Will Heath/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images(NEW YORK) — “Saturday Night Live” alumnus Will Ferrell returned to the sketch show this weekend to reprise his iconic impersonation of former President George W. Bush.
And in a nod to the 46th president’s administration, “SNL” cast member Leslie Jones played former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in the show’s cold open.
“Good evening. Thank you. It is I, George W. Bush, and you might remember that the ‘W’ stands for, ‘Whazzaaap?!'” Ferrell’s Bush says as he addresses the nation. “I know what you’re thinking: What the heck is the handsome devil doing back in the Oval Office? The truth is this is just a set. I had it built in my basement in Texas, so I could pretend to be still be president sometimes.”
While President Donald Trump wasn’t spoofed by Alec Baldwin this week, jokes about him were plentiful during the cold open.
“I don’t know if you’ve seen the news, but according to a new poll, my approval rating is at an all-time high,” Ferrell’s Bush says. “That’s right. Donny Q. Trump came in and suddenly I’m looking pretty sweet by comparison. At this rate I might even end up on Mount Rushmore, right next to Washington, Lincoln — and I want to say Kensington? I don’t know. But the point is I’m suddenly popular A.F. And a lot of people are saying, ‘Man, I wish George W. Bush was still our president right about now.”
Ferrell’s Bush continues, “So I just want to address my fellow Americans tonight, I just wanted to remind you guys that I was really bad — like historically not good. So I get why you don’t like this current guy. Heck, I voted for Jill Stein all the way. But please do not look back at my presidency and think, [singing to Montell Jordan’s song] ‘This is how we do it.’ Don’t forget: We’re still in two different wars that I started. What has two thumbs and created ISIS? This guy!”
Then, referring to Trump as “Donny,” Ferrell’s Bush says, “We have a lot in common: We’re both the exact same age, even though I was president like 40 years ago. We both won the election despite losing the popular vote. Though back in my day we didn’t let Russians rig our elections — we used the Supreme Court like Americans.”
Jones then enters the office as Rice, and the pair break into song, reminiscing about the “good old days,” to the tune of the “All in the Family” theme song, “Those Were The Days:”
“Everybody knew their place, Cheney shot a guy in the face, Those were the days, The housing market went to hell Nazis kept it to themselves, Bin Laden was alive and well Those were the days.”
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