25 best cold-opens in SNL history
By David Rouben
6. Kate McKinnon and Larry David square off in Democratic Debate
Arguably the best SNL sketch to come out of the 2016 election was the Democratic debate. Sure, none of the candidates outside of Clinton and Bernie Sanders were memorable, but that was the point of the sketch. And even though Alec Baldwin was limited to a few lines, he did great in his role. And hey, his constant repeating that he’d end up in the White House came true, since he graduated to playing Trump.
Even though Clinton was selling herself as “the chicken that’ll do,” Kate McKinnon has never been better in her role. If only the real Clinton was as cool as her in playing off her emails.
Meanwhile, Larry David’s debut as Bernie Sanders couldn’t have gone any better. He started out treating the debate like a Seinfeld stand-up routine, then explained why he’s an outsider and appealing to younger voters. “I don’t have a super PAC, I don’t even have a backpack” deserves to go in the pantheon of greatest lines ever uttered on SNL.
David should’ve pulled a Costanza and retired the character after this sketch, but had he done that, we never would’ve gotten “Bern Your Enthusiasm” or a cameo from the real Sanders.
While the race between Sanders and Clinton proved to be entertaining, there was something refreshing about seeing them get along in this sketch. The chemistry between him and McKinnon was excellent, and it was especially great seeing her describe him as “Trap Queen by Fetty Wap.”
In the end, perhaps they should’ve been running mates all along. At the very least, it would’ve eliminated the whole DNC email scandal.