Watch Stephen Colbert Connect Dots Between Donald Trump Jr., Russia
Stephen Colbert connected the dots between the Trump campaign and Russia on Tuesday’s Late Show. Using his handy “Figure-It-Out-a-Tron” device – a run-of-the-mill chalkboard – he linked reports that Donald Trump Jr. met with a Russian lawyer offering information intended to hurt Hillary Clinton’s presidential bid.
On the top half of the chalkboard, Colbert drew a straight line linking four Trump officials – advisor Carter Page, Attorney General Jeff Sessions, campaign manager Paul Manafort and senior advisor Jared Kushner – who have admitted to meeting with Russian ambassadors during the campaign. On the bottom half, he drew a parallel line through Trump Jr.’s Russian contact Natalia Veselnitskay, Russian pop star Emin Agalarov, oligarch Aras Agalarov and Vladimir Putin.
With the giddy excitement of a detective, Colbert speculated that Trump Jr. – depicted crying in the center of the board – is the “key” connection between the two nations. And when the host linked Russia and the U.S. with vertical lines, it revealed the president’s son behind bars.
Colbert devoted his entire monologue to the Trump Jr. email saga, excitedly admitting, “I’m not saying I have a full Trump-on, but I’m definitely sporting a Trump Jr.” The host chastised the businessman for leaking his own emails that showed a willingness to receive assistance from Russian operatives. “These emails were leaked by Donald Trump Jr. himself,” he marveled. “He’s his own Deep Throat. He’s Deep Throat-ing himself. It’s impressive.”
The comedian also paused to apologize to another Trump family member. “I’d like to apologize to Eric Trump,” he said. “We always thought you were the dumb one. We were wrong.”