Kimmel’s “Expectant Widow” Joke About First Lady Melania Trump Draws Fierce Backlash
on Apr 27, 2026
The President And First Lady Have Called For Jimmy Kimmel To Be Fired
At the Hilton Hotel in Washington, D.C., on Saturday, April 25, members of the press were gathered for the annual White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner.
The evening, which celebrates the journalists who cover the happenings at the White House, was set to be a first, as President Donald Trump would be attending the Correspondents’ Dinner for the first time as president.
However, the evening was called off, as a gunman, believed to be 31-year-old Cole Allen, rushed through security and opened fire on Secret Service before he was apprehended.
This is the third major assassination attempt on President Trump, with the first being the harrowing shooting on the campaign trail in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 2024.
Later, on Sept. 15, 2024, Ryan Routh was arrested after hiding out on the grounds of Mar-a-Lago, preparing to assassinate then-candidate Trump as he golfed.
The alleged Correspondents’ Dinner shooter’s manifesto, which was disclosed to the public on April 26, detailed how Allen allegedly intended to kill each member of the Trump administration, with FBI Dir. Kash Patel inextricably left off from the list.
Just two days prior to the shooting at the Correspondents’ Dinner, embattled late night host Jimmy Kimmel, host of ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live!, made an off-color joke about First Lady Melania Trump and President Trump that has inspired significant backlash.
Performing a skit on his show, in which he pretended to be the customary comedian guest at the Correspondents’ Dinner, Kimmel went on to quip, “Our First Lady, Melania, is here. Look at Melania, so beautiful. Mrs. Trump, you have a glow like an expectant widow.”
Now, Melania and President Trump have responded to the off-color joke…
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Watch Kimmel’s “Joke,” And See How Melania Responded
See the clip of Jimmy Kimmel saying Melania looked like an “expectant widow,” here:
In the morning of Monday, April 27, First Lady Melania Trump posted a statement on X, formerly Twitter, calling out the “expectant widow” comment made by Kimmel.
In her post, she wrote, “Kimmel’s hateful and violent rhetoric is intended to divide our country. His monologue about my family isn’t comedy — his words are corrosive and deepens the political sickness within America.”
Continuing, she described Kimmel as a “coward,” saying, “People like Kimmel shouldn’t have the opportunity to enter our homes each evening to spread hate.”
She went on to say, “Enough is enough. It is time for ABC to take a stand.”
See Melania’s full post, here:
Kimmel’s hateful and violent rhetoric is intended to divide our country. His monologue about my family isn’t comedy- his words are corrosive and deepens the political sickness within America.
— First Lady Melania Trump (@FLOTUS) April 27, 2026
People like Kimmel shouldn’t have the opportunity to enter our homes each evening to…
During an April 27 press conference, White House Press Sec. Karoline Leavitt said, “Debating, peaceful protesting, and voting are how we need to settle disagreements, not bullets.”
She added, “Nobody in recent years has faced more bullets and more violence than President Trump.”
Leavitt went on to outline how the comments made by members of the media have correlated with many of the threats made against the members of the Trump administration.
Directing her attention to Jimmy Kimmel, Leavitt then said, “Who in their right minds says a wife would be glowing over the potential murder of her beloved husband.”
Watch Leavitt address the comment by Kimmel during an April 27 press conference, here:
President Donald Trump also responded to the “expectant widow” comment, posting on Truth Social in the afternoon of April 27 that he “appreciate[s] that so many people are incensed by Kimmel’s despicable call to violence.”
He went on to write, “Jimmy Kimmel should be immediately fired by Disney and ABC.”
Kimmel was previously pulled from the air on Sept. 17, 2025, following the assassination of the Turning Point USA founder, Charlie Kirk.
“We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it,” Kimmel said back in September.
The removal of Kimmel from the air was seen by some as a First Amendment issue, and he was restored to his position hosting Jimmy Kimmel Live! by Sept. 23, 2025.
See, Trump’s full post about Kimmel’s comment, here:
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