WASHINGTON — First lady Melania Trump savagely criticized ABC late-night host Jimmy Kimmel as a “coward” Monday after he referred to her as “an expectant widow” two days before Saturday’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting — the third attempt on President Trump’s life.

“Kimmel’s hateful and violent rhetoric is intended to divide our country. His monologue about my family isn’t comedy- his words are corrosive and deepens the political sickness within America,” Melania, 56, wrote in a post on X.

The president also hit back — calling on the late-night host to be canned for the tasteless remark.

“Jimmy Kimmel should be immediately fired by Disney and ABC,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

“Kimmel, who is in no way funny as attested to by his terrible Television Ratings, made a statement on his Show that is really shocking. He showed a fake video of the First Lady, Melania, and our son, Barron, like they were actually sitting in his studio, listening to him speak, which they weren’t, and never would be,” the president noted. “He then stated, ‘Our First Lady, Melania, is here. Look at Melania, so beautiful. Mrs. Trump, you have a glow like an expectant widow.’

“A day later a lunatic tried entering the ballroom of the White House Correspondents Dinner, loaded up with a shotgun, handgun, and many knives.”

Trump added that the would-be assassin was “there for a very obvious and sinister reason.”

“I appreciate that so many people are incensed by Kimmel’s despicable call to violence, and normally would not be responsive to anything that he said but, this is something far beyond the pale,” the president continued.

Donald and Melania Trump were attending the dinner for the first time since his first election to the presidency in 2016, lending additional anticipation to one of the capital’s biggest annual social events.Kimmel — who was pulled off the air last year is facing severe backlash for claiming the gunman who killed Charlie Kirk was a MAGA conservative — mocked the dinner on his show on Thursday night, giving his own speech in which he said: “Our first lady, Melania, is here. Look at Melania, so beautiful. Mrs. Trump, you have a glow like an expectant widow.”

Follow the latest on the shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner:

The host also mocked the Trumps’ 22-year marriage in his parody monologue, at one point pretending to introduce the couple: “Oh, by the way, Melania, this is Donald. Donald, this is Melania.”

In her response, the first lady accused Disney-owned ABC of protecting the former “Man Show” host and called for ABC to step in and yank him off the air.

“A coward, Kimmel hides behind ABC because he knows the network will keep running cover to protect him,” she wrote.

“Enough is enough. It is time for ABC to take a stand. How many times will ABC’s leadership enable Kimmel’s atrocious behavior at the expense of our community?”

Cole Allen, 31 was detained by authorities and hit with charges of attempted assassination of the president, transportation of a firearm across state lines to commit a felony and discharging a gun.

The first lady was sitting between her husband and White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt at the top table when gun shots were heard.

She looked visibly shocked at the sound of the shots and started to crawl off the stage before Secret Service agents moved her and the president to safety.

The first lady appeared with President Trump and other administration officials in the White House briefing room fewer than two hours later, appearing on the verge of tears when the commander in chief spoke of past attempts on his life.

ABC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

It’s not the first time Kimmel is being criticized for making insensitive comments.

In September 2025, Kimmel was taken off the air for a few days following backlash from affiliates in the wake of his comments about Charlie Kirk following his assassination.

The week-long suspension of “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” prompted widespread boycotts of Disney for alleged media suppression and First Amendment violations.

Kimmel failed to apologize upon his return to the air Sept. 23, but said: “It was never my intention to make light of a murder of a young man. I don’t think there’s anything funny about it.”

But President Trump fumed about ABC’s decision to give him his show back.

“I can’t believe ABC Fake News gave Jimmy Kimmel his job back,” he wrote in a Truth Social post.

“The White House was told by ABC that his Show was cancelled! Something happened between then and now because his audience is GONE, and his ‘talent’ was never there.”