Late-night TV hosts skewer Michael Flynn: 'It's funny 'cause it's treason'

Extract from The Guardian

Comics, including Trevor Noah and Stephen Colbert, discuss the controversial resignation of Trump’s national security adviser and the ensuing fallout

Stephen Colbert: ‘By now I’m sure you’ve all heard the news: the Trump administration is going great.’ Photograph: YouTube

Guardian staff

Thursday 16 February 2017 03.45 AEDT 

Late-night hosts took aim at former national security adviser Michael Flynn, who resigned after just 24 days on the job.
On The Daily Show, Trevor Noah joked about Flynn’s assertion that he wasn’t aware that his calls with Russia would have been recorded.

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“He didn’t know that the US government routinely taps calls to the Russians, which is stupid,” he said. “That’s the plot of every spy movie: America taps Russia’s calls. Everyone should know that.”
He also ridiculed Flynn’s excuse for not conveying all of the information to Mike Pence: the “fast pace” of the job.
“That’s not a valid excuse,” he said. “That just sounds like you’re trying to tell someone a story and you’re both on opposite trains, and that’s why you couldn’t tell them the story.”

On The Late Show, Stephen Colbert took pleasure in the overwhelmingly poor start to the ex-reality TV star’s presidency. “By now I’m sure you’ve all heard the news: the Trump administration is going great,” he said.

He referred to Flynn as “former national security adviser and man who doesn’t see what’s so damn funny” before joking about his actions: “It’s funny because it’s treason.”
He also commented on Trump’s lack of action throughout, despite former attorney general Sally Yates saying weeks prior that she was concerned Flynn was susceptible to Russian blackmail. “The president did nothing about it, but then he’s very busy attacking Nordstrom, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s ratings and then firing Sally Yates,” he said.

Colbert also found time to criticize the White House press secretary, Sean Spicer, who claimed that Flynn leaving was not about legality but rather trust.
“Yes, it wasn’t a legal issue, it was a trust issue,” he said. “Trump stopped trusting Flynn because Flynn did something that was so darn illegal that Trump had to ask for his resignation. Say what you will about Sean Spicer, but he is the MC Escher of bullshit.”
Spicer also claimed that Trump has been incredibly tough on Russia. “Trump has been incredibly tough on Russia,” Colbert said. “I mean, the hotel dry cleaning bills alone.”
On Late Night with Seth Meyers, the host also brought up Flynn’s short time as national security adviser. “Twenty-four days!” he said. “I use disposable razors longer than that. He didn’t even last as long as a David Blaine stunt.”

He also played footage of Flynn last year calling for Hillary Clinton to be charged for misconduct. “I guess that’s why Flynn’s resignation letter was just the words ‘lock me up’, written Shining-style on a typewriter,” he said.
He then moved on to Stephen Miller, who he said “looks like the guy who shows up with a flashlight when teens are getting drunk in a graveyard”.
There was also time to remind viewers of Kellyanne Conway’s deceptive tactics: “Just a reminder that if Kellyanne Conway is ever on TV saying there isn’t a tornado coming, get in the basement,” he said.
He also found footage of Trump claiming he had no idea that Flynn was being investigated for a connection with Russia. “Trump sounds like a guy who’s being told there’s a nude scene in a movie he’s definitely already watched,” he said.