Stephen Colbert says he’d trade his good ratings for “a better president”

That line came in response to a question about whether or not he owes Trump “a thank-you note,” and Colbert explained that if it wasn’t Trump’s election that kicked his show into gear, it would’ve been something else. He says his staff was “waiting for something that everybody cared about” that they could tap into, and it just so happens that they found it in a pathetic, shameful excuse for a president. That’s not to say that Colbert is specifically framing his Late Show around Trump, though, because he says it’s just a matter of being “ready to talk about what just happened, whenever it happens.”

Colbert also humbly recognizes that his ratings streak could end at any moment, saying that he bought pizza for his staff the first time it happened and has continued buying pizza every week since, but they’ve always “got another week of shows to do.” This week they’re getting pizza, he says, “But remember: Maybe next week, no pizza.”

Elsewhere in the interview, Colbert talks about how he channels his anger about current events into comedy, how New Yorkers feel about Trump, and the Christmas gift he sent to David Letterman (it was the dot he’d stand on while doing his monologue).