President Donald Trump launched a scathing attack on former late-night television host David Letterman on Friday, September 20, 2025, after the retired comedian criticized ABC’s suspension of Jimmy Kimmel. Trump questioned what happened to the “very highly overrated David Letterman” and declared that “He looks like hell, but at least he knew when to quit.”
The verbal assault came after Letterman spoke out against Jimmy Kimmel’s indefinite suspension from ABC, which began on Wednesday following public pressure from Federal Communications Commission chair Brendan Carr and network affiliate groups. The groups objected to Kimmel’s comments about the motives of conservative pundit Charlie Kirk’s alleged killer, Tyler Robinson.
Letterman, who retired from The Late Show in 2015 and was replaced by Stephen Colbert, addressed the situation while speaking at the Atlantic Festival. He characterized the suspension as misery and explicitly shouted out his good friend Jimmy Kimmel, expressing sympathy for the situation. The former host criticized what he called managed media and stated it was no good.
The 78-year-old comedian went further in his criticism, declaring the situation ridiculous. He argued that people cannot go around firing somebody because they are fearful or trying to appeal to what he described as an authoritarian and criminal administration in the Oval Office. Letterman emphasized that such actions are not how the system should work.
Trump responded to these comments with characteristic harshness on his Truth Social platform. The president questioned Letterman’s past television ratings and concluded his post by calling the former host a loser. Entertainment Weekly reached out to representatives for Letterman for comment but had not received a response.
The controversy stems from Kimmel’s comments on Monday night’s episode of his show, where he suggested that people had reached new lows over the weekend with the MAGA supporters desperately trying to characterize the individual who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them. Kimmel accused them of doing everything possible to score political points from the situation.
These remarks prompted public outcry from Carr, who encouraged affiliate groups to push back against Disney, ABC’s parent company, by dropping what he called the garbage program from their lineup until company leaders straightened the situation out. Notable affiliate groups Nexstar and Sinclair issued statements saying they would comply with this request.
Trump celebrated Kimmel’s suspension in a separate Truth Social post on Wednesday night, calling it great news for America. He described the Jimmy Kimmel Show as ratings-challenged and congratulated ABC for finally having the courage to do what needed to be done. The president also called for the suspension of Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon and Late Night host Seth Meyers from their positions at NBC.
At a press conference the following day during a visit to the United Kingdom, Trump doubled down on his position. He insisted that ABC dropped Jimmy Kimmel Live purely as a business decision involving viewership, despite the fact that the network’s affiliate groups publicly announced they were preempting the show for political reasons. Trump told reporters that Kimmel was fired because he had bad ratings more than anything else.
The suspension of Kimmel’s show prompted swift condemnation from numerous politicians and entertainers. Former President Barack Obama, California Governor Gavin Newsom, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, actress Tatiana Maslany, Late Show host Stephen Colbert, and former late-night hosts Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien all criticized the network’s decision.
The incident highlights the ongoing tension between the Trump administration and media personalities who have been critical of the president’s policies and actions. Nexstar, Sinclair, and Disney all have pending business deals or are lobbying for deregulation that will require approval from the Trump administration, potentially creating conflicts of interest in their programming decisions.
