Just a day after ABC pulled Jimmy Kimmel’s broadcast from the air due to his comments about Charlie Kirk, David Letterman called the suspension a “misery,” and slammed Donald Trump’s White House as an “authoritarian criminal administration.”
“This is misery,” Letterman said when asked about Kimmel’s pause on ABC on Thursday in The Atlantic Festival 2025, adding, “I feel bad about this.”
“We see where this is all going, correct?” Letterman continued. “It’s managed media. And it’s no good. It’s silly. It’s ridiculous. And you can’t go around firing somebody because you’re fearful or trying to suck up to an authoritarian criminal administration in the Oval Office. That’s just not how this works.”
Watch video from Letterman’s interview here.
Given Trump’s previous comments about Kimmel’s late night spot getting pulled, Letterman implied the move was “premeditated” by the president, saying Kimmel’s removal “was predicted by our president right after Stephen Colbert got walked off, so you’re telling me this isn’t premeditated at some level?”
“The institution of the president of the United States ought to be bigger than a guy doing a talk show,” Letterman continued.
The former late night host added that he texted Kimmel on Thursday morning, saying, “He’s up in bed, taking nourishment. He’s going to be fine.”
Letterman’s comments come just one day after ABC announced Wednesday that “‘Jimmy Kimmel Live’ will be preempted indefinitely” following his comments about Kirk on his Monday broadcast. The move first came from Nexstar Media Group, which said it would preempt “Kimmel” broadcasts on its 200 owned or partner stations, before ABC came out with a similar message.
“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,” Kimmel said on Monday.
