Stephen Colbert came to the defense of an auto worker who called Donald Trump a “pedophile protector,” praising the man for using “precise language.”
During Wednesday’s monologue for “The Late Show,” the comedian addressed the controversial moment, which saw the president dropping an f-bomb and flipping the bird after auto worker TJ Sabula shouted the insult during Trump’s tour of a Ford plant.
“Apparently, Trump has designated a new national bird,” Colbert joked before showing video footage of the viral exchange. “That’s a new one. The President of the United States publicly f-bombs and then flips somebody off. That is the most crudely hostile response from the leader of our country since Herbert Hoover’s campaign slogan, ‘I’ll poop in every pot.’”
As Colbert went on, he gave credit to Sabula for “getting under Trump’s skin like compound butter on a Thanksgiving turkey.”
He added: “And all because he brought up the Epstein files, which reminds me, where are the Epstein files? We were told that there would be Epstein files. In fact, you signed a law mandating that you would have to release the Epstein files by the middle of last month, but you still haven’t. It kind of makes you seem like a, what’s the phrase? ‘Pedophile protector!’”
After reiterating Sabula’s jab, Colbert gave the auto worker “props” for “using precise language” in the insult.
“He could have shouted pedophile, but until the full Epstein files are released, that’s just an unverified claim,” Colbert added. “Whereas pedophile protector is fairly in evidence at this point. And that’s the kind of attention to detail you can expect in your F-150. There’s a reason their motto is, ‘Ford, not sure if this will ever come up, but for the record, we don’t like pedophiles.’”
Per Colbert, Sabula has been suspended from his job pending an investigation. Though, as Colbert quipped, “Yelling something true at Donald Trump isn’t the worst thing that’s happened at a Ford plant. That would be the Pinto.”
Watch Colbert’s full monologue above.
“The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” airs weeknights at 11:35 p.m. ET on CBS.
