Late night hosts joke about inflation, Tucker Carlson's vaccination status, Putin's follies

To soften the blow of high fuel costs, Krispy Kreme is offering a deal tied to the price of a gallon of gas, The Late Show noted Tuesday, puzzling over the marketing strategy here.
Yes, "inflation, it's getting worse and it's affecting everything," Trevor Noah said on The Daily Show. Consumer demand is sky high, "but the supply chain issues mean there's not enough products for the people to buy, and that drives the prices up. And then on top of that, Vladimir Putin decided that oh, now would be a nice time to Airbnb eastern Ukraine by force, raising oil prices, which makes everyone more expensive."
"The only thing that gets better because of inflation is small talk," Noah joked, but his example wasn't encouraging.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"Prices have jumped a whopping 8.5 percent since last March," Stephen Colbert said on The Late Show. Inflation numbers like that mean "no more splurging at the grocery store," so "instead of Milwaukee's Best, it'll have to be Waukesha's Ehhh — which is, let's face it, not that much worse."
"In an effort to reduce gas prices, President Biden announced that he will be allowing gasoline that uses a 15 percent ethanol blend," Colbert said. The blend, E15, costs 10 cents a gallon less, he calculated, so for a full tank of gas, "that comes out to … yeah, still not enough to save the Democrats in the midterms."
"Over in Ukraine," Russian President Vladimir Putin, stung by losses and brutal sanctions, is reportedly considering openly helping Donald Trump win back the White House in 2024, Colbert said. "But at least Putin has moved on to the next election, unlike disgraced attorney and rest home gigolo John Eastman," who's "still trying to decertify the 2020 election." Look, he said, "our ex-president isn't allowed a 'do-over' just because he didn't like the result the first time — that's how you get an Eric."
"Speaking of Russia," Jimmy Kimmel said on Kimmel Live, "Russia's neighbor Sarah Palin is making a comeback." And to survive the possibility Palin makes it to Congress, he replaced her voice with Morgan Freeman's. "The other darling of Fox News, Tucker Carlson, made an interesting confession at a megachurch in San Diego, he said he's not vaccinated," Kimmel said. "I don't believe he isn't vaccinated," he added. "Tucker Carlson is the vaccine equivalent of the guy on the Titanic who dressed as a woman to get on the lifeboat first."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
DOJ indicts John Bolton over classified files
Speed Read Continuing the trend of going after his political enemies, Trump prosecutes his former national security adviser
-
Trump, Putin set summit as Zelenskyy lands in DC
Speed Read Trump and Putin have agreed to meet in Budapest soon to discuss ending the war in Ukraine
-
Courts deal setbacks to Trump’s Chicago operations
Speed Read President Donald Trump cannot deploy the National Guard in Illinois
-
Pentagon reporters turn in badges after refusing rules
Speed Read They refused to sign a restrictive new press policy imposed by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth
-
Supreme Court points to gutting Voting Rights Act
speed read States would no longer be required to consider race when drawing congressional maps
-
Trump says he authorized covert CIA ops in Venezuela
Speed Read He is also considering military strikes inside the country
-
‘Vile, racist’ leaked chats roil Young Republicans
Speed Read Leaders of Young Republican groups made racist, antisemitic and violent comments in private chats
-
Trump ties $20B Argentina bailout to Milei votes
speed read Trump will boost Argentina’s economy — if the country’s right-wing president wins upcoming elections