Since launching himself into the political stratosphere, Elon Musk has become an even bigger punchline target for late-night TV hosts. The Late Show with Stephen Colbert continued that trend on Thursday night, mocking the "president" for his involvement in a potential government shutdown.
Public opinion of Musk took a pretty big swing when he purchased Twitter, rebranded it as X, and changed many of the features users enjoyed. The Tesla CEO then decided to get heavily involved in Donald Trump's election and has become a fixture at Mar-a-Lago since Trump's victory.
Late-night TV, of course, has taken notice. Musk quickly found himself in a public feud with Jimmy Kimmel. Now, others like Stephen Colbert are finding more reasons to call out "President" Elon Musk.
During Thursday night's monologue, Colbert covered Musk's role in pushing for a government shutdown rather than passing the bipartisan funding bill put together by Speaker of the House Mike Johnson. Musk tweeted "this bill should not pass," and apparently that had some sway.
Colbert joked that Musk is used to killing something at the last minute since he's "an expert at blowing things up on the launch pad" as he showed a SpaceX rocket exploding.
"I'm sure the founders are spinning in their graves with joy at the way all this is playing out," Colbert joked. "After all, the Constitution does start with 'We the people do whatever rich boy tells us. Rich boy makes the big square truck car! LOL.'"
Stephen Colbert antagonizes Trump over 'President Musk'
When Donald Trump chimed in on the bill only to echo what Elon Musk said, it added fueld to the "President Musk" fire growing on social media. Stephen Colbert was more than happy to pile on and suggest Musk is pulling Trump's strings.
If that's the case, then Colbert is ready to work on his Elon Musk impression. But rather than try to mimic Musk's voice the way he does Trump's, Colbert simply jumped in the air to form an "X" with his body. The Late Show audience approved, so that bit could have some staying power.
Colbert also suggested that Musk's influence on the bill could affect Speaker of the House Mike Johnson. Another government shutdown could cost Johnson his job. If that comes to pass, Johnson would need a new job, one "more pleasant than trying to wrangle the House Republican caucus," Colbert said. "Like septic tank snorkeler."
Johnson (and Musk) have until midnight on Friday to come up with a solution or else another government shutdown is in the cards. Stephen Colbert already knows who he'll blame if that happens, and it's both "presidents."