In a preview of Monday night’s monologue shared on Instagram, Colbert joked that “2026 started with a bang — and a boom,” before cutting to news reports claiming Trump had launched a surprise military strike on Venezuela and captured its leader, Nicolás Maduro.
Colbert quickly tied the moment to long-running public questions surrounding the late financier Jeffrey Epstein.
“Do you know what this means?” Colbert quipped. “Those Epstein files must be crazy.”
Pretending to be a panicked politician, Colbert mimed flipping through documents before shouting, “Bomb something! Bomb anything!” The joke landed as a sharp swipe at political distraction tactics and unresolved demands for transparency around the Epstein case.
Late-Night Hosts Waste No Time
Colbert isn’t alone. Late-night TV hosts across the board have returned from their holiday hiatus with renewed energy, continuing to mock the Trump administration despite the president’s repeated public attacks on them.
At Sunday’s Critics Choice Awards, Colbert’s longtime late-night counterpart Jimmy Kimmel also leaned into political humor while accepting the award for Best Talk Show.
“Most of all, I want to thank our President, Donald ‘Jennifer’ Trump,” Kimmel joked, drawing laughter from the crowd.
“Thank you, Mr. President, for all the ridiculous things you do each and every day. We can’t wait to get back on the air tomorrow night to talk about them.”
Trump vs. Colbert Escalates
While Kimmel has often been a target of Trump’s criticism, Colbert is widely seen as the president’s main late-night adversary. Trump openly celebrated when The Late Show announced in July that it would end after its current season.
As recently as December 23, Trump launched another attack on Colbert, calling him “a pathetic trainwreck with no talent” and claiming the comedian had “actually gotten worse” in recent months.
Trump went further, saying Colbert was “running on hatred and fumes” and urging CBS to cancel the show immediately, calling it “the humanitarian thing to do.”
No Signs of Slowing Down
Despite the looming end of his show and continued political pressure, Colbert shows no sign of backing off. If anything, his return suggests the opposite: a renewed push to use comedy as commentary during a volatile political moment.
As late-night television heads deeper into 2026, the message is clear — the jokes are back, the targets are obvious, and the punches aren’t getting any softer.
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