Why Did Whitney Cummings' Trump Joke Disappear from Netflix?

A comedian has claimed that one of her jokes about President Donald Trump was cut out ahead of her Netflix Special's release. Whitney Cummings said that the joke came as comedian and TV host Bill Maher was being honored at the Kennedy Center on June 28 with the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. Cummings claimed on her Good For You podcast that it was removed from the 27th Mark Twain Prize for American Humor, which drops on Netflix today (July 21). The ceremony for the event was held at the Kennedy Center for the first time, after a federal judge ruled that Trump’s attempt to change the capital's arts venue's name to include his own was unlawful . Cummings, 43, said that while the joke initially 'stayed in,' she was told that they decided to cut it out. As reported by the Daily Beast , Cummings referenced Trump's alleged connections to late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein at the end of her appearance. The comedian claimed that one of her jokes was removed from her Netflix special. Credit: Instagram/Whitney Cummings Whitney Cummings' joke about Trump The comedian said: “I actually heard Trump may come tonight but he couldn’t make it “He got caught in sex traffic,” she joked, referencing Epstein's links to sex trafficking rings. Speaking on her podcast, Cummings claimed: “They said, ‘We would like to cut it out,’” without revealing much else. The comedian said that Kennedy Center staff stated 'they don’t want to silence anyone. It is true that their boss is Donald Trump, so they did their job.' “I was presented with a tricky conundrum; I just don’t know if I did the right thing or not,” she admitted. “They said, it was very clear to me, that they would lose their jobs.” Apparently, the joke was already leaked by an audience member, as she explained: “It was already in People magazine and Daily Beast... it was already out, it’s already out there. “But then they said, ‘We need to cut it from the broadcast.’” When she said that the joke was already public, the mom was warned that Trump would 'sue' her if it aired, though Cummings claimed: “I don’t buy it, number one. Number two, he might.” Statement from Netflix Despite Cummings claiming that the Mark Twain Prize was 'the only time you shouldn’t get censored, because it is about comedians using humor to criticize our elected officials,' she was ultimately shot down. Netflix provided a statement to Puck , explaining that they didn't decide to cut the joke from the final special. They said: “While it’s our preference not to cut jokes from anyone’s set, The Kennedy Center has the contractual right to do so.” Cummings admitted that she wanted to 'fight' to keep the joke in, adding: “Also, I don’t want anyone losing their jobs. "But if it’s just about him suing me, I was like... "I felt very strongly I would win.” Donald Trump famously doesn't like to be made fun of. Credit: Leon Neal/Getty Cummings takes aim at Trump She joked about suing the president for 'emotional distress,' adding: “I had to write a set, and do it in the Kennedy Center, where Trump is the boss, and not make fun of [him]. "You know how hard that is for a comedian?” Cummings also said that staff at the venue “did their jobs well and protected their boss from the wrath of a comedian mom... from me destroying his reputation.” In joking about having "the audacity to ruin his pristine name," Cummings suggested that the 80-year-old may sue her in the future if he's "bored out of his mind." “They were like, ‘You’ll always have this hanging over your head, and you never know when he’ll just get bored and strike out of left field’,” she recalled. Cummings was warned by staff about the joke, admitting: “The people that work there on staff told me not to say it. "The people that were hourly and daily hires laughed hysterically... the people that get health insurance from the Kennedy Center did their jobs well." Featured image credit: Instagram/Whitney Cummings