SNL Goes to Washington (2000–2013), Seasons 26–38
When Saturday Night Live premiered in October 1975, President Gerald Ford, the only individual to hold both the first- and second-highest offices in the land without winning a national election, had been president for a little over a year. Compared to Nixon’s second term, which only lasted two and a half years due to the Watergate scandal, his tenure in the White House was subdued. Ford was a relatively drama-free president both politically and personally who devoted most of his time in office dealing with the country’s economic crisis and encouraging Americans to join him in his fight against inflation by wearing a WIN (Whip Inflation Now) button.
Chevy Chase’s “portrayal” of President Ford (it was more of a portrayal than an impersonation because he made no attempt to look or sound like him) had nothing to do with his politics or the policies of his administration. Chase’s Ford is essentially a klutz who has a tendency to fall down—a lot. He also has trouble performing the simplest tasks like standing behind a podium or pouring himself a glass of water. Ironically, the real Ford was athletic, though he did take a few tumbles in public, like the time he fell down the stairs of Air Force One during a visit to Austria in 1975. He blamed it on his bum knee, an old college injury from his days playing football for the University of Michigan. Whatever the reason, Ford’s spills were not, as SNL suggested, a daily occurrence. Fortunately Ford had a sense of humor. He allowed his press secretary, Ron Nessen, to host SNL in April 1976 (1.7) (see chapter 15) and even made a filmed cameo appearance.
Since Chase took his first tumble over the presidential podium (1.4), Saturday Night Live has been at the forefront of American political satire. Studio 8H is a national stage for the weekly public skewering of the American political system—its two major parties, its major players, and the media’s role in the political process. In a 2011 article in Politico, Lorne Michaels explained to Todd S. Purdum that the fact that SNL debuted just after Watergate had a significant effect on the show’s content and the audience they were trying to reach: “We’d just lived through all that, and because of that and Vietnam, politics was something everyone knew and talked about. I think we defined ourselves as a generation that way. I think we were playing to an audience that was really under 30. We didn’t expect anyone else to know the music or to get the jokes.”
Considering how far to the right his conservative politics moved the country, President Ronald Reagan got off relatively easy during his eight years in office (1981–1989) because the show shifted away from edgy political humor during Dick Ebersol’s tenure as producer (1981–1985). When he returned to the show in 1985, Michaels added more political content. The undisputed highlight during the Reagan era was a sketch entitled “Masterbrain” (12.6), which is widely regarded as one of the show’s best political sketches. The picture it paints of Reagan is the complete opposite of how he was portrayed in previous sketches as a doddering old fool who has no idea what’s going on (see chapter 9).
Dana Carvey’s impersonation of Reagan’s successor, President George H. W. Bush, was more popular than the president himself, especially after he reneged on his 1988 campaign promise of “No new taxes.” Carvey relied heavily on catchphrases Bush used, like “wouldn’t be prudent” (as in “Not gonna do it, wouldn’t be prudent at this juncture”) and “a thousand points of light,” which Bush first referenced in 1988 when accepting the presidential nomination at the 1988 Republican National Convention in reference to American clubs and volunteer organizations (“a brilliant diversity spread like stars, like a thousand points of light in a broad and peaceful sky”). Unfortunately for Carvey, Bush was a one-term president. But like Gerald Ford, Bush Sr. also had a sense of humor and even invited Dana Carvey and wife for an overnight stay at the White House. When Carvey returned to host the show in 1994 (20.4), Bush graciously agreed to appear in the cold opening to introduce Carvey. In addressing the American people, he admits that he does have hard feelings about how SNL made fun of him and will seek revenge, but not at this time—“wouldn’t be prudent.” He also critiqued Carvey’s imitation of him during the monologue. It’s by far the funniest appearance on the show by a U.S. president. Actually, George H. W. Bush is the only former U.S. president to appear on SNL. Ford, who was still in office when he did his filmed cameo, is the only president to say “Live from New York” (1.17) while in office. When Senator Barack Obama said it in 2007, he was still seeking the Democratic nomination (33.4).
Dana Carvey did double duty as George H. W. Bush (left) and Ross Perot (center). Phil Hartman was President Bill Clinton.
