Alec Baldwin came back as SNL's Trump to skewer Trump's Phoenix rally, send off spooky Stephen Bannon
Alec Baldwin kicked off Saturday Night Live's Thursday night "Weekend Update" show with a sight gag about President Trump staring at the solar eclipse without protective glasses. "Now, a lot of people don't know this, but you can damage your eyes by looking at an eclipse," Baldwin said as Trump, wearing dark glasses as he stepped to the podium at a reproduction of Trump's Phoenix rally. "No one predicted this — they couldn't have, I figured it out all by myself." Baldwin Trumped his way though the hits, with Keenan Thompson playing the strange "Michael the Black Man" guy who's always sitting behind Trump at his rallies.
The writers evidently found it hard to outdo Trump's over-the-top performance, so Baldwin just mostly filled in the subtext, with occasional assists from Thompson. "Folks, the media has treated me so unfairly, by reporting my entire remarks, even the bad ones," Baldwin said. He touched on Joe Arpaio, Trump's track records with promises, and the wall, before trying to send Grim Reaper Stephen Bannon off with a warm farewell. Bannon wasn't having it — and that's funny because it could be true. Watch below. Peter Weber
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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
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