Larry Wilmore recognizes how serendipitous it is that only six months after he started The Nightly Show, that Donald Trump announced his candidacy for president. As Wilmore is hosting the White House Correspondents' dinner on Saturday, April 30, he will have another outlet for all of the comedic gold that Trump provides Wilmore on his Comedy Central show four days a week. Even though Trump told The Hill he won't attend the White House Correspondents' dinner, how much Wilmore hates Trump will most likely be on display, since the comedian has made it clear on The Nightly Show that he does not feel the need to mince words when it comes to criticizing Trump.
As Wilmore discussed on CBS This Morning, he will be skewering a number of politicians during the White House Correspondents' dinner, including President Barack Obama, but that "it's all in fun." Josh Elliott mentioned how Wilmore has previously called Trump a "shallow fool" and anyone who watches The Nightly Show knows that Wilmore feels that way because he finds Trump's rhetoric to be hateful and racist and finds the candidate disingenuous. And while he was at first thrilled from a comedic standpoint when Trump announced his campaign, Wilmore's growing frustrations at Trump's success — and the media's nonstop coverage of his campaign — have continued to be highlighted on The Nightly Show.
Although Wilmore's The Nightly Show is based in comedy, he excels at expressing his even-keeled views in an insightful and heartfelt way. Of course, it usually includes a punchline, and that's what makes him the perfect host for the White House Correspondents' dinner. Since he told CBS This Morning that Trump jokes pretty much write themselves since all you have to do is quote Trump's own outrageous statements, I imagine that Wilmore will not let the frontrunner of the Republican presidential race off the hook on April 30.
As further evidence, here is a list of some of the best Trump jokes from The Nightly Show to get you prepared for Wilmore's special brand of mockery for the White House Correspondents' dinner.
When He First Called Trump A Troll Doll
Come for the troll doll joke (which is an ongoing bit on The Nightly Show), stay for the Pee-wee Herman comparison. Wilmore also manages to nail Trump for his comments about Megyn Kelly following the first Republican presidential debate.
When He Addressed Religious Pandering
Wilmore went into full preacher mode to say that he believes Trump is pretending to be religious to win over the evangelical vote. Based on Trump's references to the Bible, Wilmore said, "C'mon God! What are you, out of lightning bolts? Don't you smite anymore? He just elevated his crappy book The Art of the Deal to just below the Bible."
When He Compared Trump To Mr. Met
When the New York Mets made it to the World Series in 2015 (they ended up losing to the Kansas City Royals), Wilmore did not pass up the opportunity to turn this news into a Trump joke, as the above gif shows.
When He Let Mac Miller Go On A Donald Trump Rant
Although these weren't Wilmore's own words, it's worth noting that Wilmore was more than willing to hand over The Nightly Show to rapper Mac Miller as a platform for him to go on an epic Trump rant. Miller has been feuding with Trump for years since he released his song "Donald Trump" back in 2011 and along with some thoughtful and profanity-laden criticism, Miller gleefully announced on Wilmore's show, "I f*cking hate you, Donald Trump."
When He Uses His Donald Trump Impersonator
Perhaps the people in the entertainment industry doing better than comedy political show hosts during this presidential campaign are Donald Trump impersonators, who must be in high demand this election cycle (and will continue to be so if Trump does become president). Comedian Bob DiBuono is Wilmore's Trump impersonator and he comes on The Nightly Show to argue with and bully Wilmore with a spot-on Trump cadence.
When He Interviewed Black Trump Supporters
Wilmore invited six black Trump supporters to his studio and tried to understand why they are voting for Trump. Besides the witty remarks Wilmore made, he did attempt to understand their reasoning and Wilmore's show gave a voice to a unique and specific group of people who aren't often represented in the media.
When He Sincerely Expressed Why He Hates Trump
As previously mentioned, Wilmore is great at mixing comedy with sincerity. In the above clip, his Nightly Show contributors were so disgusted by Trump's December comments about banning Muslims from entering the United States that they didn't want to make Trump jokes anymore. Starting at 3:40, you can hear Wilmore's views on Trump's anti-Muslim comments — all kidding aside. He ended on this note, "Look, this is a country that was founded by people who fled religious persecution, so banning people based on religion goes against the very fabric of this country. And by the way, when you become the president, you swear to uphold the Constitution and this is what the Constitution is about. You know what? I agree with my cast: F*ck you, Trump."
While I don't expect Wilmore to be so harshly blunt when he takes the podium at the White House Correspondents' Dinner, you can know that these views are what will fuel his jokes on April 30.
Images: Giphy (3)
