On Monday, Stephen Colbert discussed several statements made by President Trump after oil fields in Saudi Arabia was attacked over the weekend, and “The Late Show” host didn’t come away impressed.
On Saturday, production at two Saudi oil fields was stopped after they were attacked by drones; by Monday the price of oil per barrel had spiked 15%. Houthi rebels in Yemen claimed responsibility for the attacks, but the Saudi government and many U.S. officials, including Trump, have suggested Iran was behind them.
Colbert took a jaundiced look at the whole thing starting with the idea that Iran had to be behind it because only a state-level actor could pull off such an attack.
“Yes. Drones are highly advanced tech,” Colbert said. “We’ve narrowed down the suspects to Iran, or your dad who just bought a quad copter at Best Buy.”
“Our top intelligence officials think Iran did it, and so does our top un-intelligence official,” Colbert continued, referring to Trump. Colbert noted a weekend tweet in which Trump said the U.S. is “locked and loaded depending on verification.”
“You don’t get to be ‘locked and loaded’ and wait on ‘verification,’” Colbert joked. “Dirty Harry didn’t say ‘go ahead, make my day … once you’ve been found guilty by a jury of your peers. Punk.”
Colbert then noted how Trump also tweeted that he is waiting on Saudi Arabia to determine who attacked them and “under what terms we would proceed.”
“Oh, I keep forgetting that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman now tells the U.S. president who to attack and how,” Colbert deadpanned. “Of course, it’s all part of Trump Hotel rewards program: Rent 500 Rooms, Get a Free War!”
Watch the whole clip below:
TONIGHT: Trump's unintelligent Iranian intelligence. #LSSC pic.twitter.com/1i9ywpYp5r
— The Late Show (@colbertlateshow) September 17, 2019