Melania Trump Calls on ABC to ‘Take a Stand’ Against Jimmy Kimmel
The first lady’s statement calling the late night comedian’s jokes about her and her family ‘hateful’ was followed up with President Trump calling for Kimmel’s firing.
First Lady Melania Trump, speaking out for the first time since a man was apprehended and later accused of attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump, excoriated comedian Jimmy Kimmel in a social media post Monday after he called her an “expectant widow” during a skit airing Thursday on his late night show.
The joke was made on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” during the monologue days before an accused gunman charged through a security checkpoint at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner in a hotel in Washington, D.C., where shots were fired resulting in a Secret Service agent being shot, but saved by his bulletproof vest. The president and first lady were rushed out of the hotel ballroom unharmed. The satirical skit showed Kimmel rotating through a series of jokes about the president and Mrs. Trump.
In a social media post, Mrs. Trump said “Kimmel’s hateful and violent rhetoric is intended to divide our country. His monologue about my family isn’t comedy—his words are corrosive and deepens the political sickness within America.”
In his monologue, Kimmel joked that the first lady “had the glow of an expectant widow.”
Mrs. Trump called Kimmel a “coward” and implored the ABC network, where the show airs, to “take a stand.”
“Enough is enough,” she said. “How many times will ABC’s leadership enable Kimmel’s atrocious behavior at the expense of our community.”
Not long thereafter, President Trump weighed in on social media stating he would normally not respond to anything Kimmel said, but that “this is something far beyond the pale” and called for ABC and its parent company Disney to fire him.
President Trump has now been the target of three assassination attempts. The first was during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, in July 2024, where his ear was grazed by a bullet. After that incident, Mrs. Trump issued a lengthy statement.
“Let us reunite. Now,” she says. “This morning ascend above the hate, the vitriol, and the simple-minded ideas that ignite violence. We all want a world where respect is paramount, family is first, and love transcends. We can realize this world again. Each of us must demand to get it back. We must insist that respect fills the cornerstone of our relationships, again.”
Mrs. Trump was not at the rally at the time, but in her July 2024 statement she recounted how watching the replay of the incident impacted her.
“When I watched that violent bullet strike my husband, Donald, I realized my life, and Barron’s life, were on the brink of devastating change,” Melania Trump said at the time.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt during a briefing earlier in the day criticized Kimmel’s monologue and also said that Americans must “resolve our differences peacefully.”
CNN media critic Brian Stelter responding Mr. Trump’s post said the president’s call for Kimmel’s firing a test for the First Amendment. And while Stelter agreed with Leavitt, he later said in a social media post: “But the way to that is through SPEECH, including the speech she wants to silence.”
Updated: April 27, 2026
Calendar
April 27, 2026
FLARE Virtual Program: Jackie Kennedy & Brooklyn’s Design Works
The First Ladies Association for Research and Education presents “Jackie Kennedy & Brooklyn’s Design Works,” a program featuring Phyllis Ross, an independent scholar of 20th-century decorative arts and design, airing on April 27, from 7 to 8 pm EST, exploring a little-known chapter in Jackie Kennedy’s post–White House life: her involvement in launching The Design Works of Bedford-Stuyvesant.
Located in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, this innovative craft enterprise was designed to support local artisans, promote economic opportunity, and bring national attention to the community. The talk examines how Jackie Kennedy became interested in Bedford-Stuyvesant, why she supported the creation of a craft-based business, the role she played in promoting and sustaining Design Works and the broader historical significance of this initiative.
The presentation also introduces the forthcoming book Stories in Fabric: The Design Works of Bedford-Stuyvesant, to be published by Fordham University Press. Read more
May 3, 2026
Ranger Talk: Julia Grant During the Civil War
The Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site in St. Louis, Missouri, will feature an in-person ranger talk “Julia During the Civil War” from 1 to 2 p.m. local time that discusses Mrs. Grant’s extensive traveling during wartime. During that time period, Mrs. Grant spent most of her time traveling to White Haven to visit her father, to the Grant’s Galena, Illinois, home, and to the front line of the war with children in tow. Read more
May 8, 2026
Legacy Lecture: First Mothers
The National First Ladies Library & Museum presents a virtual Legacy Lecture: “First Mothers—Celebrating First Ladies as Mothers in the White House” on May 8 from noon to 1 p.m. EDT. From Dolley Madison to Edith Roosevelt and more, this Mother’s Day-themed program highlights the unique experiences of first ladies as mothers and the enduring impact of their stories. Attendees will also enjoy a Special Mother’s Day Virtual Tea with recipe cards sent in advance and a festive virtual hat contest. Read more
May 13, 2026
Talk with a Curator
The National First Ladies Library & Museum presents “Talk with a Curator,” a virtual program at 7 p.m. EDT featuring members of the curatorial team sharing insights into how artifacts are acquired, preserved, and interpreted to tell the powerful stories of America’s First Ladies. From research and conservation to exhibition planning, this program offers a deeper understanding of the care and thought behind the collections that connect the public to history. Read more
May 15, 2026
Conference: ‘250 Years of First Ladies Making History’
Registration is now open for the “250 Years of First Ladies Making History,” a conference celebrating presidential spouses, their contributions as part of America’s 250th anniversary of its founding.
The event, sponsored by FLARE and American University’s School of Public Affairs First Ladies Initiative, will bring together scholars, teachers, institutions, first ladies staff, biographers, archivists, journalists, historians, students and anyone with an interest in U.S. presidential first ladies for a day-long conference at American University in Washington, D.C.
The conference will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. local time on May 15. Colleen Shogan, former Archivist of the United States and CEO of In Pursuit, will keynote the conference luncheon with an interview by Anita McBride, FLARE founding member, a Gould Award Recipient, co-director of In Pursuit and Director of the First Ladies Initiative at American University. Register here.
May 19, 2026
30th Rosalynn Carter Georgia Mental Health Forum
On May 19, 2026, the Carter Center’s Rosalynn Carter Mental Health and Caregiver Program will convene the 30th Annual Rosalynn Carter Georgia Mental Health Forum, a milestone gathering dedicated to advancing mental health policy, systems, and practice across the state of Georgia. Read more
Send calendar items, press releases and announcements to jtaylor@eastwingmagazine.com.