Late-night hosts seized on the big political news of Wednesday morning (Apr. 11), when House Speaker Paul Ryan announced he would not be running for re-election to Congress in November.
CBS’ The Late Show With Stephen Colbert commemorated Ryan’s stint as House Speaker with a video compilation of the representative’s “most courageous stances.” They included one of his comments on President Donald Trump’s tweets (“I’ve decided I’m not going to comment on the tweets of the day or the hour,” he noted), a remark made on NBC’s Today Show about Trump accusers alleging sexual harassment (“I don’t even know what these accusations are”), his racially weighted remarks about Trump (“I know his heart’s in the right place,” he said on CBS’ Face the Nation) and others.
In honor of the House Speaker’s decision not to seek reelection, #LSSC presents this look back at Paul Ryan’s most courageous stances. #PaulRyan #Courage pic.twitter.com/mLPkMp5L0o
— The Late Show (@colbertlateshow) April 11, 2018
Host Stephen Colbert also spent some time on Ryan during his opening monologue, joking, “He said today he wants to spend some more time with his wife and kids, which is of course what he calls his biceps.” Colbert also noted Trump’s farewell tweet to Ryan, which said that “Republicans are with you.” “Yes, Republicans are with you, Paul. And by with you, I mean leaving office in November,” Colbert said.
Over on TBS’ Conan, host Conan O’Brien delivered a zinger about Ryan into his opening monologue. “House Speaker Paul Ryan said he is not seeking re-election because he wants to spend more time with his kids,” he said. “Ryan said, ‘As a dad, there comes a time when you want to be there to take away their healthcare in person.'”
Trevor Noah of Comedy Central’s The Daily Show reminded viewers that though the 48-year-old Ryan might look young, he’s been in Congress since 1999. “That was so long ago, Britney Spears hadn’t done it ‘again’ yet,” Noah joked. He also pointed out that Ryan’s primary objective in his time in the House of Representatives was to lower the nation’s debt, but that a Republican-led House, of which he was speaker, passed a sweeping tax bill that led to cuts for many corporations.
NBC’s Late Night With Seth Meyers went the extra mile with the news, penning a song about how the show felt about the resignation. Late Night writer Amber Ruffin performed Roy Orbison’s “Crying” as “Roy Amberson” thusly: “You creep me out / With just a smile / You’re a scary vampire child.”
And on The Opposition, host Jordan Klepper joked that Ryan’s resignation might be a symptom of a fictional illness he termed “Coward’s back.”
“Paul Ryan is retiring because of a serious medical condition. You see, Paul Ryan has no spine. It’s tragic,” Jordan said. He later added, ““Don’t feel bad for the Speaker. Paul Ryan is going out doing the thing he does best: not standing up for anything.”
This article originally appeared on THR.com.