Late-night TV hosts covered officials’ struggle to win approval for Donald Trump’s healthcare reform, referring to it as Trumpcare after hearing that the word had been banned in the White House.
On The Late Show, Stephen Colbert spoke of reports that it took 18 hours for the deliberation to take place. “Anyone who has spent 18 hours trying to pass something knows what you get at the end,” he joked.
He also referenced news that the president was hoping to persuade some of his party members to approve the bill by taking them bowling. “Trump wants to be there as the Republicans throw their balls away,” he said.
If it doesn’t pass, Trump will reportedly let Obamacare fail and let Democrats take the blame, “like a firefighter letting the house burn down to make the space heater look bad”.
He then spoke about the Trumps inviting Ted Cruz and his wife to the White House for dinner this week. Colbert joked that the invitation would read: “Cocktail attire, please check spine at the door.”
Apparently, the word “care” must be removed from any title given to the latest healthcare reform. “Conservatives don’t want to be associated with caring,” he said. “That’s why the official mascot of Obamacare repeal is ‘Suck it, the Don’t Care Bear’.”
Paul Ryan gave a PowerPoint presentation this week, leading Colbert to say: “He was either defending Trumpcare or selling the reporters a timeshare.”
In Ryan’s speech, he said a mandate requiring everyone to have insurance was arrogant and paternalistic. “Yes, telling people what to do is arrogant and paternalistic,” Colbert said. “By the way, ladies, no Planned Parenthood for you.”
There was also time for another jab at Trump’s unfounded accusation about Obama secretly recording him pre-election. It’s heading for an official investigation “which they’re going to get to right after they find those 3 million illegal voters and what really happened to Arnold Schwarzenegger’s ratings”.
On The Daily Show, Trevor Noah looked at the sustained popularity of Trump among his core voters. “Donald Trump’s not trying to be the president for everybody,” he said. “He ran to represent one very specific group.”
Trevor and Jordan sing an ode to everything Trump has done for “the forgotten man.” https://t.co/H5CnxkAuVI pic.twitter.com/HSABrliR8h
— The Daily Show (@TheDailyShow) March 10, 2017
The group? The forgotten man. “Trump and his people will not forget you,” he said. “Unless you’re a Russian ambassador – then that never happened.”
He then sang an ode to the forgotten man, spliced with footage to prove that Trump’s early decisions as president have been favoring big business instead.
Conan O’Brien talked about the news that Hawaii is suing the government over the travel ban. “In response, President Trump is suing Hawaii for being hard to spell.”
He also discussed the opening casting call for Guy Ritchie’s live-action Aladdin, which seeks Middle Eastern actors. “Filming will begin in May, or whenever the actors are no longer detained at the airport,” he joked.
