‘Saturday Night Live’ to Trump: ‘We’ve been with you the whole time’

The first one “Saturday Night Live” since Donald Trump’s election victory began on the most somber of notes as a group of plainclothes cast members, primarily women and minorities, described their new reality.

“For many people, including many people watching right now, the results were shocking and even horrifying,” Ego Nwodim said soberly.

“Donald Trump, who tried by force to overturn the results of the last election, was returned to office,” said Heidi Gardner.

“And now,” added Bowen Yang, “thanks to the Supreme Court, there are no guardrails.”

Then came the turn from the liberal-leaning show.

“That’s why we at ‘SNL’ want to say to Donald Trump, we’ve been with you this whole time,” Keenan Thompson said.

Yang said, “We have never wavered in our support for you, even when others doubted you.”

“Every single person on this stage believed in you,” Sarah Sherman said.

Marcello Hernández added: “Every single person on this stage voted for you.”

The cast continued to effusively declare their reverence for and obedience to the former and future president, and introduced a new character, “Hot, Jacked Trump.”

Actor James Austin Johnson, who plays a dead on Trump and was almost guaranteed a long-term job in the election, came off as an Adonis-shaped president.

“From now on, we’re going to do a very flattering portrayal of Trump, because frankly, he’s my hero,” Johnson said in his Trump voice, but speaking as himself. “He will be an incredible president and eventually king.”

The episode, hosted by stand-up comedian and actor Bill Burr, was the first all season not to begin with former cast member Maya Rudolphthat played Vice President Kamala Harris in a blistering five-week run that culminated in an appearance last week by Harris herself that kicked off the show’s 50th season and brought a ratings boost.

Burr, who hosted post-standup Dave Chappelle hosted the last two episodes after the presidential election, did his own feint in his monologue saying, “I don’t see politics” and did some standard standup, including an airplane before doubling back to the elephant in the studio, the election.

“Okay, let’s get to what you all want to talk about. Okay ladies, you’re 0-and-2 against this guy,” he said. “But you learn more from your losses than your wins. So let’s get on the game tape. Ladies, enough with the pantsuit. Okay, it’s not working. Stop trying to respect yourself.”

He suggested candidates who were at least a little more scantily clad, saying, “I know a lot of ugly women — feminists, I mean — don’t want to hear this message.”

Burr was “so psyched that this stupid election is finally over. Everybody knew who they were going to vote for four years ago. Then they just dragged us through a year and a half of this,” he said.

After Trump’s first election victory in 2016, the show opening was serious and remained so Kate McKinnonwho played Hillary Clinton on the show, appeared as the losing candidate sitting at the piano singing a somber version of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah,” changing only one verse from the best-known versions of the song.

“And though it all went wrong, I’ll stand before the lord of song with nothing but ‘Hallelujah’ on my tongue,” McKinnon sang in what became a national moment of catharsis for those on the losing side.

After finishing, McKinnon said in a shaky voice, “I’m not giving up and you shouldn’t either,” before delivering the obligatory “live from New York, it’s Saturday night!”

Rudolph didn’t appear as Harris this Saturday night, but former cast member Dana Carvey, who has played President Joe Biden all season, showed up as a bouncy Elon Musk after the cast said they loved him too.

After the opening, the sketches switched down to standard, non-choice “SNL” fare, except, of course, for the fake news “Weekend Update.”

“On Tuesday, we learned that Democrats don’t actually know how to rig an election,” faux co-anchor Colin Jost said.

He later added, “If I know the Democrats, they will take a long look in the mirror, learn from their mistakes and run Biden again in 2028.”

Co-anchor Michael Che, who is Black, drank throughout the segment and said he couldn’t believe people convinced him Harris could win over rural Pennsylvania.

“Obviously I’ve spent too much time with you white liberals and your silly optimism,” Che said.