Jimmy Kimmel hosts "Jimmy Kimmel Live!"

Jimmy Kimmel is wading into the tense showdown between President Donald Trump and Congress over the Epstein files.

During his Nov. 18 monologue, the late-night host and favored Trump foe commented on the president's seeming jumpiness around any news related to late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Epstein, who died by suicide after being jailed over allegations of sex trafficking, has become a political flashpoint within the Republican Party as some lawmakers pushed against resistance from Trump to release files related to his abuse.

"Every time he gets asked about Jeffrey Epstein, he loses his mind," Kimmel joked, referring to Congress' recent vote to release a cache of the files. The power to do so now falls with the Justice Department; however, Kimmel cast doubt on the idea that all the documents would be released.

"If anyone thinks he's going to release all the Epstein files, I've got a beautiful East Wing of the White House to sell you," he quipped, referencing Trump's recent demolition of the East Wing to make room for a ballroom.

Later in the show, Kimmel joked about the rare bipartisanship that the Epstein scandal seems to have brought about.

"Say what you want about the Epstein files, but they've kind of brought the country together. We had an almost unanimous vote in Congress today. That hasn't happened for a long time," the late-night host quipped.

Tuesday's show marked Kimmel's second episode back after a small hiatus following the death of his band leader, Cleto Escobedo III. During the opening credits of the show's Nov. 17 episode, the band was introduced as The Cletones, a change from Cleto and the Cletones.

Kimmel had most recently hosted his show on Nov. 11. In an emotional monologue, he broke down in tears and shared that Escobedo, not just his bandleader but his best friend since childhood, had died at age 59. He spent more than 20 minutes memorializing Escobedo on the show, describing it as the hardest monologue he has ever had to deliver.

Contributing: Brendan Morrow

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jimmy Kimmel pokes fun as Trump 'loses his mind' over Epstein files

Reporting by Anna Kaufman, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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