From Harris to Trump to Clinton – these are the US politicians who have appeared on Saturday Night Live

Kamala Harris is the latest in a long line of US presidential candidates to appear on US sketch show Saturday Night Live to show their brighter side.

A clip of Ms. Harris playing herself alongside Maya Rudolph, whom she frequently impersonates, has drawn millions of viewers since her sketch aired over the weekend.

For 50 years, satire of political figures has been a hallmark of Saturday Night Live (SNL).

Republican and Democratic presidential candidates as well as US politicians appeared on the show to win over voters.

Let's take a look back at some of the most memorable and criticized performances by US politicians.

Donald Trump

Although Donald Trump didn't appear on the show during this year's election campaign, he is no stranger to the SNL stage.

In 2015, when he was the Republican front-runner for the 2016 election, Trump hosted SNL.

During his monologue, he talked about his intention to become U.S. president and poked fun at the SNL cast members' impressions of him.

While the skit drew some laughter, it sparked outrage among Latino activists protesting what they called Trump's racist views on immigration.

The New York Times criticized his performance as “unfunny and disgusting.”

In 2017, former SNL cast member Taran Killam, who appeared alongside Trump in his monologue, called the former president's appearance “embarrassing and shameful.”

“It wasn’t fun at the time and will only become more embarrassing and shameful as time goes on,” he said.

However, Trump's appearance was viewed almost 10 million times.

Trump also appeared in 2004.

Hillary Clinton

In 2016, Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton appeared on the season premiere of Saturday Night Live.

But not as herself.

Most political candidates often play themselves just for a cameo in a skit or to announce the show's famous catchphrase: “Live from New York, it's Saturday night.”

Instead, Ms. Clinton played bartender Val in a skit alongside SNL's resident Clinton impersonator Kate McKinnon.

The skit gently poked fun at Clinton's slow opposition to the Keystone pipeline, her late support of same-sex marriage and her inability to take a vacation.

As Val, Mrs. Clinton also did an impression of Trump, hoarsely echoing his statement, “Uh, you're all losers,” which made McKinnon laugh.

Time magazine said Mrs. Clinton played “exactly the role her campaign has sought for months to portray her as a real person.”

“The appearance poked fun at the issues that most preoccupied Clinton during her campaign and highlighted some of her candidate's strengths.”

It was Clinton's second appearance on SNL.

She previously took part in a skit during a 2008 episode in which Amy Poehler was tasked with impersonating her.

Barack Obama

Barack Obama was still a Democratic presidential candidate when he appeared on SNL in 2007.

The skit featured Poehler and Darrell Hammond as Bill and Hillary Clinton hosting a Halloween party.

Mr. Obama entered toward the end of the sketch wearing a mask of himself.

“I have nothing to hide,” Mr. Obama said.

“I enjoy being myself. I’m not going to change who I am just because it’s Halloween.”

Meanwhile, Amy Poehler as Mrs. Clinton wore a white wedding dress, but was mocked in the skit by a fake Bill Clinton, who called it a witch's costume.

The New York Times said Mr. Obama's few lines in the skit reflected his refrain that he was “more sincere than Mrs. Clinton.”

The skit was analyzed online and many people praised its wit, but some said it was too gentle on Mr. Obama.

The episode also almost included a controversial skit about racial profiling on airplanes until the presidential candidate rejected the idea.

Sarah Palin

Then-Republican vice presidential candidate and Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, famously parodied by Tina Fey, appeared on the show in October 2008.

Ms Palin was John McCain's candidate in the 2008 US election, which was won by Barack Obama and Joe Biden.

Ms. Palin first appeared in the show's opening sequence, where she told creator Lorne Michaels that she was unimpressed by Fey's constant impersonations during her campaign.

During the skit, she was mistaken for Fey by Alec Baldwin, who joked that she was “much hotter in person” and laughed at her nickname “Caribou Barbie.”

Later in the show, she joined Amy Poehler and Seth Meyers in the “Weekend Update” sketch, where she sang along to a rap song that she joked she wouldn't perform herself because she was worried “that might cross the line.” “.

Poehler stood up and did the rap instead.

Her performance was seen by more than 14 million people, the largest audience for SNL since 1994.

The New York Times said the appearance showed “she had a sense of humor at a time when the country is still debating whether to take her seriously as a potential commander in chief.”

Gerald Ford and Ron Nessen

In April 1976, then-President Gerald Ford appeared along with his press secretary Ron Nessen, who after much deliberation hosted the show.

Less than a year after the show premiered, Ford became the first president to appear on SNL and utter the famous line, “Live from New York, it's Saturday night!”

Time magazine, which called the episode the one that “changed American politics,” said that the appearance of Mr. Ford and his secretary after he took over from President Richard Nixon in the wake of the Watergate scandal was an attempt is to change the perception of his government.

Mr. Nessen, who even played himself in an opening skit with Chevy Chase, said he wanted to host the show to prove “that this administration has a sense of humor.”

In Nessen's memoir, It Sure Looks Different from the Inside, he said the reviews were “not kind” and many said his appearance on the show was a “gross misjudgment.”

Despite the criticism of the president and press secretary at the time, a long list of American politicians followed their example.

John McCain

Longtime Arizona senator and two-time presidential candidate John McCain, who died in 2017 at age 81, took the SNL stage several times.

In 2002, he became the first sitting senator to ever host SNL.

He appeared again in 2008, in the midst of his presidential campaign.

Throughout the session, McCain presented new strategies to beat his opponent Barack Obama in the polls.

The Washington Post said his “sense of humor shone through,” particularly when he suggested his “Sad Grandpa” strategy.

“I ask you, what should we look for in our next president? Definitely someone who is very, very, very old.”

According to NBC, this episode was the highest-rated season finale in three years.

But McCain didn't stop there.

Three days before this year's presidential election, he returned alongside Tina Fey as his much-mocked candidate Sarah Palin.

Behind Obama's expensive 30-minute campaign spot, McCain and Fey poked fun at his presidential campaign's financial shortcomings with painful honesty.

“I’m a real outsider, a Republican with no money,” he said.

“Last Wednesday, Barack Obama bought airtime on three major networks.

“But we can only afford QVC.”

QVC is an American cable shopping network.