Donald Trump was often vocal about his disdain for “Saturday Night Live” and Alec Baldwin’s recurring portrayal of him. Before the former president got banned from Twitter, he constantly used the social media platform to bash the long-running NBC sketch comedy series, once infamously tweeting:
“It’s truly incredible that shows like ‘Saturday Night Live,’ not funny/no talent, can spend all of their time knocking the same person (me), over & over, without so much of a mention of ‘the other side.’ Like an advertisement without consequences. Same with Late Night Shows. Should Federal Election Commission and/or FCC look into this?”
A new report from The Daily Beast claims Trump “went farther than simply tweeting his displeasure with the late-night comedians and SNL writers’ room,” adding, “The internal discussions that followed, between the former leader of the free world and some of his political and legal advisers, once again underscored just how much Trump wanted to use the full weight and power of the U.S. government to punish his personal enemies.”
Two sources familiar with the matter told The Daily Beast that “Trump had asked advisers and lawyers in early 2019 about what the Federal Communications Commission, the courts systems, and — most confusingly to some Trump lieutenants — the Department of Justice could do to probe or mitigate ‘SNL,’ Jimmy Kimmel, and other late-night comedy mischief-makers.”
The Daily Beast report continues: “To those who heard it, Trump’s inquiries into what federal regulations could be used to bust the likes of Kimmel and ‘SNL’ was more of a nuisance than a constitutional crisis. ‘It was more annoying than alarming, to be honest with you,’ one of these sources recalled. However, the conversations further showed, in the pettiest of ways, how the 45th U.S. president was keen on turning the country’s top law enforcers into something more akin to his own personally retained law firm.”
Alec Baldwin played Donald Trump on “Saturday Night Live” throughout the latter’s presidency. Trump is no stranger to “SNL,” having controversially hosted the sketch comedy show in November 2015 while campaigning for president. The series and its creator, Lorne Michaels, were widely condemned for bringing Trump on to host.
