Stephen Colbert on Trump’s ‘cocked and loaded’ response to Iran

Stephen Colbert nearly made himself sick praising President Donald Trump’s restraint in attacking Iran.

In doing a political comedy monologue every night, Stephen Colbert doesn’t always have an easy job on The Late Show. When news is especially tense, like the threat of war with Iran, it can be difficult to find the humor. That’s when President Donald Trump’s Twitter feed comes in handy.

Colbert started off Monday night’s show by recapping the situation with Iran. After a U.S. drone was shot down, President Trump considered a military strike in response before apparently changing his mind at the last minute.

The Late Show joined other late night shows like Real Time with Bill Maher in covering the story. The consensus was that Trump was wise not to escalate things with Iran through military action. But per usual, the president never does anything that goes without ridicule as well.

After (briefly) praising President Trump and recovering from that rare event, Colbert couldn’t help himself when it came to teasing Trump. He was especially tickled by Trump coining the phrase “cocked and loaded” in a tweet.

This wasn’t the first time we’ve seen Stephen Colbert come out and applaud a decision by President Trump. He did something similar back in May on the same topic of Iran. Even so, Colbert was taken off guard by Trump making a moral judgement and had to keep from making a mess on the stage.

But the president didn’t do himself any favors when it came to avoiding Colbert’s jokes for a night. The “cocked and loaded” phrase was an easy target for a comedian like Colbert and he made sure to make the most of it.

The Late Show host then went on to mock the president’s thought process behind ordering the strike and then calling it off. While the end result may have been something Colbert supports, he can’t help but question Trump’s decision making and motivations behind reaching the conclusion.

Colbert has the same issues with Trump’s immigration and deportation policies. It is a good thing that the president does not want to deport parents of American children. But that decision has a two-week expiration date, leading Colbert to once again wonder if Trump actually has a plan.

It’s hard to say if the news from the situation with Iran will get better or worse. President Donald Trump has shown he is capable of making the right decision. But no matter what, fans can be sure The Late Show with Stephen Colbert will try to make the best of things with a few jokes.