Seth Meyers calls Donald Trump an 'a**hole' over his NFL tweets

'This weekend was in many ways the perfect distillation of Trump's presidency,' says Late Night host

Donald Trump's tweets attacking American football players for protests against racism make it "clear to everyone" he is an "a**hole", talk show host Seth Meyers has said.

Mr Trump said repeatedly at the weekend that players kneeling during the national anthem showed "total disrespect" to the US, with messages on the subject outnumbering those about other topics, including his three tweets about the plight of Puerto Rico.

"...NFL attendance and ratings are WAY DOWN. Boring games yes, but many stay away because they love our country. League should back US," he said on Sunday.

During a segment called A Closer Look, Mr Meyers said: "Tensions with North Korea over its nuclear programme are escalating and there's currently an urgent humanitarian crisis in Puerto Rico, where more than three million American citizens are currently without power after Hurricane Maria.

"So President Trump decided what our nation needed most this past weekend was one more s***ty thing for us to deal with."

Earlier in the week Mr Trump had told supporters at a rally in Alabama that players who kneel during the anthem should be fired.

"Wouldn't you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, you'd say, 'Get that son of a b**** off the field right now. Out! He's fired,'" he said.

News programmes airing the clip were forced to warn viewers, including children, about its offensive language.

Mr Meyers said: "Let's just take a step back and consider how embarrassing it is that news anchors now have to introduce comments from the President by warning little children to leave the room."

He added: "By now, it should be clear to everyone who Donald Trump is and what he represents. When black athletes peacefully protest racism and police brutality, Trump has no trouble summoning his outrage.

"But when white supremacists march with Nazi flags, Confederate flags, through the streets of an American city, he equivocates and then defends them.

"These athletes aren't just speaking for themselves, they're using their platform to call attention to racial injustice and speak out for others.

"This weekend was in many ways the perfect distillation of Trump's presidency. Feeding his base racial and cultural resentments in order to keep them on his side as his team of corrupt authoritarians tries to swindle hardworking Americans out of their healthcare.

"Or, you know what, to quote [NFL player] Lesean McCoy, our President is an a**hole."