This week’s”Saturday Night Live” was led by three-time host Ariana Grande and saw Cher returning to the Studio 8H stage for the first time in four decades. So, of course, they kicked it off with James Austin Johnson riffing in his Donald Trump impersonation by himself.
Johnson’s monologue reflected a hectic week, covering the release of the Epstein files and Trump’s renaming of the Kennedy Center with swings for a possible war in Venezuela and Trump’s Patriot Games. Johnson’s Trump showed mock-ups of new versions of the Kennedy Center, Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial, complete with “Trump” in massive gold letters.
“People are saying, ‘Sir, why are your name on so many buildings?’ And I say, ‘It’s because we had to take it off of so many files,'” he shared.
The faux-Trump called “redacted” his “second favorite r-word” to groans from the audience. Trying to turn from the controversy, Trump pushed his planned athletic competition at the White House.
“I’m inventing my own ‘Hunger Games,'” he said. “I thought, ‘What’s the best way to distract from the Epstein files? I know, invite a bunch of teenagers to my house.’ I’ll take ‘things a pedophile might do for a thousand, Alex.'”
The Trump of “SNL” eventually showed off a heavily redacted page from the Epstein files, reading the visible words aloud.
“Trump. Didn’t. Do. Nothing. Bad. Trump. Does. Smash. But. Not. Like. Wrong. Kind,” he read.
Watch the sketch below via YouTube:
