Jon Stewartisn't letting up on his war of words withPresident Donald Trump.
Thelate-night host, who's previously beencritical of the Trump administration's rolein the United States'growing war with Iran, doubled down on his stance during his monologue on"The Daily Show"Monday, March 30.
"I find it so astounding that this nuclear-armed man baby doesn't seem to have any understanding of the confusion and anxiety that his ill-planned adventure in Iran is causing this country," Stewart, 63, said. "He's just trucking along, like it's any old episode of 'The Apprentice.'"
The controversial Middle Eastern conflictbegan last monthafter the U.S. and Israel initiatedstrikes on Iran on Feb. 28in a campaign thatkilled the nation's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and dozens of top officials and hit more than 1,250 targets inside the country.
Comedian Jimmy Kimmel's late-night talk show, "Jimmy Kimmel Live!", will resume production after it was pulled off the air Sept. 17, following comments he made in the wake of Charlie Kirk's killing. Kimmel, a frequent critic of Donald Trump, often earned the ire of the president.After the announcement, Trump urged other networks to do the same. Scroll to see the other late-night talk show hosts that have feuded with the president over the years." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" />
In 2016, Jimmy Fallon interviewed Trump ahead of the election, ruffling the then-candidate's signature orange hair. After the interview received backlash, Fallon said he regretted parts of the interview. In response, Trump took to social media to criticize the "Tonight Show" host, writing: "@jimmyfallon is now whimpering to all that he did the famous 'hair show' with me (where he seriously messed up my hair), & that he would have now done it differently because it is said to have 'humanized' me-he is taking heat. He called & said 'monster ratings.' Be a man Jimmy!" Fallon is pictured here at the Met Gala on May 5, 2025, in New York City." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" />
"The Daily Show" host Jon Stewart has a history of heated exchanges with Trump. In 2013, Trump tweeted, "I promise you that I'm much smarter than Jonathan Leibowitz - I mean Jon Stewart @TheDailyShow. Who, by the way, is totally overrated." Stewart is a sharp critic of Trump, often taking aim at the political movement he has created.
Here, Stewart is pictured at "The Daily Show" official Emmy Screening on June 7, 2025, in Los Angeles." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" />
John Oliver, a "Daily Show" alum who now hosts "Last Week Tonight" is also a frequent Trump critic, and feuded publicly with the president over a potential show appearance in 2015. Oliver said he wasn't interested in having Trump on his show, which Trump responded to on X, writing: "John Oliver had his people call to ask me to be on his very boring and low-rated show, I said 'NO THANKS' Waste of time & energy!" Oliver refuted that report.
Here, Oliver is pictured in at the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards on Sept. 14, 2025, in Los Angeles." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" />
When CBS announced the network was terminating "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" after the 2025-2026 season, Trump took to social media to celebrate. "I absolutely love that Colbert got fired, his talent was even less than his ratings," the president wrote. Among his late-night peers, Colbert was among Trump's sharpest critics.
Colbert is pictured here at Apple TV+'s Primetime Emmy party red carpet on Sept. 14, 2025, in West Hollywood." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" />
Seth Meyers, the host of "Late Night" on NBC is a frequent critic of Trump and his administration.The ire, it seems, is mutual, with the president writing previously on social media: "How bad is Seth Meyers on NBC, a 'network' run by a truly bad group of people - Remember, they also run MSDNC. I got stuck watching Marble Mouth Meyers the other night, the first time in months, and every time I watch this moron I feel an obligation to say how dumb and untalented he is, merely a slot filler for the Scum that runs Comcast."
Meyers is pictured here at SiriusXM's "The Howard Stern Show" on June 17, 2025, in New York City." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" />
Jimmy Kimmel, Jon Stewart, see late-night hosts who have beefed with President Trump
Comedian Jimmy Kimmel's late-night talk show, "Jimmy Kimmel Live!", willresume production after it was pulled off the airSept. 17, following comments he made in the wake of Charlie Kirk's killing. Kimmel, a frequent critic of Donald Trump, often earned the ire of the president.After the announcement, Trump urged other networks to do the same. Scroll to see the other late-night talk show hosts that have feuded with the president over the years.
Trump said the strikes were intended to eliminate "imminent threats" from Iran and prevent the country from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
Stewart then proceeded to play a montage of Trump's recent interviews, in which the president can be seen going off topic after being asked about the war. In one clip, taken from Trump's appearance on the Fox News talk show "The Five," Trump compliments hostDana Perino's appearance shortly after she asked about the welfare of the Iranian people.
Jon Stewart speaks out:Late-night host unloads on Democrats who caved on government shutdown
"You have not changed," Trump told Perino. "I'm not allowed to say this, but you may be even better-looking. I will not say that because that will end my political career. You're not allowed to say a woman's beautiful anymore."
"Honestly, his leering behavior is less 'Commander-in-Chief at war,' and more 'grandpa who's lost his filter in public,'" Stewart continued. "Instead of assuaging a nervous nation, he's just embarrassing the whole family at dinner, going, 'Hey, do you see our waitress is a busty one! Just like your grandma was.'"
White House spokesperson Olivia Wales responded to Stewart's comments in a statement to USA TODAY Tuesday.
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"President Trump's courageous decision to launch Operation Epic Fury is grounded in a truth that presidents for nearly 50 years have been talking about, but no president had the courage to confront," Wales said. "Iran poses a direct threat to the United States of America and our troops in the Middle East.
"The terrorist Iranian regime continues to be crushed by the full might of the most lethal fighting force in the world, and Jon Stewart continues to accomplish nothing except screaming bad takes into the void."
On Monday, Trumpthreatened to bomb civilian infrastructure in Iran, including water and power plants, if peace talks fail. Iranian officials maintain that they are not involved in direct negotiations with Washington and vowed to "severely punish aggressors."
As Tehran tightened its control over the Strait of Hormuz, which carries one-fifth of the world's oil exports, average gasoline prices in the U.S.rose above $4 a gallonfor the first time since 2022.
Late-night TV takes on Trump:Jimmy Kimmel rips Trump's Iran war as 'weapons of mass distraction'
"All we keep hearing from this administration is why the American people have to sacrifice for Trump's vision of America's greatness," Stewart said. "That these temporary disruptions are just part of the process, and why can't we be patriots?
"We have to be patient, we have to suck it up, whether it's high gas prices or whimsical tariff inflation or draconian ICE raids or temporary bill of rights suspensions. It's on us to understand, but Trump gets to be just the same old, 'Ain't I a stinker,' utterly self-absorbed, 'Remember when I used to want to [have sex with] hot girls?' ... self."
This story has been updated to add new information.
Contributing: Terry Collins, Sarah D. Wire, Josh Meyer, Zachary Schermele, Ashley Pōkiʻi Lewis, Nikol Mudrová, Kim Hjelmgaard, Christopher Cann, Bart Jansen, Cybele Mayes-Osterman, Michael Loria and Rachel Barber, USA TODAY
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Jon Stewart blasts Donald Trump Iran war comments
