Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Fallon, and Jimmy Kimmel gratefully recap the final Trump-Biden debate

Late night hosts on final debate
(Image credit: Screenshots/YouTube/The Late Show, The Tonight Show, Jimmy Kimmel Live)

The final presidential debate between President Trump and Joe Biden was in Nashville on Thursday night, and The Late Show kicked it off with a musical number.

YouTube YouTube
Watch On

Biden and Trump also clashed on climate policy, corruption, racism, and personal taxes, and when "Welker turned to the tragedy of the 545 children who the Trump administration took from their parents at the southern border," Trump "did an insane thing and tried to defend the border detention centers for kids," Colbert said. "Trump seemed to get spooked as the night went on and started playing some of the classics," like "immigrants are murderers and rapists. Trump's closing with the line he opened this entire nightmare with." He reminded voters: "The ultimate mute button is in your hands."

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

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.

Sign up
YouTube YouTube
Watch On

The mute button "seemed like it worked pretty well — I'm thinking of getting one for Thanksgiving," Jimmy Fallon joked at The Tonight Show. In fact, it was so "much calmer, at one point they almost cut to Jeffrey Toobin to liven things up."

"Everyone was impressed by Trump not interrupting or yelling," though "I'm not sure it's a great sign that we talk about the president like we talk about a 4-year-old at a puppet show," Fallon said. And when Trump claimed he wasn't racist, "instead of the mute button, someone hit the laugh track. It's a little weird to say 'I'm the least racist person in the room' when half the room are your friends and family."

YouTube YouTube
Watch On

"Only Donald Trump can look at a half-Black, half-Native American moderator and say 'I'm the least racist person in this room,'" Jimmy Kimmel agreed on Kimmel Live. "The Thrilla in Nasvhilla" was "not the WrestleMania event most people were expecting," and Trump did get "marks for good behavior, like when you bring a 2-year-old on a plane." There were high points, like Trump "almost kinda" taking responsibility for America's pandemic response," but "there was so much nonsense," Kimmel said. "Trump, his defense of putting children in cages is 'You should see how nice these cages are.' Honestly." He ended with a very personal plea for protecting people with pre-existing conditions. Watch below. Peter Weber

YouTube YouTube
Watch On
Explore More
Peter Weber, The Week US

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.