Jimmy Kimmel returned to the Jimmy Kimmel Live late night show following a week off so he could be home with his son who had suffered a heart condition at birth.
On his first night back, he responded to the “outrage” that had been leveled at him while he was away.
“What provoked outrage from some quarters was Kimmel's May 1 monologue, when he talked about the recent birth of his first son, who has a heart condition that will require a series of expensive tests and procedures. He closed the piece with a tearful plea for the government to provide families access to healthcare. ‘If your baby is going to die and it doesn’t have to, it shouldn’t matter how much money you make,’ he said. ‘I think that’s something that, whether you’re a Republican, or a Democrat, we all agree on that, right?’ ”
" ‘I would like to apologize for saying that children in America should have health care," he stated. "It was insensitive. It was offensive, and I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me,’ “ Kimmel sarcastically said.
Robert Reich’s response:
Last [Monday], Jimmy Kimmel responded to some of the comments he’s received from his plea last week to maintain health insurance coverage for people with pre-existing conditions (citing his newborn son’s congenital heart defect). Kimmel specifically called out Newt Gingrich.
Gingrich had criticized Kimmel, claiming that "If you show up at a hospital with a brand new baby and the brand new baby has a heart problem, the doctors at that hospital will do everything they can to save the baby. They don't say, 'We'll take care of the baby right after you write a check.' They try to save the baby's life, and that's true across the board in this country."
Kimmel's response to Gingrich: "Yes, it is true that if you have an emergency, they will do an operation. And that’s terrific if your baby’s health problems are all solved during that one visit. The only problem is that never, ever happens. We’ve had a dozen doctors appointments since our son had surgery. You’ve got a cardiologist, the pediatrician, surgeon, some kids need an ambulance to transport them. That doesn’t even count the parents who have to miss work for all this stuff. Those details, Newt forgot to mention. I don’t know if the double layers of Spanx are restricting the blood flow to his brain.”
Kimmel also responded to Gingrich's view that late night comedians “ain't funny ‘cause they’re too angry [at Trump] to be funny.”
“Gee, I wonder why we’re so angry," Kimmel began. "Maybe it has something to do with, I don’t know, you?" Kimmel continued: "Listen, Newt Gingrich does know a lot about comedy. This is the guy who helped lead the impeachment effort against Bill Clinton for trying to cover his up his affair while he himself was having an affair. That’s hilarious. Come on. Whatever you want to say about him. Thank you, Newt. There’s a reason he’s named after a lizard, and that was it.”
Let me add that I know Newt Gingrich, I’ve worked with him and debated him over the years, and I agree entirely with Jimmy Kimmel.
By Erin Jensen
