Watch Stephen Colbert Savor Donald Trump’s Iowa Caucus Defeat
Following the nail-biting and shocking Iowa caucuses, Stephen Colbert spent a portion of Tuesday’s Late Show breaking down what happened in the Hawkeye State, where losers celebrated like winners and Donald Trump showed some unexpected humility in the face of defeat.
After marveling at Hillary Clinton’s exceptional ability to win coin flips – the race between Clinton and Bernie Sanders was so close that six Iowa precincts had to flip a coin to decide who received the delegate, with Clinton winning all six flips – Colbert then moved to the Iowa caucus’ biggest surprise: Donald Trump‘s second-place finish.
“[Ted] Cruz’s victory means everyone’s talking about one thing: Donald Trump,” Colbert said. “Trump came in second with 24 percent, but this future president billionaire Donald Trump, he is a winner. And there’s no way he would just humbly accept second place. Donald, come out with guns blazing…” Instead, Late Show showed footage from Trump’s “We finished second… I’m just honored” speech. “Who are you, and what have you done with Donald Trump’s body? This man is an imposter,” Colbert said of the speech.
Cruz’s criticism of Trump’s “New York values” helped propel the Texas senator to a surprise victory in Iowa, yet even the New York tabloids relished Trump’s loss. Colbert also teased Trump about his promise to “buy a farm” in Iowa by sharing video of the mogul singing the Green Acres theme during the 58th Primetime Golden Globes.
Colbert also mocked Marco Rubio for his rapturous embrace of third place and teased fourth place finisher Ben Carson, who celebrated by returning home to Florida to retrieve fresh clothing. “When he saw that he finished a distant fourth in a state he used to lead, Ben Carson suddenly needed to change his pants,” Colbert said. “Bernie Sanders is surging, and I don’t think this man has changed his clothes in years.”