On Thursday, President Trump boasted of record viewership for his first State of the Union address, and Stephen Colbert found two problems with that claim. "First, that's not true," he said on Thursday's Late Show. "Second, it's a lie." In fact, Trump drew historically low numbers. "Look, it doesn't matter how many people watched — but what does matter is that the president needs to lie about it, and then somehow get away with it," Colbert said. "This is the new world we live in. So let me say right now in advance, congratulations to President Trump on winning the Super Bowl. Well-played! So good. Also, you make a great Black Panther."
Trump continued basking in his State of the Union when addressing Republican lawmakers on Thursday, Colbert said, and the president chided Democrats for not clapping when he bragged about historically low black and Hispanic unemployment. "Yeah, you'd think the Democrats would applaud, since that's all because of Obama," Colbert said. And when Trump was curiously effusive about his first year? "I hesitate to drag logic kicking and screaming into this conversation, but you can't fulfill more promises than you promised," he said. "That's just taking credit for stuff that happened." Colbert commented his way through other parts of the speech, landing on a Black History Month jab.
Trump may have inflated his State of the Union ratings, but the Late Show White House press secretary had an explanation for why Trump wasn't wrong. Watch below. Peter Weber
Subscribe to 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.
-
Trump says Smithsonian too focused on slavery's illsSpeed Read The president would prefer the museum to highlight 'success,' 'brightness' and 'the future'
-
Trump to host Kennedy Honors for Kiss, StalloneSpeed Read Actor Sylvester Stallone and the glam-rock band Kiss were among those named as this year's inductees
-
White House seeks to bend Smithsonian to Trump's viewSpeed Read The Smithsonian Institution's 21 museums are under review to ensure their content aligns with the president's interpretation of American history
-
Charlamagne Tha God irks Trump with Epstein talkSpeed Read The radio host said the Jeffrey Epstein scandal could help 'traditional conservatives' take back the Republican Party
-
CBS cancels Colbert's 'Late Show'Speed Read 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert' is ending next year
-
Shakespeare not an absent spouse, study proposesspeed read A letter fragment suggests that the Shakespeares lived together all along, says scholar Matthew Steggle
-
New Mexico to investigate death of Gene Hackman, wifespeed read The Oscar-winning actor and his wife Betsy Arakawa were found dead in their home with no signs of foul play
-
Giant schnauzer wins top prize at Westminster showSpeed Read Monty won best in show at the 149th Westminster Kennel Club dog show
