Seth Meyers: A Closer Look at Jared Kushner’s failed COVID-19 testing plan

A Closer Look examines why the White House ended plans for nationwide testing

If you ask Seth Meyers, the U.S. plan for the novel coronavirus pandemic was doomed from the start. The Late Night host has time and time again made it clear he has no faith in the Trump administration to handle a crisis or even govern at a basic level. New details about a nationwide testing plan spearheaded by Jared Kushner only solidified Meyers’s position as he explained in “A Closer Look.”

Criticism of the U.S. pandemic response has always started with President Donald Trump. Late Night has condemned the president for failing to understand the severity of the situation and mocked him for flailing while in over his head on the medical side of things.

But Meyers has plenty more blame to dish out than just to President Trump. Late Night, and specifically “A Closer Look,” has attacked the president’s allies in both the Republican Party and on Fox News. The latest member of Team Trump to catch the comedian’s attention is Jared Kushner.

According to a report from Vanity Fair, Kushner was working on a nationwide testing plan that was abruptly scrapped. The report indicates the motivation for doing so was because COVID-19 was primarily affecting Democratic states. Meyers broke down the story and offered his commentary in “A Closer Look” on Monday night:

A Closer Look summarizes the Jared Kushner’s plan as both evil and stupid

One would hope that a pandemic is something that would be kept free of becoming a political issue. But as we have seen time and time again, everything is political right now. So it shouldn’t be all that surprising to hear reports that the Trump administration approached the pandemic from a political angle, allegedly doing what was best for the White House rather than the country.

Meyers uses the story as a chance to go in on Jared Kushner once again. The comedian compares the president’s son-in-law to a sociopath, adding to an ever-growing list of insults Late Night has hit Kushner with over the years.

The sociopath comparison to Kusher and plan to blame Democratic governors fall under the “evil” category for “A Closer Look.” The thought that an infectious disease would remain in those blue states and not spread across the country is where “stupid” comes in to play.

Vanity Fair‘s report on Kushner’s influence over a nationwide testing plan is the latest chapter in the mounting evidence of how the federal government botched its pandemic response. As much as he hoped it would be different, Seth Meyers could see this coming.

It is unclear if things will move past politics and focus on the public health crisis anytime soon. Meyers uses “A Closer Look” to point out President Trump’s support for the controversial “demon sperm” doctor and his continued contradiction of medical experts. All of it is to say “don’t hold your breath.”

What did you think of this installment of “A Closer Look”? Share your thoughts in the comment section. Keep checking Last Night On for more from Late Night with Seth Meyers and the rest of late-night television.