Donald Trump slams Seth Meyers’ ‘anti-Trump’ jokes as ‘probably illegal’
Donald Trump has branded Seth Meyers’ jokes about his trip to Asia on Late Night “probably illegal”.
In the A Closer Look segment aired on October 30, 2025, the late-night talk show host zeroed in on the US President’s remarks aboard the USS George Washington in Japan, where he criticised electric catapults used on aircraft carriers.
“Trump’s out here campaigning against magnets like they personally wronged him,” Meyers joked.
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By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.“This is a man who thinks steam catapults are the hill to die on. Not the economy, not healthcare - catapults,” he said.
The segment also featured Meyers impersonating Mr Trump’s delivery, saying: “I like steam because you can fix it with a wrench. Magnets? You need a wizard.”
“He’s ranting about catapults like he’s auditioning for a role in a steampunk reboot of Top Gun.”
In response, Mr Trump called Meyers “a truly deranged lunatic”.
He reacted on his Truth Social platform on Saturday.
“Seth Meyers of NBC may be the least talented person to ‘perform’ live in the history of television.
“In fact, he may be the WORST to perform, live or otherwise. I watched his show the other night for the first time in years. In it he talked endlessly about electric catapults on aircraft carriers which I complain about as not being as good as much less expensive steam catapults.”
“On and on he went, a truly deranged lunatic,” he wrote.
“Why does NBC waste its time and money on a guy like this??? - NO TALENT, NO RATINGS, 100 per cent ANTI TRUMP, WHICH IS PROBABLY ILLEGAL!!!”
Meyers was among the late-night TV hosts to rally around Jimmy Kimmel when his show was taken off air by ABC over comments he made about the killing of political campaigner Charlie Kirk.
Seth dedicated Late Night’s A Closer Look to the president’s relationship with free speech and the media and warned that the broadcaster’s decision to pull the plug on Jimmy Kimmel Live! was a “big moment in our democracy”.
He said of the president: “His administration is pursuing a crackdown on free speech — and completely unrelated, I just want to say, before we get started here, that I’ve always admired and respected Mr Trump.
“I’ve always believed he was a visionary, innovator, a great president, and an even better golfer. And if you’ve ever seen me say anything negative about him, that’s just AI.”
