White House communications director calls Jimmy Kimmel a ‘s--- human being’ for Melania Trump ‘widow’ joke

(Gray News) — A White House official is pushing back against Jimmy Kimmel over a joke the comedian made about First Lady Melania Trump.

On Tuesday, White House Communications Director Steven Cheung called Kimmel a “s--- human being” in a post on X.

“Jimmy Kimmel is a s--- human being for: #1. Making a disgusting joke about assassinating the President,” Cheung wrote on X. “#2. Doubling down on that joke instead of doing the decent thing by apologizing. ABC needs to fire him immediately and he should be shunned for the rest of his life.”

The joke in question was delivered by Kimmel last week, when he said the first lady had “the glow of an expectant widow.”

Two days later, an armed man stormed the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner and attempted to assassinate President Donald Trump, according to officials.

The president and first lady have both called on ABC to fire Kimmel from his late-night show, “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”

However, Kimmel stood by his joke, saying he in no way intended it to be about assassinating the president but instead was a jab at Donald and Melania Trump’s 24-year age gap.

“It was a very light roast joke about the fact that he’s almost 80 and she’s younger than I am,” Kimmel, 58, said. “It was not by any stretch of the definition a call to assassination. And they know that. I’ve been very vocal for many years speaking out against gun violence.”

Authorities said the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner had barely begun Saturday evening when Cole Tomas Allen, 31, of California, tried to race past a security barricade armed with a shotgun and a pistol.

He exchanged gunfire with Secret Service agents tasked with safeguarding the event.

Allen was injured but was not shot. A Secret Service officer was shot but was wearing a bullet-resistant vest and survived, officials said.

President Trump was hurried off the stage unharmed as guests ducked for cover under their tables.

Allen was charged Monday with the attempted assassination of President Trump, among other charges.

He was ordered to remain in jail pending additional court hearings and faces up to life in prison if convicted on the assassination count alone.