James Talarico, senator-elect of Texas, addresses Trump in ‘SNL’ cold open
Texas senator-elect James Talarico made a surprise appearance on Saturday Night Live's cold open, which satirized recent midterm election results. The sketch featured impersonations of political figures and poked fun at the current state of American politics.
Why it matters
The appearance highlights the intersection of political campaigning and pop culture media in modern US elections.
After this week's major wins by the Democratic Party in the midterm elections, it's no surprise that the cold open on "Saturday Night Live" was political in nature. But there was one surprise guest: The new senator-elect of Texas, James Talarico. The cold open began with a conversation between Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (Kenan Thompson) and Sen. Chuck Schumer (Sarah Sherman), the minority leaders of the House and Senate (and possible future majority leaders), respectively, as they celebrated their party's victory, including flipping Texas blue — for which they took credit. (Schumer: "That was all me. I found the candidates, I recruited them. And as a show of respect, they begged me not to appear at their campaign events.") Jeffries pledged that their first order of business would be to march up to President Trump and tell him, "Hey, knock it off, Buster."
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