Stephen Colbert, Biden fundraiser and host of The Late Show on CBS, demanded on Monday that those who condemned President Biden for issuing a proclamation on Easter Sunday recognizing Transgender Day of Visibility get over it because Biden, apparently, has nothing to do with his own actions and because Easter sometimes falls on different days. It was a sentiment echoed by NBC Late Night host Seth Meyers as both men claimed conservatives are hypocrites for not being outraged that Easter sometimes falls on April Fools' Day.
Colbert was up first, and he, a supposedly devout Catholic, didn’t see what the big deal was, “Over the weekend, Trump also attacked Biden over the fact that Easter, this year, coincided with Transgender Day of Visibility. So what? And Biden had nothing to do with that. Since 2009, International Transgender Day of Visibility has been held annually on March 31. The date of Easter, meanwhile, changes from year to year.”
Sure, Biden didn’t have anything to do with the selection of March 31, but he absolutely had something to do with the proclamation. Nobody forced the White House to do that.
However, Colbert was just getting started, “I've got some bad news for people who are upset that another thing was celebrated on Easter this year because it's gonna keep happening. In 2029, Easter is going to fall on April Fools' Day. Oh! So my religion is a big joke to you? Is that what it is? Or are you claiming that Jesus didn't actually rise from the dead? It was all a big prank on the apostles. You got Jesus'd! And smoke 'em if you got 'em, because just next year, Easter falls on 4/20.”
If Biden issued a proclamation celebrating drug use on Easter, that would also be wrong. April Fools' Day, on the other hand, is a fun day that is not contrary to Easter. Transgenderism, on the other hand, relies on the premise that God made a mistake in creating someone male or female. If God makes mistakes, He is not perfect. If he is not perfect, He is not God. If He is not God, He could not have rose from the dead on that first Easter Sunday.
Later, on NBC, Meyers introduced a series of news clips from Fox and CNN of the conservative pushback to Biden’s proclamation, “But Trump's lunacy is not an aberration within the GOP. It's the norm. They spent all weekend furious about the fact that Transgender Day of Visibility just happened to fall on the same day as Easter this year, and they blamed it on Joe Biden rather than the real reason, the calendar.”
After the montage, Meyers took the opportunity to do some “but Trump” whataboutism. Referencing a Trump post on Truth Social, Meyers huffed, “Yeah, we should have a more respectful Easter proclamation that puts the emphasis where it's deserved. Evil Fani Willis, Sick Jack Smith, and the corrupt judges and prosecutors who despise America. Not only did Trump not mention religion in his screed, everyone who read it took the Lord's name in vain. Jesus [bleep] Christ with this guy.”
Like Colbert, Meyers also tried to suggest that Biden had nothing to do with his own proclamation and that Transgender Day of Visibility is analogous to April Fools' Day, “I can't believe I have to explain this, but sometimes two things happen on the same day. For example, in 2018, Easter and April Fools' were the same day, and I don't recall any Republicans going on Fox and claiming, the sacred resurrection of Christ has been sullied by all these frivolous pranks and goofs, although who can forget when Mary Magdalene rushed to Jesus' tomb, discovered it was empty, and told Peter and John, ‘My dudes, I think we've been pranked.’"
Indeed, two things can happen on the same day, such as two late night hosts completely missing the point.
Here is a transcript for the April 1-taped shows:
CBS The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
4/1/2023
11:41 PM ET
STEPHEN COLBERT: But in the world of made up outrage, there's always Plan B. Over the weekend, Trump also attacked Biden over the fact that Easter, this year, coincided with Transgender Day of Visibility. So what? And Biden had nothing to do with that. Since 2009, International Transgender Day of Visibility has been held annually on March 31. The date of Easter, meanwhile, changes from year to year. Of course everyone knows the formula for setting the date of Easter.
AUDIENCE: The first Sunday after the first full moon on or after the vernal equinox.
COLBERT: See? I've got some bad news for people who are upset that another thing was celebrated on Easter this year because it's gonna keep happening. In 2029, Easter is going to fall on April Fools' Day. Oh! So my religion is a big joke to you? Is that what it is? Or are you claiming that Jesus didn't actually rise from the dead? It was all a big prank on the apostles. You got Jesus'd! And smoke 'em if you got 'em, because just next year, Easter falls on 4/20.
***
NBC Late Night with Seth Meyers
4/2/2024
12:45 PM ET
SETH MEYERS: But Trump's lunacy is not an aberration within the GOP. It's the norm. They spent all weekend furious about the fact that Transgender Day of Visibility just happened to fall on the same day as Easter this year, and they blamed it on Joe Biden rather than the real reason, the calendar.
VICTOR BLACKWELL: Republicans are criticizing the White House over a statement that acknowledges today, March 31st, as the Transgender Day of Visibility. Their issue is that today is also Easter.
AMARA WALKER: This year the two days only coincided by chance. The Day of Visibility is held every year on March 31st while the date for Easter changes year to year.
LUCAS TOMLINSON: House Speaker Mike Johnson rebuked Biden, saying, quote, "The Biden White House has betrayed the central tenet of Easter, which is the resurrection of Jesus Christ, banning sacred truth and tradition while at the same time proclaiming Easter Sunday as Transgender Day."
LISA BOOTHE: Well, this is a clear effort and a coordinated effort to remove God from our society and to replace God with false gods, and in this instance, it's the trans community.
MEYERS: Yeah, we should have a more respectful Easter proclamation that puts the emphasis where it's deserved. Evil Fani Willis, Sick Jack Smith, and the corrupt judges and prosecutors who despise America. Not only did Trump not mention religion in his screed, everyone who read it took the Lord's name in vain. Jesus [bleep] Christ with this guy.
I can't believe I have to explain this, but sometimes two things happen on the same day. For example, in 2018, Easter and April Fools' were the same day, and I don't recall any Republicans going on Fox and claiming, the sacred resurrection of Christ has been sullied by all these frivolous pranks and goofs, although who can forget when Mary Magdalene rushed to Jesus' tomb, discovered it was empty, and told Peter and John, "My dudes, I think we've been pranked."