The Clinton years (1993–2001) provided the show’s writers with a wealth of material due to a series of personal scandals that plagued his presidency, from Whitewater, to Paula Jones, to Monica Lewinsky, who appeared on the show in May 1999 (24.18). Between 1995 and January 20, 2001, the day of President George W. Bush’s inauguration, Darrell Hammond made approximately sixty appearances as Bill Clinton plus an additional twenty-four since he’s been out of office. When the Lewinsky scandal was at its peak during season 23 (1997–1998), SNL ratings climbed, attracting a 4.7 and 20 percent share among adults 18–49. Lewinsky’s appearance on the show followed a special SNL (2/27/99) devoted to the Clinton scandal, featuring a compilation of clips from the best sketches; and the publication that same year of SNL Presents: The Clinton Years, which contains all the best Weekend Update jokes and lines from Clinton sketches, should be enough to silence those on the right who complain about the left-wing media and SNL’s liberal bias.
During his fourteen seasons on SNL, Darrell Hammond made over eighty appearances as Bill Clinton.
NBC/Photofest © NBC
Live from New York . . . the President of the United States
• President Gerald R. Ford (1974–1977): Chevy Chase (1975–1976, 1978, 1980, 1985).
• President Jimmy Carter (1977–1981): Dan Aykroyd (1976–1979), Joe Piscopo (1980–1982), Dana Carvey (1988–1989), Michael McKean (1994), and Darrell Hammond (2002–2009).
• President Ronald Reagan (1981–1989): Chevy Chase (1.19), Harry Shearer (1980, 1984), Charles Rocket (1980–1981), Joe Piscopo (1981–1984), Randy Quaid (1985–1986), Robin Williams (12.5), and Phil Hartman (1986–1991).
• President George H. W. Bush (1989–1993): Jim Downey (1980), Dana Carvey (1987–1993, 1996, 2000), and Fred Armisen (2005).
• President William Jefferson Clinton (1993–2001): Phil Hartman (1992–1994), Michael McKean (1994), Darrell Hammond (1995–2009), and Dana Carvey (1996 [22.4]).
• President George W. Bush (2001–2009): Will Ferrell (1999–2002, 2008, 2009, 2012), Chris Parnell (2002–2003), Darrell Hammond (2003), Will Forte (2004–2006), and Jason Sudeikis (2006–2008, 2010).
• President Barack Obama (2009–2017): Fred Armisen (2008–2012) and Jay Pharoah (2012–present).
Eight Very, Very Long Years: The George W. Bush Presidency (2001–2009)
Since George W. Bush entered the White House in 2000 through the reelection of Barack Obama in 2012, politics have remained high on SNL’s comedy agenda. In the wake of 9/11, the show took its time to find its comedic footing when it came to political content, but they didn’t necessarily go easy on President George W. Bush. As he had been doing since Bush entered the 2000 presidential race, Will Ferrell continued to impersonate him as an inarticulate dimwit whose speeches to the American people consisted of mindless jabber that lacked substance or relevance in regard to national and world affairs.
It all started with the first of three parodies of the Bush–Gore 2000 presidential debates (26.1), in which Bush can’t answer any of the questions posed to him (his response to one question is to “pass”). (Gore doesn’t come off much better as he drones on and on about the “locked box.”) When moderator Jim Lehrer (Chris Parnell) asks both candidates “to sum up, in a single word, the best argument for his candidacy,” Governor Bush responds, “Strategery.” Credit writer Jim Downey with introducing the term—a Bushism for the word “strategy”—into the American lexicon. It even became an inside joke in the Bush White House. Ironically, Bush, rather than Downey, is often credited with coining the term, but it’s not surprising considering he’s the man who, after being elected president, said, “They misunderestimated me.”
