“THIS is exactly why Colbert keeps going viral…” Fans are flooding social media after Stephen Colbert turned a controversial $1.8 BILLION DOJ fund into total late-night chaos. From savage “slush fund” jokes to relentless political mockery, the monologue spiraled into one of the most talked-about segments of the year, with viewers calling it “fearless,” “unhinged,” and “too wild for TV.” And then came the line that sent the audience over the edge: “Trump just gave himself a get out of jail free card.” Why are fans saying this felt less like a monologue… and more like a live political explosion?
What To Know
- Stephen Colbert criticized President Trump’s new $1.8 billion DOJ “anti-weaponization fund,” calling it an unprecedented slush fund.
- Colbert and other critics argue the fund could be used to pay Trump allies, including those prosecuted for the January 6 Capitol riot.
- The host described the wording of the settlement as a “get out of jail free card.”
Stephen Colbert took aim at President Donald Trump‘s new $1.8 billion Department of Justice fund on Tuesday night’s (May 19) The Late Show, describing it as “an unprecedented level of grift.”
“We may be canceled, but apparently, The Late Show has outlived the constitution of the United States,” Colbert said at the top of Tuesday’s show. “Because yesterday, without any congressional or court approval, completely unilaterally, Donald Trump gave himself a $1.8 billion tax-fueled slush fund.”
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The late-night host was referring to the recently announced “anti-weaponization fund,” created as part of a settlement in Trump’s $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS. The fund will “have the power to issue formal apologies and monetary relief owed to claimants” who were prosecuted or investigated by the Biden administration. Critics have slammed the fund as a way for Trump to pay his allies.
Colbert said that one group of people who could benefit from this slush fund is those who were prosecuted for the January 6 Capitol riots. “That means people who stormed the Capitol, rubbed their poop on the walls, assaulted police officers, and tried to hang Vice President Mike Pence could be getting this cash,” he shared.
However, Colbert added that those people won’t actually see any of that cash because he believes “Trump is going to steal it all.”
“Now, you might be saying, ‘Surely this can’t get more corrupt.’ Shut up, I’m talking, and it can,” Colbert continued. “Because most egregiously, the guidelines announced by the Acting Attorney General stipulate: ‘Once the funds are deposited into the designated account, the United States has no liability whatsoever for the protection or safeguarding of those funds, regardless of bank failure, fraudulent transfers, or any other fraud or misuse of the funds.’”
He added, “So, it’s just an all-you-can-fraud buffet. It’s an unprecedented level of grift. Because again, funds of this scale typically are either created by an act of Congress or supervised by a court, and this settlement is just some piece of paper they printed out saying that Trump can do anything he wants with a bunch of your money.”
The comedian also noted how the Justice Department posted an addendum to the settlement, which says the IRS is “forever barred and precluded from pursuing examinations of Trump, related or affiliated individuals, and related trusts and businesses.”
“Trump just gave himself a get out of jail free card, and a way better one than Jeffrey Epstein got,” Colbert quipped.
You can watch Colbert’s full opening monologue in the video above and let us know your thoughts below.
