“Late Show” host Stephen Colbert on Monday called out “petty and vindictive” President Donald Trump for going after The Associated Press after the news agency refused to use the term “Gulf of America.”
“The Associated Press keeps calling it the Gulf of Mexico because that’s what it’s called,” Colbert pointed out.
But Trump is so angry over the refusal to go along with his name change for the body of water that he’s banned The Associated Press from the Oval Office and Air Force One indefinitely.
“You can’t get mad at The AP for not using your stupid name,” Colbert said. “The thing you should get mad at The AP about is not using the Oxford comma in their style guide, OK?”
As Colbert pointed out, a number of other companies, including Google, Apple and Axios, have gone along with the name change.
“But, ladies and gentlemen, a lone hero stands tall,” Colbert said. “Because MapQuest continues to list it as the Gulf of Mexico.”
Colbert offered an exaggerated salute to the often overlooked company, then made some references to the time when MapQuest was launched ― a pre-Google and pre-smartphone era in which the mapping company was far better known.
“Pack up the Buick LeSabre, we’re going back to 1996,” he said. “Grab your collection of Beanie Babies and get ready to dip-frost your Dunkaroos because MapQuest is showing us the shining path to revolution, and it is an eight-page printout that you accidentally did in full color and your mom’s gonna fucking kill you for it.”
Of course, he acknowledged that there could be a reason other than an “outrageous act of rebellion” for MapQuest’s decision.
“Deep in my heart, I want to believe that this stand they’re taking is because of the noble convictions of everyone at MapQuest,” he said. “But it is possible that there aren’t enough people still working at MapQuest to update anything.”
See more in his Monday night monologue:
