George Clooney supports Jimmy Kimmel after Trump’s call to fire him over Melania joke: 'Rhetoric is too heated'

Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel has sparked a firestorm of controversy following an on-air remark where he referred to First Lady Melania Trump as an 'expectant widow.' The comment, which aired shortly before a shooting incident at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, has triggered a wave of public outrage. In response, President Donald Trump has demanded that ABC terminate Kimmel's contract. Amidst the mounting pressure and calls for his removal, actor George Clooney has publicly come to the comedian’s defense.

According to Variety, Clooney spoke about the situation at the 51st Chaplin Award Gala on Monday, where he was being honoured. During his remarks, he drew comparisons between the backlash against Kimmel and comments made by White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, which he suggested had been interpreted out of context.

Ahead of the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, Leavitt told Fox News on the red carpet that “there will be some shots fired tonight in the room,” a remark understood to reference the night’s prepared comedic material. Clooney argued that such heated reactions show how “hyperbolic rhetoric can be toned down.”

“Jimmy’s a comedian, and I would argue that Karoline Leavitt didn’t mean shots should be fired. She was making a joke. Fair enough. You look at that side and go, ’Well, jokes are jokes.’ But the rhetoric is a little dangerous. And we’ve seen it a lot lately. When one side is calling anyone they disagree with traitors to the country, which is a charge that’s punishable by death, just because they don’t agree with someone, I think the rhetoric is a little too heated,” Clooney said.

He also stressed the importance of the press maintaining its independence from political power.

“I always have faith in the press. I always believe in it. I’m the son of a journalist, you know? I also think that you’re not supposed to have a good relationship with government. You’re supposed to be questioning them. The people that I support- the Democrats. So, I’m a Democrat. I make no apologies for it. The people that I support – Bill Clinton, Barack Obama – they didn’t enjoy getting chased down by reporters. People in power don’t like to have to answer all the questions in the world. That’s fair. They shouldn’t enjoy it. And the reporters should make sure that they hold people’s feet to the fire. That’s the rules.”

The backlash stems from comments Kimmel made ahead of the White House Correspondents’ Dinner at the Washington Hilton on Saturday night. The event was later overshadowed by a security scare in which a Secret Service agent sustained minor injuries after a gunman attempted to breach a checkpoint with the intent of targeting President Donald Trump and members of his administration.

During his Thursday night show, Kimmel had joked about the upcoming dinner, saying: “Our first lady, Melania, is here. Look at Melania, so beautiful. Mrs. Trump, you have a glow like an expectant widow.”

On Saturday, the situation turned more serious when a gunman opened fire at the annual Washington, D.C. event and was taken into custody at the scene.

First Lady Melania Trump has strongly condemned Kimmel, calling him a "coward". She wrote: “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. People like Kimmel shouldn’t have the opportunity to enter our homes each evening to spread hate. A coward, Kimmel hides behind ABC because he knows the network will keep running cover to protect him. Enough is enough. It is time for ABC to take a stand. How many times will ABC’s leadership enable Kimmel’s atrocious behavior at the expense of our community.”