Phil Ammann
Days before Tuesday night’s debut as “Late Show” host, Stephen Colbert escalated the battle with one of the show’s first guests – GOP presidential candidate Jeb Bush.
The good-natured altercation began, unsurprisingly, with a fundraising pitch.
Bush used his upcoming appearance on Colbert’s inaugural CBS broadcast for a contest, which offers supporters a chance to win tickets to the show – all for a simple $3 donation.
Nevertheless, the Twitter “feud” began when Bush’s campaign failed to get permission from Colbert first.
“No one from Jeb’s campaign asked me if this was OK with me to raise money off my first show,” Colbert said in a web video. “Where’s my cut of that sweet three bucks, governor?”
Colbert also mocked Bush’s email, which said the tickets were for the “first chance to see the Steven Colbert Late Show – which now has ‘a new host.’”
“Gosh, I hope it’s Amy Schumer,” he joked. “I hear she is hilarious.”
Colbert, who apparently has a few extra tickets as well, launched his own “raffle-adjacent” contest; the winner will go to the show as a VIP guest. As a bonus, they will also get to submit one (non-obscene) question to Bush that Colbert will ask on the winner’s behalf.
“For example,” Colbert says, “one question might be: ‘Don’t you wish you’d consulted Stephen before launching your contest?'”
Money raised by Colbert’s challenge will go to the Yellow Ribbon Fund, a charity to help injured service members and their families.
Bush quickly took to Twitter in response.
“I thought the host was Amy Schumer; I totally blew it. But since it’s you, we’re lowering our contest fee to $1,” Bush said in a video clip. “And I’ll enter yours with a donation to the Yellow Ribbon Fund.”
.@StephenAtHome I’m in. See you September 8th my man https://t.co/INl40CfrQ4
— Jeb Bush (@JebBush) September 3, 2015
Later, the former governor tweeted: “I hope everyone will join me in donating to this great cause,” along with a link to Yellow Ribbon Fund. The final words in the “Late Show” melee, however, came from Amy Schumer, featured in a clip from @StephenAtHome where she played Colbert, followed by the new host’s final tweet on the matter: “See you Tuesday, my Jebroh!”
.@JebBush I’m inner! See you Tuesday, my Jebroh! http://t.co/fJkcqonJmt https://t.co/uFZh9dDcNh — Stephen Colbert (@StephenAtHome) September 3, 2015
