Glancing back over the second week of the Trump presidency, Seth Meyers noticed its duality — on the one hand, multiple constitutional crises, and on the other, mundane mistakes of mind-bogging stupidity.
Among those imbecile moments was Trump’s comment at a Black History Month event, praising the abolitionist leader and former slave Frederick Douglass as if he were a living civil rights leader. “He didn’t know Douglass was dead!” exclaimed the Late Night host, noting that the great author, editor, and diplomat passed away back in 1895. “Yeah, keep your eye on that Fred Douglass kid!”
The coda to Trump’s ignorance came when Sean Spicer was asked by a reporter about the Douglass gaffe. If you missed his revealing response, Meyers replayed it in this segment — and wondered why this obvious incompetent hadn’t bothered to research Douglass before his next press briefing.
Speaking of Spicer, who will be a consistent source of offensive comedy gold until the day Trump finally dumps him, the White House press secretary provided many laughs when he insisted that the immigration and travel restrictions announced last week are “not a ban.” But as Meyers observes, with clips, that was precisely how Spicer — as well as Kellyanne Conway and Trump himself — had described the executive order.
And Meyers reviews the Betsy DeVos fiasco, as Trump’s designated education secretary first failed to answer questions in her confirmation hearing, and then got caught plagiarizing her replies to supplemental written questions.
Is every week going to be like this for the next four years?