Seth Meyers on Trump’s meeting with Mamdani: ‘I’ve never seen Trump this smitten before’
Late-night hosts discussed Donald Trump’s strangely friendly meeting with New York’s mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani.Seth Meyers devoted his Monday Closer Look segment to the bizarrely friendly White House meeting between Donald Trump and New York’s mayor-elect, Zohran Mamdani, where the president seemed downright pleased to be meeting the Democratic socialist that his administration has long demonized.“He looks like a five-year-old meeting Mickey Mouse,” said an amused Meyers.Though Trump had previously called Mamdani a “communist” and a “total nutjob” the president seemed charmed by the 34-year-old mayor.“I’ve never seen Trump this smitten before,” the Late Night host said.
“This is a reminder: he doesn’t work with a single cool person! He is surrounded by so many charmless goons that the first time he got to hang out with someone that had a little charisma, he swooned like he was on a date with the varsity quarterback.“You’d have stars in your eyes too if you spent every day of your life with joyless gargoyles like Stephen Miller and JD Vance, and then you met a 34-year-old social media star who rapped in a halal cart and once appeared in an actual Disney movie,” he added.Meyers then trained on arguably the most surprising moment of the Oval Office meeting: when Trump interjected as Mamdani was asked about previously calling the president a fascist.“That’s OK, you can just say, ‘Yes.’ OK? It’s easier – it’s easier than explaining it.
I don’t mind,” Trump said while patting Mamdani on the arm,“That is the flirtiest I’ve ever heard anyone say, ‘You can call me a fascist,’” Meyers joked, before breaking out his Trump impression: “You can call me a fascist, you can call me – I’ll be whatever you want me to be!”“Of course, it won’t be remotely surprising if Trump changes his tune,” he concluded,“We’ve seen it happen many times before,But the one takeaway that will last is that all the Maga scare tactics evaporated,The right thought meeting Trump would be Zohran’s worst nightmare, but it turns out meeting Zohran was Trump’s dream come true.
”And in Los Angeles, Jimmy Kimmel celebrated his frequent target Marjorie Taylor Greene’s resignation from Congress, after a falling-out with Trump.“Yet another Trump superfan learns that loyalty to him goes only one way,” he laughed.In a message to her constituents, Greene said she found that Congress was beholden to the supremely wealthy and ignores the needs of ordinary Americans.“She says her party has no plan for healthcare, and that the Jeffrey Epstein files are not a hoax that the president claims they are – to which I say, welcome to reality, Marge,” said Kimmel.“We’re glad to have you here.
Make yourself at home, and feel free to check out our science wing while you have a chance.“Marjorie is out and Mamdani is in,” he added, referring to Trump’s “highly unlikely Friendsgiving on Friday at the White House” with Mamdani.“Most people were expecting fireworks,” he said, “but they did not expect them to be the Katy Perry kind.”“They have the vibe of a wealthy elderly gay man at the Cheesecake Factory ordering his shy young boyfriend dessert,” Kimmel said of the chummy affair.Trump, to Kimmel’s shock, lavished Mamdani with praise, saying, among other things: “He really ran an incredible race, and I congratulated him,” “it’s an amazing thing that he did,” “I think you’re going to have hopefully a really great mayor, and the better he does, the happier I am” and “I feel very confident that he’s going to do a great job.
”“What a turn of events!” Kimmel exclaimed.“It was like he was giving a wedding toast to his new son-in-law.It’s almost as if, and I know this sounds crazy – it’s almost as if Trump doesn’t have any real political convictions at all.He just says whatever, whenever.”Of Trump’s physical displays of affection for the young mayor, Kimmel added: “He touched him more in that press conference that he’s touched Melania all year.
”The unlikely alliance left heads spinning in Maga world.“They had to unplug and reboot Sean Hannity five times after this,” Kimmel chuckled.“This is how upside-down this crop of Maga-teers is: they’re mad at Trump, some of them are furious at Trump, because he was friendly with the new mayor of New York.Last week, he had a big celebratory dinner for the Saudi prince whose goons dismembered a columnist for the Washington Post? No problem.This? Too much.
“Anybody who’s surprised that Trump got along with Mamdani should not be surprised,” he concluded.“Trump loves when famous people come to visit.”
