By Arun Nair

Copyright timesnownews

Jimmy Kimmel was fired by ABC “because he had bad ratings”, and for his “horrible” remarks about right-wing influencer Charlie Kirk, US President Donald Trump said today, hours after the Disney-owned network pulled the late-night talk show host off air indefinitely over his controversial comments. Donald Trump had welcomed Kimmel’s indefinite suspension as “great news for America”. “Jimmy Kimmel was fired because he had bad ratings, more than anything else, and he said a horrible thing about a great gentleman known as Charlie Kirk… Jimmy Kimmel is not a talented person… and they should’ve fired him a long time ago,” Trump said. ABC took Jimmy Kimmel Live! off air after Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr threatened to act against Disney and ABC over Kimmel’s remarks. Jimmy Kimmel had faced flak after he accused ‘many in MAGA land’ of trying to capitalise on the murder of Charlie Kirk. In his Monday night monologue, Kimmel said: “The Maga Gang desperately trying to characterise this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it.” The term “Maga” is short for Trump’s campaign slogan, Make America Great Again, and many of the US president’s supporters often wear caps and shirts bearing the phrase. The late-night host also noted flags being flown at half mast in honour of Kirk, and mocked US President Donald Trump’s reaction to the shooting. “This is not how an adult grieves the murder of someone he calls a friend. This is how a four-year-old mourns a goldfish,” said Kimmel, who has often poked fun at Trump. Soon after, major ABC affiliates, particularly Nexstar Media group publicly refused to air the show, calling Kimmel’s remarks ‘offensive and insensitive’. Some prominent Hollywood figures, however, condemned the move as censorship and a threat to free speech. Get Latest News Live on Times Now along with Breaking News and Top Headlines from US News and around the World.