Jimmy Kimmel Rips NBCs Donald Trump Town Hall With Bill Cosby Ding

Jimmy Kimmel joined the growing chorus of criticism of NBC’s planned hosting of a televised town hall with President Donald Trump  at the exact same time on Thursday as ABC’s town hall with Democratic nominee Joe Biden .

“You know, there was supposed to be a debate tomorrow night, but since Trump would not agree to the virtual format that they wanted to have because he tested positive for the coronavirus , he backed out altogether,” the comedian explained on Wednesday’s episode of ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”

“So, because there was no debate, Biden agreed to do a town hall on ABC that night,” Kimmel said. Days later, NBC announced that Trump would appear for a town hall on the rival network.

“Thanks, NBC,” said Kimmel. “First ‘The Apprentice’ and now this. Why not a new Bill Cosby special while we’re at it?”

“The Apprentice” reality television show that Trump hosted is credited with reviving the president’s fortunes before his 2016 presidential campaign, Cosby, whose shows were for decades a staple on NBC, is currently serving  a prison sentence for sexual assault.

“There is no good reason to hold these events simultaneously,” Kimmel argued. Trump obviously “wanted this because he knows he’ll get better ratings than Joe Biden,” he said.

But even though more people will likely watch Trump, Kimmel said, “that doesn’t mean anything.”

“If my choices are watching a documentary about the Bill of Rights or a guy getting hit in the nuts with a shovel, I’m going shovel every single time,” he joked.

Check out Kimmel’s full monologue here: