Vice President JD Vance has someone in mind to replace Jimmy Kimmel as the host of the comedian's late-night show on ABC, which was suspended indefinitely by the Walt Disney-owned network following comments made about the late Charlie Kirk.

In an X post on the morning of Thursday, Sept. 18, Vance jokingly wrote, "Everyone please congratulate @marcorubio, the new host of ABC's late night show!"

Vance's recommendation of Secretary of State Marco Rubio comes after ABC confirmed on Wednesday, Sept. 17, that it had indefinitely pulled Kimmel's late-night talk show after comments he made on a Sept. 15 episode regarding the fatal shooting of the 31-year-old conservative activist and commentator.

Kimmel made the remarks during his opening monologue, criticizing supporters of President Donald Trump following the arrest of Tyler Robinson, 22, who has been charged in Kirk's killing.

"'Jimmy Kimmel Live' will be pre-empted indefinitely," a spokesperson for the network said to USA TODAY in a statement. USA TODAY contacted Kimmel's reps, but has not received a response as of Thursday, Sept. 18.

The comedian was seen leaving the El Capitan Theatre in Los Angeles on the night of Wednesday, Sept. 17, but he did not respond to a request for comment, according to Reuters.

Why would Vance joke about Rubio hosting ABC's late-night show?

Rubio may have come to Vance's mind as a suitable replacement for Kimmel due to the current U.S. secretary of state joking about having "four jobs" in August while sitting next to Trump during a cabinet meeting.

"For me personally, this is the most meaningful Labor Day of my life as someone with four jobs," Rubio joked on Aug. 26.

In addition to serving as the U.S. secretary of state, Rubio is also the interim national security adviser, acting administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development and acting archivist of the National Archives and Records Administration.

The fate of Kimmel's late-night talk show is unclear as Sinclair, "the nation’s largest ABC affiliate group," said in a Sept. 17 news release that it "objects to recent comments made by Mr. Kimmel concerning the assassination of Charlie Kirk."

"Mr. Kimmel’s remarks were inappropriate and deeply insensitive at a critical moment for our country," said Sinclair Vice Chairman Jason Smith. "We believe broadcasters have a responsibility to educate and elevate respectful, constructive dialogue in our communities. We appreciate FCC Chairman (Brendan) Carr’s remarks today and this incident highlights the critical need for the FCC to take immediate regulatory action to address control held over local broadcasters by the big national networks."

FCC chairman condemns Kimmel's Kirk comments

Carr, the head of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), condemned comments Kimmel made days prior about Kirk. Additionally, he also appeared to threaten ABC and Disney over the comedian's Sept. 15 monologue.

"This is a very, very serious issue right now for Disney. We can do this the easy way or the hard way," Carr said on commentator Benny Johnson's show on Sept. 17. "Disney needs to see some change here, but the individual licensed stations that are taking their content, it's time for them to step up and say this, you know, garbage to the extent that that's what comes down the pipe in the future isn't something that we think serves the needs of our local communities."

Nexstar Media Group, later on Sept. 17, announced it was pulling Kimmel's show off its 32 ABC affiliates, citing the comedian's comments about Kirk. Shortly after Nexstar's decision, ABC, which holds FCC-approved licenses for the local broadcast affiliates it owns, said that Kimmel would be pulled from the air.

Contributing: Anthony Robledo, Anna Kaufman, Brendan Morrow, Kelly Lawler & Kathryn Palmer/ USA TODAY

Jonathan Limehouse covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at JLimehouse@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: JD Vance jokes about giving Marco Rubio 5th job as 'host of ABC's late night show'

Reporting by Jonathan Limehouse, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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