CBS’s Stephen Colbert mourned on Tuesday’s edition of The Late Show that it will take several years to rebuild democracy after President Trump leaves office. Colbert’s lamentations came as Trump addressed sailors onboard the USS George Washington in Japan, which led him to also express confusion at the idea that the Navy stands ready to sink enemy ships.
After a clip of Trump telling the sailors that he might send the National Guard to more cities, Colbert declared, “He’s telling the military he’s going to use them to invade America, but just a warning to the troops: that country is run by a madman, okay? It will take you years to install a democracy at this point.”
Colbert then teed up another clip of Trump, “And those American cities better watch out because, according to Trump, our military is set to go G.I. Joe.”
In the video, Trump proclaimed that, “Nobody makes equipment like we do. Nobody makes the ammunition, the weapons, the missiles, the planes, none of it. And if they do, the American sailor stands ready to crush them and sink them and wreck them and blast them into oblivion.”
Colbert retorted, “Inspiring words. Reminds me of Winston Churchill during World War II.”
A voice impression of Churchill, purporting to be from June 4, 1940, then added, “We will fight on the beaches, we will fight on the landing grounds. We will crush them, wreck them, drop a grand piano on them, put a lit stick of dynamite up their butt and then laugh really hard when their butt blows off.”
Trump has his unique way of phrasing things, but the idea that the military stands ready to fight the enemy and defeat him should deterrence fail is something every president says. As for the alleged death of democracy, there will be another election next year, and people will look back at apocalyptic proclamations such as this with mockery.
Here is a transcript for the October 28 show:
CBS The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
10/28/2025
11:39 PM ET
STEPHEN COLBERT: He’s telling the military he’s going to use them to invade America, but just a warning to the troops: that country is run by a madman, okay? It will take you years to install a democracy at this point. And those American cities better watch out because, according to Trump, our military is set to go G.I. Joe.
DONALD TRUMP: Nobody makes equipment like we do. Nobody makes the ammunition, the weapons, the missiles, the planes, none of it. And if they do, the American sailor stands ready to crush them and sink them and wreck them and blast them into oblivion.
COLBERT: Inspiring words. Reminds me of Winston Churchill during World War II.
FAKE WINSTON CHURCHILL: We will fight on the beaches, we will fight on the landing grounds. We will crush them, wreck them, drop a grand piano on them, put a lit stick of dynamite up their butt and then laugh really hard when their butt blows off.
