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John Oliver’s 10 best Trump jokes and insults

Controversial US president is set to leave office on 20 January

Louis Chilton
Monday 18 January 2021 12:30 GMT
John Oliver: 'Donald Trump does not reflect America'

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The tumultuous presidency of Donald Trump is set to come to an end this week, with Joe Biden’s inauguration taking place on 20 January.

Trump, who was recently impeached for inciting the Capitol Hill riots on 6 January, has been a highly controversial figure in US and global politics – and also, arguably, a satirist’s dream.

Various US talk show hosts, including Jimmy Kimmel, Stephen Colbert and Trevor Noah, have made a habit of lampooning Trump, beginning in the build-up to his election and continuing throughout his time in office.

Many of the sharpest barbs, however, came from British-American comedian John Oliver, whose Emmy-winning HBO series Last Week Tonight with John Oliver has aired throughout the presidency.

Here is a selection of Oliver’s funniest Trump jokes and insults…

1. “Instead of showing our daughters that they could someday be president, America proved that no grandpa is too racist to be leader of the free world.”

2. [When Trump secured the Republican nomination in 2016] “That’s right, this sentient circus peanut now holds the future of a major political party in his tiny, raccoon paw-sized hands.”

3. “Donald J Trump is America’s back mole. It may have seemed harmless a year ago, but now that it’s become frighteningly bigger, it’s no longer wise to ignore it.”

4. “Donald Trump: Rome burning in man form.”

5. “Donald Trump: The owner of what you might describe as ‘resting rich face’.”

6. “You look like you came out of a clogged drain at the Wonka factory.”

7. “Donald Trump: an ill-fitting suit full of chickens coming home to roost.”

8. "“[Trump] truly has the spirit, brain, appetite, temper, patience and wit of a child that you hate.”

Last Week Tonight, John Oliver calls Trump's speech a "complete mess"

9. “'President Trump’: Two words that will always sound unnatural together, like ‘f***able clown’ or ‘Wolf Blitzer’.”

10. “Donald Trump can seem appealing until you take a closer look, much like the lunch buffet at a strip club, or the NFL, or having a pet chimpanzee. Sure it seems fun, but some day Coco is gonna tear your f***ing limbs off.”

Last Week Tonight returns to HBO on 14 February.

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