W. Kamau Bell Rips Trump's Kennedy Center Honors

W. Kamau Bell is ripping the Kennedy Center Honors ... he says the only folks taking home hardware are celebs who are cool with President Trump ... which is a problem for him, because he says Trump is a fascist.

The comedian and TV host joined us on "TMZ Live" Monday and took shots at the honorees from Sunday's 48th Kennedy Center Honors.

Trump hosted and helped pick the honorees ... including Sylvester Stallone, Gloria Gaynor, George Strait, and KISS.

Bell was disappointed to see Sly accept an award ... he says the 'Rocky' franchise films were "considered Black movies for years."

While Bell says everyone who made the cut was talented, he says the main criterion was being down with Trump. We pushed back and said the same held true when Barack Obama was president ... but Bell says the main difference is that Trump is a "dictator."

Bell -- who also got in jabs at Gloria and KISS -- tells us he wouldn't accept a Kennedy Center Honor during Trump's presidency ... he says there would be no way to accept the award without getting political.