Did Jimmy Kimmel Say About Charlie Kirk’s Death on His Late-Night Show? Read the Full Transcript

ABC has taken Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show off the air indefinitely after the host made remarks about the death of Charlie Kirk.

On the Sept. 15 episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live!, the 57-year-old comedian talked about several current events, including President Donald Trump criticizing the NFL’s new “Kickoff Rule.”

Kimmel then spoke about Kirk, a conservative commentator who was shot and killed while speaking at Utah Valley University on Sept. 10. He was 31.

Tyler Robinson, 22, has been charged with aggravated murder in connection with Kirk’s death.

Kimmel accused Trump supporters of trying to use the tragedy for political gain, saying, “We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it. In between the finger-pointing, there was grieving.”

He went on to talk about the White House lowering its flags to half-staff and the criticism that followed. “On a human level, you can see how hard the president is taking this,” Kimmel added.

A clip shown during the episode featured Trump responding to questions after the shooting. When asked about Kirk’s death, Trump said he was doing “very good” and quickly shifted to discussing construction of a new White House ballroom.

Back on air, Kimmel joked, “Yes, he’s at the fourth stage of grief, construction.” He continued mocking Trump’s comments, adding, “This is not how an adult grieves the murder of someone he called a friend. This is how a 4-year-old mourns a goldfish.”

Kimmel also highlighted another interview from Sept. 12, where Trump recalled hearing about Kirk’s death while planning the ballroom. Trump explained, “For 150 years they’ve wanted a ballroom at the White House. They don’t have one, so they have to use tents when foreign leaders like President Xi come over. If it rains, it’s a wipeout.”

Kimmel responded with more sarcasm, imagining Trump continuing the story with, “And then we installed the most beautiful chandelier. Sconces you wouldn’t believe.”

The comedian questioned Trump’s behavior, saying, “There’s something wrong with him, there really is. Who thinks like that? Why are we building a $200 million ballroom in the White House? Is it possible he’s doing it intentionally so we can be mad about that instead of the Epstein list? By the time he’s out of office, the White House will have slot machines and a water slide.”

On Sept. 17, Nexstar announced that its ABC-affiliated stations would preempt Jimmy Kimmel Live! “for the foreseeable future.” The company said it strongly disagreed with Kimmel’s comments about Kirk’s death and would replace the show with other programming.

Andrew Alford, President of Nexstar’s broadcasting division, said in a statement, “Mr. Kimmel’s comments about the death of Mr. Kirk are offensive and insensitive at a critical time in our national political discourse. Continuing to give Mr. Kimmel a broadcast platform in the communities we serve is simply not in the public interest at the current time.”

He added that the decision was made to “let cooler heads prevail as we move toward the resumption of respectful, constructive dialogue.”