SNL: Trump acquittal means focus can turn back to ‘locking up Hillary’, jokes Kate McKinnon

Acquittal of former president meant ‘a great day for 30 percent of America’, sketch joked

Saturday Night Live reacted to Donald Trump’s Senate acquittal by having Kate McKinnon’s Lindsey Graham claim that more attention can now be paid to “locking up” Hillary Clinton.

On Saturday (13 February), the US Senate voted to acquit the former president on charges of inciting the January riots inside Washington’s Capitol building.

In response, SNL imagined the celebrations of numerous Trump allies, including Ted Cruz (who was played by Aidy Bryant) and Mitch McConnell (who was played by Beck Bennet).

The sketch, which was presented as an episode of the Fox News show hosted by Tucker Carlson, McKinnon donned a wig and blue suit to play McConnell, who was ecstatic at the verdict.

After calling Saturday “a great day for 30 percent of America,” McKinnon’s McConnell refuted claims that Trump incited the Capitol riots.

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“Just because the rioters were yelling ‘Fight for Trump’ doesn’t mean they meant Donald Trump,” she said. “Could’ve been some real Tiffany heads. Maybe even some Eric stans, I don’t know.”

She continued: “Regardless, the trial is over and now we can move past this and focus on the serious issues. That’s locking up Hillary and freeing beautiful Britney Spears.”

Kate McKinnon as Lindsey Graham on SNL (NBC)

Calls to “lock up” Clinton have been a popular rallying cry among Trump’s supporters since the 2016 election.

Spears, meanwhile, has been at the centre of protests in recent years related to the conservatorship she is currently placed under, which manages her business affairs and personal life.

A documentary, titled Framing Britney Spears, was broadcast in the US earlier this month and has renewed calls to “free” her from the conservatorship.