Late-night hosts on Monday urged viewers to “never fjorget” a non-existent terror attack in Sweden after Donald Trump seemed to reference a made-up event at a campaign rally on Saturday.
Trump’s comment that people should “look at what’s happening last night in Sweden” led to confusion across Sweden, where no terror attacks had happened on Friday night.
Trump defended himself on Sunday, writing on Twitter that his comment was a reference to a Fox News report, which claimed to show “refugee violence in Sweden”. Swedish police quoted in the segment said their comments were taken “out of context”.
“I guess Trump only accepts intelligence reports with the logo ‘As Seen on TV’,” said Stephen Colbert on The Late Show.
“Clearly, Trump believes everything he sees on TV is real, which would explain his next tweet: ‘America is a disaster! Our girls are broke! Our dead are walking! The pope’s too young! It’s a scandal! #shameless.’
Colbert then highlighted that Sweden’s crime rate has been falling since 2005. “In fact, experts say 90% of Swedish crime actually occurs in The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo,” Colbert said.
“Tragically, Sweden is the third not-a-terrorist attack that has not shocked the world in the last month. First, there wasn’t the Bowling Green massacre; then no one was lost in Atlanta. And now it’s not Sweden’s turn. When will it begin? And just because this attack didn’t happen, folks, doesn’t mean we don’t stand in solidarity with all the people who did not suffer.”
Colbert continued to assail Trump for his blatant error in a video tribute titled “Never Fjorget” which showcased Swedish products such as Swedish Fish candy, Ikea and Abba.
He also broadcast a joke video claiming to feature a star-studded cast singing “We are all Sweden”. The Late Show failed to actually get any celebrities in the video.
Trump’s mistake about Sweden also figured centrally in Late Night with Seth Meyers.
“It turns out, what Trump was referring to was not a terror attack in Sweden, but a segment he saw the night before on Fox News about refugees in Sweden. So Trump literally saw something on Fox News and confused it for reality,” Meyers said. “Next thing you know, he’s gonna lament the terrible treatment of people with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis.”
Meyers then shared a clip of a Swedish broadcaster saying people were “making jokes” about the mistake.
“That’s how bad things have gotten under Trump: we’re getting roasted by Swedes now,” Meyers said. “The Swedish Chef is like, ‘Dude, even I don’t understand a word you’re saying.’”
The Daily Show did not reference the Sweden incident and instead looked back at Barack Obama’s presidency with clips and interviews from past episodes. This week, the show will continue to review the transition of power, suggesting staff are on break this week.
But the show’s host, Trevor Noah, couldn’t ignore the Sweden debacle over the weekend:
Trevor Noah (@Trevornoah)That's ok, Donald, we all mess up. It's not like you have your own intelligence agencies to give you real news. ❤ https://t.co/XasA6e2GJy
February 20, 2017
