NEW YORK – Donald Trump hadn’t gotten far into his opening monologue before trouble occurred. An off-screen heckler interrupted with a cry of “You’re a racist!”
But the “heckler” was comedian Larry David, who before Trump arrived onstage had been seen impersonating Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders.
“Larry, what are you doing?” Trump asked with a trace of exasperation.
“I heard if I yelled that, they’d give me $5,000,” said David with a shrug, echoing an offer made publicly by one of the Hispanic groups protesting Trump’s appearance.
“As a businessman,” Trump told him, “I can fully respect that.”
Trump’s 90 minutes in the “SNL” spotlight followed weeks of growing anticipation, increasingly sharp criticism and mounting calls for him to be dropped from the show. But the Republican presidential candidate hosted Saturday’s “SNL” as scheduled. And, at least in NBC’s Studio 8H, there was no more unrest – orchestrated or otherwise. (Deport Racism, the group that made the $5,000 offer, tweeted that David would get the bounty, “joke or not.”)
Only hours after the broadcast, Trump was back on television and characteristically bullish about his performance, calling it “very well received and probably got very good ratings, who knows.”
Very good, but not spectacular. Preliminary Nielsen ratings measuring households in 56 U.S. markets gave Saturday’s “SNL” its highest rating only since January 2012. Basketball great Charles Barkley was host that night. Full results, including viewership figures, will be released Thursday, NBC said.
Trump also told CNN’s “State of the Union” that some sketches were cut because they were “a little risque.” He did not go into details.
During his monologue, Trump promised his hosting appearance would be “something special,” while noting that many people had asked him why he accepted the gig. He said they had told him, “You’re brilliant, you’re handsome, you’re rich. The world is waiting for you to be president. Why?”
His answer: “I had nothing better to do.”
“But part of the reason I’m here,” he added, “is to show I can take a joke.”
In one sketch, Trump was willing to mock his penchant for tweeting insults about people with whom he differs.
“I hate to break it to you guys,” he told viewers, “but I’m not going to be in the next sketch.” Instead, off-camera, he live-tweeted comments that were flashed on the screen about “SNL” cast members performing a skit:
“Cecily Strong is not a nice person.”
“Kate McKinnon was born stupid.”
“I love SNL ... SNL loves me. But everyone in this sketch is a total loser who can bite my dust.”
