John Oliver Sparks Feud With Ecuadorian President

Last Week Tonight caused a bit of an international incident when host John Oliver provoked Ecuador President Rafael Correa for, among many things, acting like a buffoon on television by dancing with clowns and being too thin-skinned while spending way too much time on social media. (Oliver also said Correa looked like “a used Jeremy Piven salesman.”)

After Correa went on national television to make fun of teenagers that teased him on Facebook and Twitter, Oliver recommended that his viewers help thicken Correa’s skin by bombarding the president’s @MashiRafael handle with further insults.

As the AV Club writes, the Ecuadorian president soon discovered that Oliver was the source of the widespread burns and has now fired back. Correa called Oliver “an oxymoron” because he was an “English comedian.” (“Have there ever been English comedians? Are you sure?,” the president asked.) Correa also stated “On the subject of John Oliver: too much noise for such little nuts” and “Talk show gringos are more unfriendly than a diuretic.” Finally, Correa questioned Oliver’s geographical bearings, saying the host “probably thinks the capital of Ecuador is Kuala Lumpur.”

Following the incident, Ecuadorians are now lashing out at Oliver, but not because they’re jumping to the defense of their hypersensitive president. Instead, they’re mad at Oliver for trashing one of their national treasures: Tiko Tiko the Clown. By teasing Correa for appearing alongside Tiko Tiko, and then utilizing a similarly dressed dancing clown to close out the Last Week Tonight Correa rant, Oliver infuriated the Tiko Tiko-loving citizens of Ecuador. Tiko Tiko himself called Oliver “grotesque,” the BBC reports.