Late Night Takes on Trump Tariffs and Elon Musk Loss

It’s time those goofy goobers over at late night got a nice treat for all their hard work, and Elon Musk taking a massive L certainly suffices. Seth Meyers, Stephen Colbert, and Jimmy Fallon (a.k.a. three-fifths of Strike Force Five) are having a field day covering Donald Trump’s new tariffs and Elon Musk’s big loss in the Wisconsin race for a judge seat. Groups “aligned with” Musk spent about $20 million on the jury race, only to lose by ten points to a Democratic judge. Meanwhile, Trump is in the process of imposing tariffs that economists think will cause a recession. Notably, Jimmy Kimmel is currently dark for a week, but he will return (probably with some jokes about Elon Musk) on April 7.

The Late Show With Stephen Colbert

“What if Ireland has to pay extra to be on the Lucky Charms box?” Colbert imitated Trump. Much applause ensued. He also took a historical approach, pointing out that the last time tariffs were this extreme, in 1930, we got a … global depression. Woo! When he got to Musk, Colbert noted that the Wisconsin election was “terrible news for Elon Musk.” Applause again ensued. “Spending all that money just to watch it burst into flames,” Colbert said. “Now he knows what it’s like to buy a Tesla.” Burn! (Like a Tesla.)

Late Night With Seth Meyers

“A Closer Look” went into not just the news, but Meyers’s own emotions. “What was that feeling?” Meyers asked, regarding the Wisconsin win. “I’m not grinding my teeth anymore, and the air is fresh, the light’s warm. I can see colors again.” Congrats to Meyers on his newly returned senses!

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

Fallon, meanwhile, focused much more on the tariffs than he did the Musk loss — maybe Meyers and Fallon met up in a 30 Rock greenroom and played rock-paper-scissors to decide who got what. In his “News Smash” segment, Fallon switched between news regarding Trump’s tariffs, the new Beatles movies announcement, the March Madness Final Four, and the Hooters bankruptcy. He dubbed the stories “OMG, ‘Let It Be,’ Go for Three, RIP,” respectively.

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