Which Jimmy Kimmel episodes featured segments grading Donald Trump's performance and what dates did they air?
Executive summary
Available reporting shows multiple recent Jimmy Kimmel monologues and segments that directly respond to or mock Donald Trump — including a November 21, 2025 episode where Kimmel played a montage about Trump’s falling approval ratings after Trump demanded Kimmel be fired (New York Times, Forbes) [1] [2]. Coverage also documents Kimmel mocking Trump’s reaction to Democratic election wins on November 6, 2025 (Mashable, Rolling Stone) [3] [4]. Available sources do not provide a comprehensive list labeled “grading Trump’s performance” across episodes; they report specific monologue segments and jabs on particular dates instead [3] [1] [2].
1. What the sources actually document — named episodes and dates
Reporting cites at least two dated episodes where Kimmel devoted monologue time to critiquing or ridiculing Trump: an episode aired November 21, 2025 during which Kimmel mocked Trump’s claim that ABC should fire him and highlighted the president’s sinking approval ratings (The New York Times, Forbes) [1] [2]; and a November 6, 2025 segment in which Kimmel mocked Trump’s reaction to Democratic victories and quipped that “everything he touched was a loser” (Mashable, Rolling Stone) [3] [4]. These pieces treat those nights as standalone monologue items rather than a recurring titled feature called “grading Donald Trump.” [3] [1]
2. On the phrasing “grading Donald Trump’s performance” — source limits
None of the provided stories use the precise phrase “grading Donald Trump’s performance” as a formal recurring segment title; they describe monologues, jokes, and montages in which Kimmel critiqued Trump [3] [1] [2]. Available sources therefore do not confirm a formalized grading segment with a regular rubric; they document individual nights where Kimmel’s commentary served that function informally [5] [4].
3. Examples and what Kimmel did on those dates
On Nov. 21, 2025, Kimmel answered a Truth Social post by Trump calling for his firing by mocking the president’s “sliding approval ratings,” playing a montage of news clips to underline the point (The New York Times, Forbes) [1] [2]. On Nov. 6, 2025, Kimmel ridiculed Trump’s reaction to Democratic wins (including a New York mayoral result) and joked that “everything he touched was a loser,” using the nightly monologue to lampoon Trump’s social posts (Mashable, Rolling Stone) [3] [4].
4. Broader context: why late-night hosts focus on Trump
Coverage places Kimmel’s comments within a pattern of late-night hosts weighing in on Trump-related news: Kimmel and peers have routinely joked about Trump’s behavior, records, and social media posts, for example when discussing his efforts to keep school transcripts sealed or reacting to episodic controversies (TIME) [5]. Recent stories link Kimmel’s material to wider political and media disputes, including pressure from Trump allies and regulatory actors that have previously led to Kimmel’s temporary suspension and network pushback (The Guardian, Deadline, Fox News) [6] [7] [8].
5. Disagreements in coverage and implicit agendas
Mainstream outlets report the same episodes but emphasize different angles: The New York Times and Forbes foreground Kimmel’s rebuttal to Trump’s firing demand and his use of approval-rating clips [1] [2]; Mashable and Rolling Stone emphasize satirical reaction to election results and the comedic lines Kimmel used [3] [4]. Conservative outlets like Fox News frame the same exchanges in terms of Trump’s criticism of Kimmel and ABC, implying bias against the host and network [8]. These differing framings reflect editorial perspectives and potential agendas — cultural commentary versus media criticism — rather than contradictions in the basic facts about the dated episodes.
6. What I cannot confirm from the provided material
Available sources do not supply a comprehensive episode-by-episode catalog of every time Kimmel “graded” Trump, nor do they indicate a recurring titled segment called “Grade Trump” or similar [3] [1] [2]. If you want a full list of every Jimmy Kimmel Live! episode that included any performance-style grading of Trump, that comprehensive inventory is not present in the current reporting and would require primary episode records or the show’s official episode descriptions (not found in current reporting).
7. Recommended next steps if you want a complete list
To build a definitive list: consult Jimmy Kimmel Live! episode guides (network/ABC press pages or the show’s YouTube channel) for segment descriptions and air dates, or search media databases for “Jimmy Kimmel Live” plus date ranges and keywords like “Trump,” “approval ratings,” or “monologue.” The articles cited here provide verified examples and dates to start that archival search [3] [1] [2].