Stephen Colbert: No Regrets Over Anti-Trump Rant That Led To #FireColbert

Stephen Colbert has no regrets over his viral rant against President Donald Trump  that aired on Monday night’s “Late Night.” However, if he had to do it all over again, he’d change a few words. 

Colbert’s monologue involved a rapid-fire series of insults aimed at the president, including one some critics deemed to be homophobic . This led to the creation of a #FireColbert hashtag (although at least some of those contributing to it were Trump supporters angry  at his nightly jokes aimed at the White House).  

On Wednesday night, Colbert updated viewers on his employment status. 

“Am I still the host?” he asked. “I’m still the host!”

Then, he added: 

“Now, if you saw my monologue Monday, you know that I was a little upset with Donald Trump for insulting a friend of mine. So, at the end of that monologue, I had a few choice insults for the president in return. I don’t regret that. I believe he can take care of himself. I have jokes, he has the launch codes so it’s a fair fight.”

Colbert said that he’d “do it again,” but “would change a few words that were cruder than they needed to be.”

He then offered an olive branch to members of the LGBT community who may have been offended by his crack at Trump. 

“I just want to say for the record, life is short, and anyone who expresses their love for another person, in their own way, is to me, an American hero,” Colbert said. “I think we can all agree on that. I hope even the president and I can agree on that. Nothing else, but that.”