Jimmy Kimmel says he cannot think of "a more serious, made-up problem in this country right now than furries flying airplanes"
Host of ABC's Jimmy Kimmel Live!, in a monologue
“Only the Lord and Donald Trump can stop these six-foot squirrels from flying you to Phoenix on Southwest. I cannot think of a more serious, made-up problem in this country right now than furries flying airplanes.”
Source and context
Original video
About this source
Full episode of ABC's Jimmy Kimmel Live! from Wednesday, September 23, 2026, as uploaded to YouTube. In the monologue, Kimmel plays clips of Senator Tuberville's floor remarks about airline workers and the furry community and comments on them.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Reporting
About this source
AL.com's report of Jimmy Kimmel's Wednesday-night monologue about Senator Tuberville's floor speech. It notes that Tuberville did not provide evidence for the assertion about airline workers.
Before the quotation
Kimmel introduced Tuberville as a former football coach and current Alabama senator who gave a Senate floor speech about the dangers of furries flying airplanes, then played the clip in which Tuberville says many airline pilots, flight attendants and air traffic controllers are part of the furry community.
After the quotation
Kimmel asked what Tuberville would do about it, played more of the speech, including the passage about a pilot's fetish, and continued to joke about the senator.
How this statement is classified
Case context: Is there evidence for Tommy Tuberville's claim that furries working in the airline industry are a flight-safety risk?
The label describes this statement’s response within the context above.
Why this label?
The reference point is Tuberville's claim that many airline pilots, flight attendants and air traffic controllers are furries and a flight-safety risk. Kimmel ridicules it and calls furries flying airplanes a "made-up problem", which rejects the claim outright rather than only disputing its wording.
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- People and groups discussed
- Tommy Tuberville
Is there evidence for Tommy Tuberville's claim that furries working in the airline industry are a flight-safety risk?
Explore the case context, sources and public responses.
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Read the full case“Tuberville wants to focus on anything except the real problems facing the American public, starting with the skyrocketing cost of fuel. He could end the Iran War and protect the public from predatory AI, but instead he’s calling Care Bear “violent” to try to distract people from the real problems he helped create.”Read statement
Association of Flight Attendants-CWA
“Thanks for the shoutout, Senator Tuberville. We’re proud to be part of the furry community … OUR FURRY FLIGHT ATTENDANTS HELP KEEP OUR SKIES SAFE TOO.”Read statement
“Some, not all. … They have a club. They have an organization. … they had a section of airline pilots … Well, I don't want somebody flying me that's behind the scenes that they think they're an animal. … It's some part of mental illness that could be a catastrophe.”Read statement