Stephen Colbert isn't exactly taking sides in the Trump-Stormy Daniels 'Horseface' versus 'Tiny' smackdown

Stephen Colbert on the &quot;Horseface&quot; smackdown — (Image credit: Screenshot/YouTube/The Late Show)

President Trump scored a legal victory over porn actress Stormy Daniels on Monday when a federal judge threw out her defamation case against the president, Stephen Colbert said on Tuesday's Late Show.

"The judge's reasoning for why he threw the case out is — it's a little upsetting," Colbert said. "Trump called Stormy a liar on Twitter, but Judge S. James Otero ruled that Trump's speech was protected by the First Amendment because, he said, it was the kind of 'rhetorical hyperbole' normally associated with politics and public discourse in the United States." Colbert dissented: "It's only normal because Trump made it normal! Like how now it's normal to be buddies with Kim Jong Un yet fear the cruel and devious Canadians."

"Trump took immediate advantage of the 'new normal'" and called Daniels "Horseface" on Twitter, Colbert noted. "Yes, 'Horseface.' You heard it straight from the horse's ass. ... But on Twitter, just like in real life, Stormy quickly spanked the president." He read that tweet, which mentioned "bestiality," Trump's "umm ... shortcomings," and ended: "Game on, Tiny." Anyway, Colbert said, "the president of the United States and a porn star are exchanging ad hominem attacks on Twitter — or as Judge Otero would call it, normal."

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But Trump "has bigger problems than Stormy, because it's looking more and more like his buddies in Saudi Arabia murdered Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi in their Istanbul consulate," Colbert said. He ran through Saudi Arabia's recent suspicious behavior and the "certain" evidence Turkey claims to have. "So at this point, you'd have to be either stupid or delusional to believe the Saudis' denials. Luckily, our president is both," he said. Trump denies backing the Saudis due to "financial interests in Saudi Arabia," Colbert added. "Here with a counterpoint is Donald Trump." Watch that, and a little needling of Ivanka Trump's knowledge of classical philosophy, below. Peter Weber

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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.