Melania Trump blasts Jimmy Kimmel's jokes as "hateful and violent rhetoric"

Politics Melania Trump blasts Jimmy Kimmel's jokes before correspondents' dinner as "hateful and violent rhetoric" By Caroline Linton Caroline Linton Associate Managing Editor, Politics Caroline Linton is an associate managing editor on the political team for CBSNews.com. She has previously written for The Daily Beast, Newsweek and amNewYork. Read Full Bio Caroline Linton April 27, 2026 / 1:28 PM EDT / CBS News Add CBS News on Google First lady Melania Trump, in a rare statement Monday, called jokes made by comedian Jimmy Kimmel days before the shooting at the White House Correspondents' Dinner "hateful and violent rhetoric.""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," Melania Trump posted on social media. "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."Melania Trump was sitting next to Mr. Trump on Saturday at the correspondents' dinner when gunshots rang out and they were evacuated from the ballroom. No one was injured and the suspected gunman, Cole Allen, was tackled and taken into custody. He is set to appear in federal court on Monday. On his show on Thursday, Kimmel took "a page from the Kid Rock alternative half-time show" and created a mock White House Correspondents' Dinner, which has featured comedians in the past but this year was set to feature mentalist Oz Pearlman. In the skit, Kimmel referred to Melania Trump as having a "glow like an expectant widow." The first lady said that ABC should "take a stand" against Kimmel.CBS News has reached out to ABC for comment. Kimmel was pulled from the air for several nights in September after being criticized by conservatives, including Mr. Trump, for his remarks in the aftermath of the Charlie Ki...