Stephen Colbert on Pentagon deal with Musk’s Grok AI: ‘Such a bad idea’
Late-night hosts mocked the Department of Defense’s contract with Elon Musk’s Grok AI, Donald Trump’s White House decor and Maga infighting over the Epstein files,“Trump got elected last year by making two promises: racism and bringing down inflation using racism,” said Stephen Colbert on Tuesday’s Late Show,“So far, not so great”, as, thanks in part to Trump’s tariffs, inflation increased in June to 2,7%,And it could get worse, as Trump announced he would impose a 30% tariff on European goods starting in August.
“No more European goods, so now people will have to settle for European bads,” Colbert joked.“I’m looking at you, toilet with two buttons.Why? I’m just pushing them both!”The tariffs could raise prices on such items as French cheese, Italian leather goods, German electronics and Spanish pharmaceuticals.“Spanish pharmaceuticals? But we can’t lose las drogas!” Colbert quipped.In other Washington news, Elon Musk “may officially be out of the White House, but he’s still getting government contracts”, as the defense department announced that it will begin using Grok, Musk’s artificial intelligence chatbot.
“No! You can’t let evil AI into the department that controls our nukes,” said Colbert,“Haven’t you seen the new Mission: Impossible? Once the entity is inside, the only way to prevent global annihilation is for Tom Cruise to take his shirt off inside a submarine,”The department’s decision is especially questionable because just last week, Grok went rogue on X, going on antisemitic rants and referring to itself as “MechaHitler”,“Which must have been particularly upsetting to Elon, because MechaHitler was going to be the name of his next kid,” Colbert quipped,Grok is not the only AI partnership – the department has also signed deals with OpenAI, Google and Anthropic.
“This is such a bad idea,” said Colbert,“So far, the only thing AI has been really consistently good at is producing perfectly crispy homemade french fries with a fraction of the oil – wait, that’s an air fryer,Still waiting on AI,”What reason could Trump possibly have to bury the Epstein files? The simplest explanation is often the correct one pic,twitter.
com/pUKxIdACUWOn The Daily Show, guest host Jordan Klepper looked into the Maga base uproar over Trump’s refusal to release files on the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.“Why is Donald Trump refusing to release the Epstein files, and telling everyone to shut up and move on?” he wondered.Klepper proposed the idea of Occam’s razor – that the most simple explanation is probably the correct one.“In the case of Trump and the Epstein files, let’s call our theory ‘Occam’s giant fucking machete’,” he said, given that Trump used to be friends with Epstein and his partner Ghislaine Maxwell.“But it’s worth understanding just how close this friendship was,” said Klepper before old footage of Trump with Epstein at a Mar-a-Lago party in the 90s; as they both ogle cheerleaders, Trump points out one who is “hot” and then says something unintelligible to Epstein that makes him double over in laughter.
Epstein himself said Trump was his closest friend for 10 years, and that Trump first slept with Melania on his plane, nicknamed the “Lolita Express”.“Next time you’re on a flight with a crying baby, just think about how much worse it could be,” Klepper joked.Worse, in a 2002 interview with New York Magazine, Trump said of Epstein: “It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side.”“Do you know how creepy you have to be for Donald Trump to pick up on it?” Klepper exclaimed.“That’s a real ‘your drunk friend taking your car keys from you’ moment.
”Klepper offered a parting message to Trump’s inflamed base: “To all the Maga people who are so confused about why Trump doesn’t want to release any of these files, maybe the answer has something to do with Occam’s giant fucking machete.”On Late Night, Seth Meyers opened with a Donald Trump post to Truth Social over the weekend, in which the president claimed he had a “PERFECT administration, THE TALK OF THE WORLD”.“Yeah, that’s not why everyone is talking about it,” said Meyers.“That’s like saying ‘everyone is watching Love Island because it’s so free of controversy’.”While surveying flood damage in central Texas last week, Trump pointed out Dr Phil in the crowd, saying he was “lookin’ good” – “but it turned out it was just a caterpillar crawling across a ham”, Meyers joked.
Trump has also reportedly added more gold embellishments to the Oval Office.“More gold? Is he the president or the pharaoh?” Meyers joked.“I mean, I guess it’s a taste thing, but I don’t think the Oval Office should look like the restroom at the Dubai Ritz-Carlton.”And while explaining some decoration changes to the cabinet room last week, Trump pointed out a portrait of Dwight D Eisenhower, and said the 34th president was “underrated”.“Don’t worry, I feel like all of them are being rated a bit more highly these days,” Meyers responded.
