Trump says ABC 'better' fire Kimmel 'soon' amid feud

President Donald Trump isn't easing up in his push for Jimmy Kimmel's firing.

In a Truth Social post on April 30, the president once again called for ABC to remove Kimmel from the air after the comedian jokingly called first lady Melania Trump an "expectant widow" on his show last week.

Trump, in his latest post, asked when the Disney-owned network will be "firing" the "seriously unfunny" comic, adding, "People are angry. It better be soon!!!"

Trump had previously posted on April 27 that Kimmel, an outspoken critic of his, "should be immediately fired by Disney and ABC." The president has regularly called for Kimmel and all of the major late-night TV hosts to lose their jobs. But his latest demand has been tied to an April 23 skit where Kimmel delivered a fake White House Correspondents' Association dinner monologue, prior to the event. In the segment, which was made to look as if Kimmel was hosting the then-upcoming dinner, the comedian joked that the first lady had "a glow like an expectant widow."

A suspect has been charged with attempting to assassinate Trump at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner, which took place two days after Kimmel's comments. While Kimmel's "expectant widow" quip did not receive much attention when it aired, critics resurfaced the remark after the press dinner incident and accused him of advocating for violence against the president.

On April 27, the first lady took to X to slam Kimmel for alleged "hateful and violent rhetoric," writing that he should not "have the opportunity to enter our homes each evening to spread hate" and calling on ABC to "take a stand." Kimmel, in his April 27 monologue, defended the "expectant widow" comment as being a reference to the age difference between the president, 79, and the first lady, 56.

"It was a very light roast joke about the fact that he's almost 80 and she's younger than I am," he said. "It was not, by any stretch of the definition, a call to assassination, and they know that."

Addressing the first lady directly, Kimmel also said, "I agree that hateful and violent rhetoric is something we should reject. I do. And I think a great place to start to dial that back would be to have a conversation with your husband about it."

Kimmel's latest spat with Trump comes seven months after Disney controversially suspended the comedian's show in September 2025 over comments he made after the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Kimmel had said that the "MAGA gang" was "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." Brendan Carr, chair of the Federal Communications Commission, pressured ABC to take action on Kimmel, and the subsequent suspension of "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" sparked widespread outcry and accusations of government censorship. He returned to the air after less than a week.

Ted Cruz slams FCC amid Kimmel controversy

Amid Trump's latest feud with Kimmel, the FCC earlier this week said it "has been investigating" Disney "for possible violations of the Communications Act of 1934 and the FCC's rules, including the agency's prohibition on unlawful discrimination." The agency ordered the company to file license renewals for all of its licensed television stations by May 28 as part of its investigation, in what FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez called an unprecedented "political stunt."

Republican Sen. Ted Cruz criticized the FCC's actions, telling Punchbowl News, "It is not government's job to censor speech, and I do not believe the FCC should operate as the speech police."

Jimmy Kimmel jokes Donald and Melania Trump are 'closer than ever' thanks to him

In a change from the previous controversy, Kimmel's show has proceeded as scheduled all week, and there has not been any indication that Disney plans to fire the comedian.

Kimmel has been making light of the situation on his show throughout the week, joking on April 28 that Trump should be "fired" for making his own reference to his death by telling the first lady they "won't be able to match" his parents' record of being married for 63 years.

"Wait a minute. Did he just make a joke about his death?" Kimmel asked. "He should be fired for that! Only Donald Trump would demand I be fired for making a joke about his old age, and then a day later, go out and make a joke about his own old age!"

Kimmel's latest monologue on April 29 largely didn't focus on Trump's call for his firing. But he did reference it by joking that the controversy strengthened the president and the first lady's marriage. "Our first couple" have seemed "closer than ever" lately, Kimmel said, and "I like to think I played a part in that."

Later in his monologue, Kimmel said that Trump's recent actions, including "coming after talk shows," is "not the behavior of a well man."

Contributing: BrieAnna J. Frank