James Talarico crashed the “Saturday Night Live” cold open this weekend, mocking both Donald Trump and the show itself.
The Texas senator, who last November became the first Democrat to win that state’s Senate seat since 1988, walked into a scene where Sarah Sherman’s Chuck Schumer and Kenan Thompson’s Hakeem Jeffries were celebrating Democratic midterm victories. “They said we’d never turn Texas blue, and we proved them wrong,” Sherman said in the sketch. James Austin Johnson’s Trump then told the Democrats they were “welcome” for the win, with Jeremy Culhane’s JD Vance and Colin Jost’s Pete Hegseth joining the monologue before Talarico made his entrance.
“Hi America, I’m James Talarico, the guy who’s been texting you everyday asking for $5,” the real senator said, drawing cheers from the studio audience.
Johnson’s Trump shot back: “In this economy, who can blame you.”
Talarico then pivoted to a bipartisan offer that doubled as a meta-jab at the show’s recurring formula. “But I think, Mr, President, if we could work together, we can make life better for everyday Americans,” he continued. “It’s clear the people want something new, they want something different. I’m talking of course about SNL’s cold opens. How many of these Trump freezers are they going to do?”
“Well in that case, there’s only one thing left to say,” Talarico added. The two then put their arms around each other and delivered the show’s signature sign-off together: “Live from New York it’s Saturday night!”
The sketch also included Johnson’s Trump referring to Talarico as “Talafreako,” echoing a nickname the real Trump deployed repeatedly during his campaign. Rather than push back, Talarico embraced the insult on X, posting the clip with the caption: “That’s Senator Talafreako.”
The president has leaned heavily into derisive nicknames for opponents, regularly calling Democrats “Dumbocrats” at rallies and in statements.
Despite the barbs, Trump signaled openness to a temporary truce. Asked in an interview whether he could stop taking digs at Democrats for six months, he replied he would “very easily” be able to. The sit-down, his first since the midterms, is scheduled to air on “60 Minutes” Sunday night.
Trump has publicly rejected the narrative that his party suffered a sweeping defeat, insisting instead that the results reflected his absence from the ballot. “I feel that I wasn’t on the ballot, and there was nothing that could be done about that,” he said.