Soon-to-be-axed 7am Manchester-London train will still run – but without passengers
The good news for rail travel between Manchester and London is that a morning train will continue to link England’s biggest cities in under two hours. The bad news: passengers will no longer be able to get onboard.The rail regulator has axed one of Britain’s fastest and most lucrative intercity services, the 7am Avanti West Coast from Manchester Piccadilly to London Euston, as part of a timetable shake-up that will take effect in mid-December.What will heap on frustration for passengers, as well as the operator, is that the exact same train service will continue to run between the stations from 7am each weekday: crewed, fast and empty.The train and staff still need to travel from Manchester as they are rostered to operate subsequent services out of Euston on the new December timetable, under rail’s complex planning
Jetstar cancels 90 domestic flights across Australia after global Airbus A320 recall
Jetstar has grounded some of its Airbus fleet in Australia and cancelled domestic and international flights after the aerospace manufacturer ordered software changes to thousands of its A320 planes following a mid-air incident.Ninety Jetstar flights were affected on Saturday with disruption expected to continue until Sunday, the airline’s head of flying operations, Tyrone Simes, told reporters at Melbourne airport.Airbus said on Friday it was ordering an immediate software change on a “significant number” of its bestselling A320 family of aircraft, a narrow-body plane which is also used by Virgin Australia and Qantas.Simes said on Saturday Airbus had issued Jetstar with a maintenance directive to reverse a software upgrade that had been installed on some planes and resulted in a malfunction.He said 34 of Jetstar’s 85 Airbus fleet were affected, but engineers could complete the software update on the ground in Australia, which would take about two to three hours for each plane
More than 1,000 Amazon workers warn rapid AI rollout threatens jobs and climate
More than 1,000 Amazon employees have signed an open letter expressing “serious concerns” about AI development, saying that the company’s “all-costs justified, warp speed” approach to the powerful technology will cause damage to “democracy, to our jobs, and to the earth.”The letter, published on Wednesday, was signed by the Amazon workers anonymously, and comes a month after Amazon announced mass layoff plans as it increases adoption of AI in its operations.Among the signatories are staffers in a range of positions, including engineers, product managers and warehouse associates.Reflecting broader AI concerns across the industry, the letter was also supported by more than 2,400 workers from companies including Meta, Google, Apple and Microsoft.The letter contains a range of demands for Amazon, concerning its impact on the workplace and the environment
After a teddy bear talked about kink, AI watchdogs are warning parents against smart toys
As the holiday season looms into view with Black Friday, one category on people’s gift lists is causing increasing concern: products with artificial intelligence.The development has raised new concerns about the dangers smart toys could pose to children, as consumer advocacy groups say AI could harm kids’ safety and development. The trend has prompted calls for increased testing of such products and governmental oversight.“If we look into how these toys are marketed and how they perform and the fact that there is little to no research that shows that they are beneficial for children – and no regulation of AI toys – it raises a really big red flag,” said Rachel Franz, director of Young Children Thrive Offline, an initiative from Fairplay, which works to protect children from big tech.Last week, those fears were given brutal justification when an AI-equipped teddy bear started discussing sexually explicit topics
North Melbourne v Brisbane: 2025 AFLW grand final – live
The AFLW grand final is a sell-out for the third straight year – and the second consecutive season under lights at Ikon Park – with more than 12,500 fans set to watch North Melbourne and Brisbane lock horns yet again.Let’s hope the AFL can find a solution over the next 12 months for a suitable venue that would allow even more fans to be part of what should be a celebration of women’s football as much as the season decider between the competing clubs.The best things come in threes.Hello and welcome to live coverage of the 2025 AFLW grand final between North Melbourne and Brisbane as the pair of powerhouse sides meet in the decider for a third straight season. The premiership ledger over that time stands at one-all, which gives each team an opportunity to claim to be the ‘best of three’ and the standout of the stretch
Looking for Lando: My crash course at the track where F1 star Norris learned to drive
Monaco, Las Vegas, Singapore. The list of pitstops on Lando Norris’ road to the top of Formula One is like a luxury travel agent’s catalogue.So when I was asked to trace the young man’s journey ahead of a weekend in which he could become the first British champion driver since Lewis Hamilton, my hopes were high.As the taxi pulled up outside the Clay Pigeon Raceway in Dorchester, however, my excitement was taken down a few gears.It may seem an inauspicious place to blood the talent of those who will become some of the most glamorous, fiery competitors in sport, but here, in the shadow of an industrial estate not far from Yeovil, is where a growing number of Formula One stars are made
Oh yes he is! Kiefer Sutherland dives into the world of panto
O come out ye faithful: a joyful roundup of UK culture this Christmas
Nominate your favourite Australian children’s picture book of all time
Jimmy Kimmel: ‘Thankful that we only have five weeks left in this year’
Seth Meyers on Trump’s meeting with Mamdani: ‘I’ve never seen Trump this smitten before’
Graham Linehan cleared of harassing trans activist but convicted of damaging phone