Over the last week, the biggest political story has been a CNN report that claimed Russia was planning to blackmail Donald Trump using "compromising" information. After "Saturday Night Live" mocked a press conference addressing the issue, Trump was forced to speak out.
Trump on "SNL"
Alec Baldwin made his return to "Saturday Night Live" over the weekend, playing the familiar role of Donald Trump.
The cold open skit was a satirical take on a press conference Trump had earlier this week at Trump Tower in New York City. One of the main themes of the skit was the alleged "golden shower" sex tape that Buzzfeed reported on, referring to the claim that Russia was using that as part of the aforementioned blackmail. As expected, Trump has denied all of the allegations made against him, despite the story instantly going viral across social media. One day after the skit aired on "SNL," the billionaire real estate lashed out on his Twitter account on January 15.
"@NBCNews is bad but Saturday Night Live is the worst of NBC.
Not funny, cast is terrible, always a complete hit job," Donald Trump wrote on his Twitter account on Sunday night, before adding, "Really bad television!" Trump's outrage at the sketch comedy show dates back to over a year ago when "SNL" poked fun at the former host of "The Apprentice" during the Republican primary and the general election.
Donald Trump has repeatedly criticized Alec Baldwin for his "sad" impression of him, while going so far as predicting the show's cancelling shortly before Election Day. Despite Trump's negative reaction, Baldwin and the cast have received rave reviews from critics, and the show has performed well in the ratings.
Moving forward
In less than a week, Donald Trump will be sworn in as the next commander in chief on Inauguration Day.
While Trump is getting ready to head into the White House, more than 100,000 protesters are planning to be in Washington, D.C. this Friday to voice their opposition. In addition, Alec Baldwin, along with filmmaker Michael Moore and many others, will be holding their own protest outside of Trump Tower.