Saturday Night Live used its cold open this weekend to mock the Democratic 2020 contenders for president.
Mikey Day, who portrayed ABC moderator George Stephanopoulos, opened the bit by announcing, “Let’s meet our future MSNBC contributors!”
Day then posed the first question to former Vice President Joe Biden, played by comedian Jason Sudeikis: “Are you at all concerned about your poor performance in Iowa?”
“I’ll be honest, losing Iowa was a real kick in the nuts. But … by the time we get to South Cackylacky, Joe Biden’s gonna do what Joe Biden does best: creep up from behind,” Sudeikis quipped. “Just when you think your lead is safe, my numbers are going to sneak up and surprise you with a nice, sweet kiss on the neck.”
Day then directed a question to Pete Buttigieg, played by Colin Jost, about how both he and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders declared victory in the Iowa caucus.
“Who do you think really won?” the moderator asked.
“Donald Trump,” Jost immediately answered.
Larry David, who returned to the show’s set to once again play Sanders, complained about the malfunction of the app, which led to delayed results of the Iowa caucuses.
“The issue in Iowa was math? I wonder who they could’ve called to help them out with that,” Andrew Yang, played by actor Bowen Yang, responded while tugging at his suit pin which simply read, “Math.”
“Oh what, I meant because of my pin, racist,” he added.
Day’s character interjected halfway through the debate with a message from a sponsor: Bloomberg 2020. The parody mocked how Michael Bloomberg, the former mayor of New York City who entered the race in November of last year, has spent over $100 million on television ads, including an $11 million spot during the Super Bowl.
The cold open also poked fun at Buttigieg’s support among black Americans, Biden’s age, and Tom Steyer’s amicability toward the other Democratic candidates.
Pete Davidson, who played Steyer, gave a closing statement that ostensibly recognized the candidate’s low poll rankings: “You know, I didn’t come here to make friends. But damn it, I made some great ones. It’s been an honor, ladies and gentlemen.”