On Sunday, November 5, 2000, two days before Election Day, NBC aired the Saturday Night Live 2000 Presidential Bash. When the last Presidential Bash aired back in 1992, none of the presidential candidates (Bush Sr., Clinton, or Perot) appeared on the show, which was comprised of political sketches from over the years. Eight years later, in her review of the 2000 Presidential Bash, the New York Times’ Caryn James observed how “the line between show business and presidential politics has never been thinner.” George W. Bush and Al Gore, who the show had been targeting since the season 26 opener (26.1), both made pretaped appearances. Using a split screen, they stand side by side. Bush, showing that he could take a joke, admitted that he was “ambilavent” about appearing on the show because some of the material was “offensible.” Gore pokes fun at his large ego and responds, “I was one of the very first to be offended by material on Saturday Night Live.” James’s review offers some valuable insight into why these two candidates would agree to participate: “By joining in, Mr. Bush and Mr. Gore can try to diffuse criticism by embracing it. And because satire deflates pretensions, they can appear to the public on a regular-guy level, engaging in the campaign’s all-important personality contest.” She also observes how shows like Saturday Night Live have an important role in defining “the cartoon outlines that stereotype politicians, from Reagan-the-empty-headed to Clinton-the-womanizer” (which is probably why neither president ever graced the stages of Studio 8H). This would certainly be true in the 2008 election with Tina Fey’s impersonation of Sarah Palin.
Unfortunately, Ferrell’s tenure as a cast member at SNL ended in 2002, while Bush remained in office through 2008. Steve Ryfle, in an article for Netscape Celebrity, reported that SNL wanted to keep Ferrell on the show for the 2001–2002 season, so they upped his salary to $350,000, making him the highest-paid cast member in the show’s history. Creatively, it turned out to be a good investment. In 2002, the SNL writing team, under the supervision of co-head writers Tina Fey and Dennis McNicholas, won an Emmy for “Outstanding Writing in a Variety or Music Program,” the first win since 1989. When Ferrell departed, George W. Bush was played by Chris Parnell (2002–2003), Darrell Hammond (2003), Will Forte (2004–2006), and Jason Sudeikis (2006–2010).
The 2004 presidential election between George W. Bush and John Kerry posed even more challenges as neither the incumbent nor his mild-mannered Democratic challenger were dynamic candidates. In a 2011 Vanity Fair article by Todd S. Purdum, Seth Meyers, who played Kerry, admitted the 2004 election was “less interesting” and that it helps “when the D.C. characters are bigger because, as actors, we have to play those people, and just like with an impression, it helps if the target is just bigger, with funnier things about.” Meyers, who was the show’s head writer during the 2008 election, added that while SNL doesn’t do “policy pieces,” they do “big character pieces well, and certainly the 2008 election couldn’t have been more down Main Street for us with regards to us.”
The 2008 Presidential Election: Obama vs. McCain vs. Palin
SNL’s engagement in the political process deepened in the 2008 presidential election. From the primary season through the election itself, both the Democrats and the Republicans provided writers with ample material to skewer the candidates, their respective campaigns, the debates, and the election itself. SNL also extended its coverage in prime time withWeekend Update Thursday, which aired in October 2008 on three consecutive Thursday nights in prime time before the election. Installments of Weekend Update Thursday also aired in 2009 (a nonelection year) and in 2012 in September before the election.
In the 2008 election, Senator John McCain’s choice for his running mate, Alaskan governor Sarah Palin, was like manna from heaven (not only for late-night comedians, but Democrats as well). On August 29, 2008, in Dayton, Ohio, McCain introduced Americans to Palin, who, at the time was a relatively unknown figure in national politics. Less than a month later, former SNL cast member Tina Fey, who was busy working on 30 Rock (2006–2013) at the time made her first appearance as Palin (34.1). Hillary Clinton (Amy Poehler), no longer a Democratic presidential candidate, and Palin (Fey) delivered a nonpartisan message regarding the sexism that had permeated the media’s coverage of the female candidates over the past few months. Although Clinton was characterized in a much more negative light (one commentator described her voice as “nagging”) than Palin, the point of the sketch is that the media’s focus has been on gender rather than their qualifications. Fey’s Palin repeatedly demonstrated just how unqualified she was to be running for the second-highest office in the land. As Fey observed in her book Bossypants, “Amy’s line [as Clinton in the sketch] ‘Although it is never sexist to question female politicians’ credentials’ was basically the thesis statement for everything we did over the next six weeks.”
This point is more evident in Fey’s second appearance as Palin, a parody of her disastrous interview with CBS News anchor Katie Couric, who is played by Amy Poehler (34.3). When it came to the question about the bank bailout, Fey actually used Palin’s long, rambling answer verbatim. With each appearance as Palin, it was becoming increasingly more difficult not to think of Fey as Palin when listening to the real Palin complain about the “mainstream gotcha media.”