Tour de France 2025: Pogacar blows field away on stage 12 summit finish in Pyrenees – as it happened
That’s the lot for today. Merci for reading, and for your emails. Can anyone stop Pogacar? It’s looking highly unlikely. Bye for now.Tuck into our snap stage 12 report here:On or near the podium, Macron and Pogacar shake hands
Tour de France: Pogacar demolishes rivals with devastating stage 12 win in Pyrenees
Tadej Pogacar dominated Jonas Vingegaard on the slopes of Hautacam to take a commanding lead in the Tour de France. After the first summit finish of 2025, the defending champion’s next overall victory now appears an inevitability. Pogacar beat his rival to the ski station finish by well over two minutes and now leads the Tour by more than three and half minutes, with nine stages remaining.Pas de suspense, the French would say, and after the Slovenian’s eighth career stage win in the Pyrenees, Vingegaard is scrambling to sustain a meaningful challenge. If Pogacar had been scared when crashing in Toulouse, 24 hours earlier, he showed no ill effects as he dealt a lethal blow to Vingegaard’s aspirations under a fierce Pyrenean sun
Twelve-year-old Chinese swimmer takes stunning times to world championships
A 12-year-old swimmer has qualified for the world championships in Singapore after her performance at China’s nationals placed her times among the world’s elite this season.Yu Zidi’s 200m butterfly time was one of the fastest globally and would have narrowly missed out on an Olympic medal last year. She also posted a competitive time in the 400m individual medley, close to an Olympic podium pace.Yu’s times are quicker than Canadian swimmer Summer McIntosh at the same age. McIntosh, now 18, holds the world records in both medley events and won three Olympic gold medals last year
Welsh wipeout in Lions squad for first time since 1896 reflects sorry decline
When the British & Irish Lions last won a Test series in 2013, Leigh Halfpenny scored a record 49 points and fellow Wales international Sam Warburton captained the side to glory in Australia with Warren Gatland coaching. Twelve years on, for the first time since 1896, not a single Welsh player will be represented in the Lions’ matchday squad for Saturday’s first Test in Brisbane.Jac Morgan’s omission is a sign of rugby’s decline in Wales in recent years, a far cry from the glorious 1970s when household names like Gareth Edwards, Barry John and JPR Williams were indispensable figures.There was always a distinct possibility of a Welsh wipeout though, with scrum-half Tomos Williams, one of only two Wales players on the plane to Australia, already out with a torn hamstring. However, the Lions coach, Andy Farrell, refused to play into the narrative, claiming Morgan was “as close as you could imagine” to getting selected
Victorian regulator weighs unprecedented intervention in AFL’s fight with bookmakers over gambling revenue
The Victorian gambling regulator is considering whether to make an unprecedented intervention in a dispute between the AFL and bookmakers, which could set a limit on the league’s revenue from wagering.Earlier this year, the AFL proposed a significant increase to the amount of money it receives from each bet placed on its game. The league also proposed a minimum $20,000 annual fee for all bookmakers, including small operators who focus on racing.Leaked documents seen by Guardian Australia revealed the cash grab was justified as a way to address what AFL executives termed an “unprecedented” increase in “integrity risks” posed by the wagering industry, which has exploded in popularity in recent years.The documents outlined concerns the AFL’s integrity system was seriously deficient and struggled to identify whether players, coaches and staff were using inside information to manipulate betting markets, in breach of their contracts
Lions still on red alert despite gaping holes in Australia’s team sheet | Robert Kitson
Sometimes the best place to gauge the mindset of a head coach before a big game is not the training pitch or the press conference room but the pub across the road. Which is where Andy Farrell and his wife, Colleen, were enjoying a relaxing post-team selection drink by an open window when a few of us happened to wander past en route back from dinner.There may be a huge contest looming but, the closer it draws, the more at ease Farrell is beginning to look. While the competitor in him loves the approaching whiff of cordite he is not a man who believes in sitting and fretting in his room before major contests. He likes to be out and about, getting a sense of the local mood and helping to fill the quiet before the storm
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