Jimmy Kimmel slams Trump immigration crackdown, says Christianity is being ‘co-opted’

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Jimmy Kimmel is once again stirring debate, this time for calling out President Donald Trump’s immigration policies while claiming Christianity has been “co-opted and perverted” by conservatives. Speaking on actor Ted Danson’s podcast released Thursday, October 24, the ABC late-night host tore into Trump’s immigration crackdown, insisting that true Christian values run counter to the policies being enforced at the border.

In the conversation recorded before Kimmel’s recent suspension for comments about Charlie Kirk’s death, the 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' host reflected on his Catholic upbringing and said the current political climate has distorted faith into something unrecognizable.

Jimmy Kimmel says Christianity has been ‘co-opted and perverted’

“It especially bothers me being brought up Catholic in a very positive Catholic environment, that Christianity has been co-opted and perverted in such a way and that I find especially upsetting,” Kimmel said. “And I think about what Jesus would think of this stuff, and it seems pretty plain that he wouldn’t think it’s great.”

Kimmel went on to criticize Trump’s immigration enforcement, saying Jesus would not have approved of people being arrested for their immigration status. “He wouldn’t approve of nannies being yanked out of the park and thrust into a van to be returned to their home countries because their paperwork is not in order. That just all really seems very obvious to me,” he told Danson.

Jimmy Kimmel blasts partisan divide over Trump’s policies

Kimmel also lamented what he described as a “team mentality” in American politics. “It’s become almost like sports where I root for the red team, and you root for the blue team, and everything the blue team does is good and everything the red team does is bad and vice versa,” he said.

“And I just sometimes, I hope maybe foolishly that it will resonate with those people who don’t have their minds completely made up.”

Jimmy Kimmel defends immigrants, says they ‘just want better lives’

The late-night comedian argued that undocumented immigrants should not be deported at all, pointing to their contributions to the workforce. “Besides the fact that it’s just like, how can you go to church on Sunday and think this is okay to do to these families, to do to these people and to be so cold about it,” Kimmel said.

“I would understand if I’m an immigrant who followed all the rules and came into this country and jumped through all the hoops, that I might be somewhat resentful of somebody who snuck in some way or whatever,” he added. “But people are just looking for better lives. They’re just trying to improve their lives for their families, for themselves. They come here, they work hard. They, whether you want to believe it or not, they are paying taxes.”

Kimmel’s latest comments have sparked backlash online, with critics accusing him of oversimplifying border enforcement while trying to speak for Jesus.