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Mike Rowe, the host of “Everyman,” recently took late-night host Jimmy Kimmel to task for what he described as “tone-deaf” remarks. Kimmel had made fun of new Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin’s background as a plumber, a comment Rowe found particularly offensive.
The former “Dirty Jobs” host criticized Kimmel’s comments, which some have labeled as elitist. Rowe expressed his discontent with the implication that individuals in skilled trades shouldn’t aspire to different roles, questioning whether Mullin’s journey from running a plumbing business to serving in Congress and then becoming a top Cabinet official doesn’t exemplify the American Dream.
Rowe elaborated on his stance via a post on X, saying, “Being offended is always a choice, and I’m not opting to be offended by a joke, even if it targets the skilled tradespeople my foundation aims to uplift.” He admitted, however, to feeling a bit upset by the notion that skilled workers shouldn’t transition into new careers, challenging the idea that competence is confined to a single field.
He further commented, “Of course, expertise and skill matter. If I need a kidney transplant, I’d want a surgeon, not a talk show host, to perform it. But if that surgeon had previously hosted a talk show, why should that be held against them?”
He continued, “Obviously, expertise and skill are important,” adding, “If I need a new kidney, I’d prefer a doctor do the surgery, not a late-night talk show host. But if the doctor in question used to host a talk show, why would I hold that against him?”
Kimmel, a regular critic of the Trump administration, took flak last week for using Mullin’s prior experience as a plumbing business owner as evidence that he is unqualified to lead DHS.
“Trump’s got a whole new generation of thinkers lined up, including his newly confirmed secretary of Homeland Security, Markwayne ‘Chuck Mike Bruce Dave’ Melon — Mullin. Maybe melon’s better,” Kimmel said. “He’s the now former senator of Oklahoma. Before he was elected to the Senate, Markwayne Mullin was a low-level MMA fighter and a plumber. That’s right. We have a plumber protecting us from terrorism now. It worked for Super Mario. Why not Markwayne?”
He continued, “But honestly — I mean, if Trump is going to keep picking these unqualified people to run the department, why not have more fun with it? I mean, next time, instead of Markwayne, how about Lil Wayne for Homeland Security? At least we can get a concert out of it, right?”
Kimmel later doubled down, saying, “I’m not upset that the head of Homeland Security used to be a plumber. I’m upset that he isn’t still a plumber.”
The late-night host added, “I wouldn’t put a plumber in charge of Homeland Security for the same reason I wouldn’t call a five-star general to pull a rat out of my toilet… We all have our areas of expertise.”
Kimmel’s remarks were viewed as elitist by many commentators on X, who accused the comedian of mocking working-class professions. Among those offended by the joke was Rowe, who runs a nonprofit to promote skilled trade jobs called mikeroweWORKS.
He emphasized that “the shortage of skilled tradespeople is now headline news and that closing it is nothing less than a matter of national security.”
“The only sensible thing to do in the wake of a moment this tone deaf is remind America that the skills gap is wide and getting wider,” Rowe wrote. “What we really need in this country are more welders who can talk intelligently about Aristotle, and more philosophers who can run an even bead. More generals, in other words, who can fix their own toilets, and more plumbers who can hold a powerful government job.”
“This is what Mullin did,” he continued.
“He was a private citizen who mastered an essential skill and then turned that skill into a multimillion-dollar company that employed a lot of people and served a lot of customers. That gave him the freedom to do other things with his life, including a career in public service, which got him into Congress, where he’s spent the last 11 years doing whatever congressmen do. Now, he has a very consequential position in the Cabinet of the current administration.”
“Is that not the embodiment of the American Dream?” he asked.
“I get that Jimmy Kimmel might have a problem with Mullin’s politics, but what possible objection could he have about the trajectory of his career, or his desire to do more than one thing with his life?”
Rowe concluded, “I’d love to chat but I’ve gotta pull a rat out of my toilet.”