Stephen Colbert rips CBS for former Trump official hire after challenge from Keith Olbermann
‘Late Show’ host Stephen Colbert accused his employer of ‘cozying up to the GOP’ during a segment in which he ripped into CBS for hiring Mick Mulvaney.
Comedian Stephen Colbert tore into his own employer Thursday after far-left former MSNBC host Keith Olbermann challenged "The Late Show" host to call out CBS for hiring former Trump administration official Mick Mulvaney.
Mulvaney, who served as President Donald Trump’s acting chief of staff and Office of Management and Budget director, was added to CBS News’ lineup this week. Olbermann, who loathed Trump so much that he walked away from an ESPN position for a YouTube show devoted to criticizing the former president, told Colbert in a tweet early Thursday morning that it was "mandatory" he speaks out.
"So where is @StephenAtHome Colbert on his company putting @MickMulvaney on their news? And don't say ‘he can't be expected to be critical of CBS’ - that it IS @CBSNews makes it even more mandatory that he say something," Olbermann tweeted.
Liberal pundit Keith Olbermann was roasted for declaring that Texans don’t deserve access to the coronavirus vaccines because ‘Texas has decided to join the side of the virus.’
Colbert answered Olbermann’s call later that evening on his show. After reading off news of Mulvaney’s hire, Colbert jokingly handed over the story to "media analyst Stephen Colbert".
"For more, we go to ‘The Late Show’s’ own media analyst, Stephen Colbert. Stephen, your thoughts," Colbert said. "What the f---," the host immediately replied, to himself.
Colbert then ripped into Mulvaney saying he "can’t wait" to hear the former Trump official’s analysis, especially considering he called coronavirus a "media hoax" in 2020 and told people to "get over it" when Trump asked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to hand over information on Hunter Biden.
Colbert also noted that Mulvaney stated in 2020 that Trump would "concede gracefully" if he lost to Joe Biden and would "accept the results" of the election.
"Is Mick Mulvaney psychic? Get this man to Vegas! He’s Nostra-dumb---," Colbert said, continuing his profanity-laced rant and claiming he was "just joking."
"The Late Show" host asked why CBS would put a "craven toady to a tyrant" on their payroll. He then referenced leaked audio in which a network executive said they wanted to "make sure that we are getting access to both sides of the aisle" as a priority because they "know the Republicans are going to take over, most likely, in the midterms."
A Late Show with Stephen Colbert during Sunday's February 7, 2021 Super Bowl Special. ((Photo by Scott Kowalchyk/CBS via Getty Images))
"That’s right. They’re not just reporting the news, they’re predicting it now," Colbert said, before claiming his network was reworking their programming in hopes of "cozying up the GOP."
Colbert followed up with screenshots of faux shows he anticipates the network will premiere in light of the news, including "Young QShaman," and "Bob Restricts the Reproductive Rights of Abishola."
He then finished the segment by jokingly announcing that Mulvaney was on the show via satellite from Washington D.C. before showing a clip of a Nazi from Indiana Jones having his face melted.
"See you at the Christmas party," Colbert waved as he concluded the segment.
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Mulvaney previously served in the U.S. House of Representatives as a congressman representing South Carolina’s fifth district and was U.S. special envoy for Northern Ireland. He will serve as an analysis across CBS News platforms. Mulvaney resigned from the Trump administration in 2021 following the Jan. 6 Capitol riots, just weeks before President Biden was set to take over the White House.
Fox News' Brian Flood and Hanna Panreck contributed to this report.
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