NEWSWhitney Cummings Hits Donald Trump With Jeffrey Epstein Jokes at Bill Maher’s Kennedy Center Tribute
Whitney Cummings opened with a Donald Trump joke at the Mark Twain Prize ceremony.
July 2 2026, Published 8:28 a.m. ET
Bill Maher’s Mark Twain Prize ceremony was always going to invite political jokes. Whitney Cummings made sure one of the night’s sharpest landed early.
The comedian took the stage Sunday at the Kennedy Center, where Maher was being honored with the annual prize for American humor, and immediately aimed at President Donald Trump, who was not in attendance but remained a constant presence throughout the night.
“I actually heard Trump may come tonight but he couldn’t make it,” Cummings joked. “He got caught in s-- traffic.”
The Epstein Joke Lands
The comedian referenced the president’s friendship with Jeffrey Epstein.
The line referenced Trump’s longtime friendship with Jeffrey Epstein, the financier and convicted s-- offender who died in 2019. Trump has denied any wrongdoing connected to Epstein, minimized their relationship and said the two had a falling out before Epstein was charged with a crime.
Cummings also said she had been told not to use the joke, according to The New York Times.
The moment came as Trump’s administration continues facing scrutiny over its handling of Justice Department files related to Epstein. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who attended Sunday’s ceremony, was also called before a House panel in May for closed-door testimony about his own past encounters with Epstein.
A Night Full of Trump Material
She also took aim at Bill Maher's White House dinner with Donald Trump.
Cummings did not stop with Epstein. She also mocked Maher’s White House dinner with Trump, Kid Rock and UFC CEO Dana White, joking that “seeing Dana White, Donald Trump and Kid Rock all together at the White House really proves there is no God.”
Maher has had a strange back-and-forth with Trump since that dinner. The Real Time host said afterward that Trump was “gracious and measured,” but the temporary thaw did not last. Trump later attacked Maher on Truth Social, calling him a “highly overrated LIGHTWEIGHT,” a “weak and ineffective person” and a “jerk.”
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Donald Trump became the focus of political jokes throughout the ceremony.
On the red carpet, Maher told CNN that Trump had returned to “yelling and screaming,” but said he preferred fighting to silence.
“I'd rather the channels be open,” Maher said.
The Building Became Part of the Bit
The event took place at the Kennedy Center, fueling more political humor.
The ceremony also unfolded inside a Kennedy Center still marked by Trump’s failed attempt to rename it after himself. A federal judge ruled in May that Trump’s name had been added unlawfully because Congress had not approved the change.
Tarps remained outside the building Sunday where Trump’s name had been removed from the facade. Jay Leno called the tarp “hilarious,” while Maher called it “hysterical.”
