Late night hosts can't believe Trump confessed everything to Bob Woodward on tape

Late night hosts on Trump and Bob Woodward

(Image credit: Screeshots/YouTube/Jimmy Kimmel Live, The Late Late Show, The Tonight Show. Late Night)

"Guys, Bob Woodward has a new book coming out about the president, and one story is making major headlines today," Jimmy Fallon said on Wednesday's Tonight Show. "It turns out Trump knew way back in early February how bad the coronavirus was, but he continued to downplay it to the American people," because, he said on tape, he didn't "want to create a panic." Fallon wasn't impressed: "Yeah, I remember Americans not panicking when they spent thousands for a roll of toilet paper on eBay."

This is "a catastrophic story for Trump that threatens to end his presidency — or as he calls it, Wednesday," Fallon joked. He played some more of Woodward's "insane" tapes, including Trump acknowledging back in March that kids are getting sick from the coronavirus. And he "still fought for schools to reopen," he said. "I'd say at this point, the dude needs to give himself some hush money."

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"Trump announced yesterday that he will fund his campaign with his own money, if necessary — but before he cuts himself a check, he's obviously going to have to sleep with himself first," Seth Meyers joked at Late Night. "And it's pretty rich that Donald Trump doesn't want to 'create a panic.' Did he add, 'You know, you've got enough on your plate, what with the caravan of migrants coming up to murder our family and all'?" And Trump said it all on tape, he noted. "Imagine if Bob Woodward's job was always this easy. It's as if Nixon walked up to him in 1973 and said, 'Hello, Bob, did you know I did Watergate? This is a pretty cool parking garage, huh?'"

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Yes, "despite everything he was saying at the time, Trump knew how deadly and contagious the virus was way back in early February," James Corden said at The Late Late Show. But "can I be honest, my beef is with Woodward on this one. It is! He had this information, he had the tape the whole time. Trump was out there saying 'Don't worry, it will go away,' he's holding rallies, and Bob Woodward's like, 'This is too good. I'm going to save this for my book — seven months from now.'"

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Brad Paisley, guest-hosting Jimmy Kimmel Live, welcomed viewers to "take a break from the mean tweets, the awkward beats, and lame jokes about Donald Trump," in song. And you can watch that 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.