Saturday Night Live (SNL) made fun of Jeanine Pirro, Donald Trump’s nominee for D.C. U.S. attorney, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth with jokes about drinking.
Background
Hegseth has faced accusations of excessive drinking. Last year, The New Yorker published an article claiming he was seen drunk at several events hosted by Concerned Veterans for America and Veterans for Freedom, two groups he led.
The Skit
In the SNL sketch, James Austin Johnson, portraying Trump, introduced Cecily Strong as Pirro, calling her “one of the loudest people he knows.”
“Look at this,” Trump said, pointing to a briefcase Pirro was holding. “Jeanine has brought her files and she’s ready to work.”
Pirro responded, “Oh no, this—it’s a cozy for my merlot-zy,” pulling out a bottle of red wine.
Later, Colin Jost, playing Hegseth, appeared. Pirro referred to him as her “old drinking buddy.”
When Trump asked Jost if he was still drinking, Jost answered, “No, absolutely not, sir. I promised I would never have a bottle touch my lips.”
He added, “But I do have some news to share. Before I do, Jeanine—wanna take a swig of this?” He handed Pirro a bottle of whiskey. Throughout the skit, Pirro had been spraying her wine on Hegseth whenever something shocked her.
Jost joked, “I accidentally added Kim Jong Un to the group chat,” which prompted Strong to spray the whiskey she had just taken into Jost’s mouth.
Trump finished the skit by saying, “Folks, they’re not the A-Team, they’re the AA-Team.”
Hegseth’s Reaction
Last year, Pete Hegseth responded to the drinking allegations during an appearance on The Megyn Kelly Show, calling them “smears.”
“First of all, I’ve never had a drinking problem,” Hegseth said. “No one’s ever approached me and said, ‘You should really look at getting help for drinking.’ Never, never sought counseling, never sought help, but I respect and appreciate people who do.”
He went on to explain that many veterans cope with their experiences by drinking. “What do guys do when they come back from war? Have some beers. How do you deal with the demons you see on the battlefield? Sometimes it’s with a bottle.”
Hegseth added that if he were appointed defense secretary, he would treat it as a deployment where drinking isn’t allowed. “This is the biggest deployment of my life, and there won’t be a drop of alcohol on my lips while I’m doing it,” he said.
Next Steps
Ed Martin, the current interim U.S. attorney for D.C., will finish his term on May 20.
Trump announced Pirro’s nomination last Thursday on Truth Social. He wrote, “I am pleased to announce that Judge Jeanine Pirro will be appointed interim United States attorney for the District of Columbia. Jeanine was assistant district attorney for Westchester County, New York, and then went on to serve as county judge and district attorney, where she was the first woman ever to be elected to those positions.”
Trump praised Pirro’s work, stating, “During her time in office, Jeanine was a powerful crusader for victims of crime. Her establishment of the Domestic Violence Bureau in her Prosecutor’s Office was the first in the Nation. She excelled in all ways.”
