“Jimmy Kimmel Live” guest host Anthony Anderson opened Monday’s show with a joke about finding himself in the spotlight to comment on the assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump due to his previously planned guest-hosting stint on ABC’s late-night series.
“Everybody’s still shaken up by the tragic events at the Trump rally this Saturday,” Anderson said at the top of his monologue. “All weekend, I kept thinking, ‘I wonder what Jimmy Kimmel is going to say about this on Monday?’ And then I was like, oh, I am Jimmy Kimmel on Monday.”
Anderson, the Emmy-nommed star of “Blackish” and a “Law & Order” alum, earnestly said “our thoughts are with the families of the victims.” He suggested that in the wake of Saturday’s violence, “hopefully this will be a moment that we can all take a step back from the hatred and vitriol in our politics and maybe chill the f— out.”
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Anderson also referenced the proliferation of conspiracy theories about Saturday’s shooting at a Trump campaign rally by a 20-year-old Pennsylvania man that left one man dead and two gravely wounded. The shooter was killed at the scene by the Secret Service, which has come under harsh scrutiny for what proved a massive security breach on Saturday evening in Butler, Pa., near Pittsburgh.
“If you want to maintain your sanity during this crazy time, do not go on the internet,” Anderson advised. “There are insane conspiracies popping up on both sides. Now, you know how the far right has QAnon? Well, conspiracy theories from the far left are now being called Blue-Anon. Blue-Anon, that sounds like a support group for people who give anonymous oral sex.”
Anderson also had a pointed observation about media coverage of the shooting and its aftermath.
“The award for the worst article about it goes to Forbes, who retracted this dumbass story: ‘Will Surviving Gunfire be Donald Trump’s Next Appeal to Black Voters?’ What? Getting shot at doesn’t make you popular in the Black community. If it did, then the most famous man in the hood would be Liam Neeson, and nobody gets shot more than that, dude. He’s the Irish 50 Cent.”
Anderson wrapped up his brief monologue remarks on Trump with a barb about the Republican nominee’s choice of vice presidential running mate and the former president’s high-profile adult sons, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump. Earlier Monday, Trump unveiled Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance as his VP selection.
“Vance has everything that Trump is looking for in a running mate,” Anderson observed. “He’s white. He’s…well, that’s pretty much it. He also looks like Eric and Don Jr. had a baby.”
