Following the U.S. Supreme Court’s June 24 ruling, which took away the nationwide right to an abortion, and a weekend full of outrage and protests, late-night television hosts responded Monday.
“Late Late Show” host James Corden took a serious approach, beginning his broadcast with a special message recorded in front of the Houses of Parliament in London, where he is set to film this week’s shows.
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He addressed the “heart-wrenching and frightening news” by emphasizing how much easier it is for Americans’ rights to be stripped away than those of U.K. citizens. He noted that “nearly 800” elected officials and appointees “would all have to agree before the fundamental rights of half the population would be endangered in the United Kingdom.”
The TV host admitted he’s “struggling to get [his] head around” the court’s overturn, which instantly moved America “back into a dark age.”
He expressed feeling “utter disgust and anger” over the news.
On “Late Night With Seth Meyers”, Meyers described the ruling as “shocking” and “sadly predictable,” adding that he “was angered” and “saddened by the news.”
He made it clear this isn’t just a woman’s issue and that men need to be aware, too.
“We all benefit from reproduction freedom and from access to legal and safe abortions,” he said. “I think it’s possible that men hear ‘My Body, My Choice’ and we take away the message that it’s not our issue to speak about, but it’s everyone’s job to advocate for reproductive rights.”
On “The Daily Show”, Trevor Noah called the news “surreal” and a “horrifying thing to be faced with.”
He insisted that although the “Constitution didn’t change,” the “only thing that changed is that Donald Trump, of all people, managed to appoint three pro-life Justices to the Supreme Court. Judges who, by the way, went on and on in their confirmation hearings about how much they respect the important precedent of Roe v Wade.
“And we all knew they were full of sh*t,” he added.
On “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” Chelsea Handler, who is filling in for a vacationing Kimmel, said, “I will be here all week long, or at least until Republicans make it illegal for women to talk. Jimmy is off right now doing whatever the f**k he wants with his body…. At this point, I’d probably have more rights if my vagina was an AR-15,” she continued, slamming the court’s ruling amid a nationwide gun violence crisis.
Handler also commented on the fact that Trump appointed three pro-life justices on the Supreme Court. “Three of the justices who supported the ruling were appointed by a man with over a dozen sexual assault allegations.”The veteran late-night host opened up about her personal experiences, sharing that she had three abortions in high school. “And if that sounds too extreme, let’s pretend I had two,” she joked.
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Turning to “Late Night with Stephen Colbert”, the host joked that, “Reproductive rights in America lasted for less time than ‘The Young & the Restless’. Jack Abbott’s evil twin is going to be so shocked when he comes out of his fifth coma.”
Elsewhere he threw in a font joke about the court’s ruling taking America back to “medieval times” or “very old times Roman” and a joke comparing Americans’ loss of rights to “KFC changing their slogan from ‘We Do Chicken Right’ to ‘There Is No Constitutional Right to Chicken. It’s Finger Lickin’ Gone.'”
Jimmy Fallon kept things light on “The Tonight Show”, mainly cracking jokes on the heavy topic.
“Let me just sum up: they said whether it’s a gun or a baby, you’re carrying something,” he quipped, addressing two of the U.S.’s current major issues.