The highlight of the season (which also gave SNL a huge jump in the ratings) was the real Sarah Palin’s appearance on the show. It seems ironic that Palin would agree to appear on a show that had been devoting airtime to demonstrate how she was not a viable candidate for the vice presidency, especially compared to the Democratic vice-presidential candidate Joe Biden, who had been a U.S. senator from Delaware for twenty-five years. In her memoir, Going Rogue: An American Life, Palin said it was “a bit surreal” seeing Tina Fey impersonating her on television (Palin revealed that she had actually dressed up as Tina Fey for Halloween before Fey started imitating her). During her appearance on the show (34.5), she interacted with Democrat Alec Baldwin, who mistakes Palin for Tina Fey, and appeared on Weekend Update, where a very pregnant Amy Poehler performed a rap song with two Eskimos (Andy Samberg and Fred Armisen), a Todd Palin imitator (Jason Sudeikis), and a moose (Bobby Moynihan). Fey returned as Palin, appearing in an episode of Weekend Update Thursday (10/23/08), in which Palin and John McCain (Darrell Hammond) get President George W. Bush’s (Will Ferrell) endorsement, and the last show before the election featuring a cameo by John McCain (hosted by staunch Democrat Ben Affleck). Palin (Fey), McCain, and his wife Cindy appear on a parody of QVC (it’s all he can afford), in which he makes a last-minute pitch to the American people and hocks some souvenirs from their campaign. But the best moment is when Fey whispers to the viewers and tells them to listen up. She announces she’s going rogue and holds up a “Palin in 2012” sign. While McCain’s appearance certainly showed he has a lighter side, the idea that he would go on SNL with a Sarah Palin imitator the Saturday before the election suggests he knew the race was over before the polls even opened.
Vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin (Tina Fey, left) teams up with Hillary Clinton (Amy Poehler) to address the press’s sexist treatment of female candidates.
NBC/Photofest © NBC
Over on the Democratic side, there were only two candidates—Hillary Clinton (Amy Poehler) and Barack Obama (Fred Armisen). SNL was accused of playing favorites in a parody of the CNN Univision Democratic Debate (33.5) (written by Jim Downey), in which the audience and news anchors John King (Jason Sudeikis) and Campbell Brown (Kristen Wiig) fawn all over Obama and ask if he’s comfortable, but are rude to Clinton and ask questions that emphasize her losses in the primary. In the next debate sketch (33.6), also written by Downey, Obama is once again the favorite son. Moderators Brian Williams and Tim Russert are also rude to Clinton and are critical of her long-winded answers. They ask questions she doesn’t know the answer to, give the answers, and then ask Obama the same question. After the sketch, Hillary Clinton appeared on the show to clarify that the sketch they just saw was not meant to be an endorsement of her candidacy, which was the accusation made by the press and Obama supporters against SNL, Lorne Michaels, and Jim Downey. The two men did agree that Clinton benefited from being portrayed by Amy Poehler, who Downey refers to as their “charm machine.” In a March 13 New York Times story, Bill Carter reported that some commentators have credited the sketches for Clinton’s primary victories in Texas and Ohio. Carter also cited a study by Pew Research that reported an increase in critical coverage of Obama in the news media.
Palin, or rather, Fey as Palin, was missed during the 2012 presidential election, though the Republican primary was more entertaining than a circus sideshow. There was one GOP debate too many and an excessive number of candidates, giving almost all of the SNL cast a chance to participate in the democratic process: Rick Perry (Alec Baldwin, Bill Hader), Ron Paul (Paul Brittain), Jon Huntsman (Taran Killam), Newt Gingrich (Bobby Moynihan), Rick Santorum (Andy Samberg), Mitt Romney (Jason Sudeikis), Herman Cain (Kenan Thompson), and Michele Bachmann (Kristen Wiig). Once Romney was declared the nominee, the multimillionaire worked hard at proving he was an “ordinary guy,” but it’s a hard sell when you are rich—and lack the one thing that’s necessary to be a successful candidate—charisma.