein that reportedly mention Trump’s name numerous times.

Kimmel characterized the feud as one of Trump's "three wars," alongside ongoing military actions involving Iran and Ukraine.

He also suggested the feud was meant to mask domestic failures, such as failing to lower prices as promised.

The current feud was ignited by a joke Kimmel made exactly one week prior, in which he described First Lady Melania Trump as having the "glow of an expectant widow.”

Both Donald and Melania condemned the remark as a "call to violence" and "hateful rhetoric," demanding that ABC "take a stand.”

The FLOTUS also baselessly blamed Jimmy for the shooting.

As the president continues to cry about Jimmy, a federal judge dismissed his $10 billion defamation lawsuit against the Wall Street Journal.

The suit concerned a 2025 article about a birthday letter Donald reportedly signed for Jeffrey; the judge ruled Donald failed to allege "actual malice plausibly.”