**🚨 BREAKING: Donald Trump Sparks Fresh Late-Night Buzz After Reportedly Referring to Jimmy Kimmel with a Pointed Nickname During Recent Exchange**

Palm Beach, Florida / Los Angeles – February 15, 2026

Donald Trump has once again ignited a viral firestorm across late-night television circles after reportedly unleashing a sharp, personal nickname for Jimmy Kimmel during a private conversation that quickly leaked to media outlets and social platforms. The remark—described by multiple sources close to the former president as “vintage Trump”—has sent the internet into overdrive, revived the long-running feud between the two men, and given Kimmel’s show an unexpected ratings boost just as the 2026 midterm campaign begins to heat up.

According to three people familiar with the exchange, the comment occurred during a late-afternoon phone call Trump took while hosting a small group of advisers at Mar-a-Lago. When the subject of recent late-night monologues came up—particularly Kimmel’s ongoing jabs at Trump’s legal troubles and the 25th Amendment invocation—Trump allegedly paused, then said with a laugh: “That little Hollywood has-been Jimmy Kimmel? He’s just a washed-up crybaby with a failing show. I call him ‘Jimmy Kimmeltoe’ because he’s always kissing somebody’s ass to stay relevant.”

The nickname—“Jimmy Kimmeltoe”—spread like wildfire after one of the advisers in the room allegedly texted it to a friend, who then posted a screenshot (quickly deleted) that was captured and reshared thousands of times. By early evening the phrase was the number-one trending topic on X in the United States, surpassing even ongoing discussions about the property-seizure order in New York.

Kimmel wasted no time capitalizing on the moment. Opening his late-night monologue less than two hours after the leak broke, he leaned into the camera with mock hurt: “Donald Trump called me ‘Jimmy Kimmeltoe’ today. First of all, that’s a terrible nickname—zero creativity. Second, if I’m kissing ass, it’s only because I’m trying to reach the microphone on my failing show. But seriously, folks, the man who once called Stormy Daniels ‘Horseface’ and Rosie O’Donnell a ‘pig’ is now recycling playground insults at 79 years old. Sad!”

The audience erupted; the clip was viewed more than 14 million times on YouTube before midnight. Kimmel then ran a montage of Trump’s past nicknames for enemies—Lyin’ Ted, Crooked Hillary, Low-Energy Jeb, Sleepy Joe—ending with a freeze-frame of Trump’s face and the caption: “Running out of material? Try ‘Kimmeltoe.’”

Trump, never one to let an insult stand unanswered, fired back on Truth Social at 11:47 p.m. ET: “Jimmy Kimmel is a third-rate comedian with NO TALENT and LOW RATINGS! He cries every night about me because he knows his show is DEAD without Trump! I don’t care what he calls me—I’m WINNING and he’s LOSING. Sad little man!” The post drew more than 1.8 million interactions in the first few hours, but also triggered a flood of mocking replies and memes featuring Kimmel’s face photoshopped onto toes, feet, and other absurd images.

The feud between Trump and Kimmel dates back to 2016, when Kimmel mocked Trump’s campaign rhetoric and personal life on air. Trump retaliated by calling Kimmel “overrated” and “not funny,” and the bad blood has simmered ever since, with periodic flare-ups whenever one references the other. Kimmel has frequently used Trump’s legal troubles, the January 6 investigations, and now the 25th Amendment crisis as monologue fodder, while Trump has dismissed Kimmel as part of the “late-night losers club” alongside Colbert, Meyers, and Fallon.

Media analysts see the latest exchange as classic Trump: turning a personal slight into a national talking point while simultaneously energizing his base and giving his critics fresh material. “It’s a perfect feedback loop,” said veteran entertainment reporter Michael Schneider. “Trump drops a crude nickname → Kimmel milks it for laughs → clips go viral → Trump responds → repeat. Both sides win in terms of attention, but it keeps Trump’s name dominating headlines when he’s already under siege legally and politically.”

The timing is particularly awkward for Trump. With his properties facing court-ordered seizure in New York, four top lawyers having just resigned, and the constitutional crisis still unresolved, every viral distraction risks amplifying perceptions of chaos. Yet his supporters view the Kimmel spat as proof he remains unbowed. One viral MAGA post read: “They can take his towers but they can’t take his fight. Jimmy Kimmeltoe wishes he had half Trump’s energy!”

Late-night competitors quickly joined the fray. Stephen Colbert opened his show by saying: “Trump called Jimmy ‘Kimmeltoe.’ I’m just glad he didn’t call me ‘Colbertcolon’—that would have been way worse.” Seth Meyers ran a fake ad for “Kimmeltoe brand foot cream: for when your jokes are too sharp and your enemies can’t handle the burn.”

As of early Saturday morning, the “Jimmy Kimmeltoe” meme ecosystem is thriving: AI-generated images of Kimmel as a literal toe, photoshopped Trump rally signs reading “Make Kimmeltoe Cry Again,” and even a parody song circulating on TikTok set to the tune of “Baby Shark.” Kimmel’s show is projecting its highest ratings week in months.

Whether the nickname becomes a lasting cultural footnote or fades like so many Trump-isms before it (“Covfefe,” “Bigly,” etc.), one thing is already clear: in 2026 America, even a throwaway insult from Mar-a-Lago can dominate the national conversation for days. And as Trump’s legal and political battles intensify, the late-night circuit remains one of the few arenas where he can still reliably punch back—and get punched in return.