When Donald Trump was on the campaign trail, he promised to create more jobs in America if he became president. One person who’s already benefitting from that promise — in a way Trump surely didn’t intend — is Melissa McCarthy, who’s landed a new gig impersonating White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer on Saturday Night Live.
SNL: Melissa McCarthy’s Sean Spicer returns, wearing Ivanka Trump-brand heels
Spicer is here to “blow away the dishonesty.”
Alex Abad-Santos is a senior correspondent who explains what society obsesses over, from Marvel and movies to fitness and skin care. He came to Vox in 2014. Prior to that, he worked at The Atlantic.
McCarthy reprised the role in the show’s February 11 episode; her angry, volatile Spicer came prepared for a fight with the media, bringing with him a couple special surprises, a brief appearance from Kate McKinnon as newly confirmed Attorney General Jeff Sessions, and a shameless plug for Ivanka Trump’s fashion line.
“I would like to announce that I’m calm now,” Spicer screamed, insisting that what viewers were seeing was a “new” Spicey, even as he chewed a gigantic piece of gum (instead of multiple regular-sized pieces). “I’m going to open it up to questions. And I’m probably going to freak if you ask stupid ones. Speaking of freak and stupid ones, Glenn Thrush, New York Times, go!”
The questions during Spicer’s ensuing press conference revolved around the February 9 judgment by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals that rejected an attempt by the Justice Department to lift a hold on President Trump’s refugee and visa ban, which prompted Spicer to bring out his “dollies” to explain to the media how extreme vetting works.
“You got Barbie coming in — nice American girl coming in from a dream vacation,” Spicer says. “We know she’s okay because she’s blonde. So she gets in. That’s easy. Now who’s next? Uh-oh. Moana.”
In Spicer’s simulation, Moana’s extreme vetting got her sent to Guantanamo — as Spicer explained that the need for extreme vetting is a result of terrorist attacks which the media didn’t cover.
“The Bowling Green Massacre — not the Kellyanne [Conway] one, the real one! The horror at Six Flags. The Slaughter at Fraggle Rock. The night they drove Old Dixie down,” Spicer rattled off, pointing out the (fictional) incidents that he believes did not receive the attention they deserved. “And there’s some light terrorism this week when Nordstrom’s decided to stop selling Ivanka’s Trump’s line of clothing and accessories.
The fight between the department store and President Trump has become national news. And so has Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway’s entry into the conflict when she told people to go out and buy Ivanka Trump’s products — a likely violation of federal ethics rules.
McCarthy’s Spicer did Conway one better, and for a brief moment turned the press briefing into a QVC special, shilling for Ivanka’s products.
“I’m wearing one of her bangles,” Spicer says. “And don’t even get me started on her shoes. Because these babies are real head-turners.”
McCarthy’s Spicer then gave the floor to McKinnon as Jeff Sessions, before briefly returning to “field” a few more questions from reporters. Of course, By “field,” I mean “harass people with a leaf blower and a remote control mobile podium.
“You know what that was? That was me blowing away their dishonesty,” Spicer said.
A recent report from Politico alleged that Trump was deeply upset to see Spicer being played by a woman on SNL. If it’s true, it’s not difficult to imagine that the president is just itching to blast the show for putting Spicer in high heels.
