Fox News' Jones torches 'shameful' Colbert for April Fool's Trump jab: 'Rooting against the country'

NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: Fox News host Lawrence Jones erupted on Thursday, April 2, over a late-night jab at President Donald Trump, calling Stephen Colbert "shameful" for mocking a wartime address with an April Fool’s punchline.

Speaking on 'Fox & Friends', Jones accused Colbert and parts of the media of "rooting against the country" at a critical moment, as he reacted to the comedian’s viral monologue following Trump’s primetime speech on the Iran conflict.

Lawrence Jones unloads on Stephen Colbert

The segment began with Jones referencing how several media voices and late-night shows responded to Trump’s address, suggesting many were primed to dismiss it regardless of content.

As a montage played, he focused on what he saw as a pattern of negativity before zeroing in on Colbert’s remark.

After the clip aired, Jones fired back, saying, "Rooting against the country, I think it’s shameful right now."

He argued that critics were ignoring what he described as a track record of successful military operations under Trump, insisting the president had already proven himself.

“The president doesn’t deserve some credibility on it. He earned the credibility,” he said. “We’ve had several military operations where we got in, got out. Seamless. No casualties at the time. Some of our troops got injured, but they were flawless in a sense.”

Lawrence Jones added, saying, “So now we have the big one, the big enchilada, that has been a threat for 47 years, and you mean to tell me you’re not going to give him any credibility on the operation?”

Stephen Colbert takes a dig at Trump

The outrage stemmed from Colbert’s opening monologue on 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert', which aired just hours after Trump delivered his first national address since the escalation with Iran.

The speech, which ran for roughly 19 minutes, saw Trump warn that the US would “hit them extremely hard over the next two to three weeks,” adding, “We are going to bring them back to the Stone Ages.”

Colbert opened his show by appearing to praise the address, telling viewers, “It was a big night on all the broadcast networks. Donald Trump at 9 o’clock gave a national prime time address. It was concise, intelligent, and brought the nation together with shared purpose.”

The audience responded with uneasy laughter before Colbert delivered the punchline, saying, “April Fool’s!”

The comedian later acknowledged he had not actually watched the speech before taping and layered in additional humor, including a quip suggesting he had “put lamb’s blood on my TV, so the speech would pass me by.”