The One Sketch That Could Save ‘SNL’s’ Soul

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“Saturday Night Live” ran its usual drill over the weekend, even if Alec Baldwin didn’t drop by.

Kate McKinnon insinuated Attorney General Jeff Sessions is racist. A faux movie trailer all but demanded a generic Republican save the Republic by standing up to President Donald Trump. More attacks on Vice President Mike Pence.

Jeff Sessions Gump Cold Open - SNL

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Who saw those bold stances coming?

Yeah, everybody.

The once great “SNL” is now another hopeless house organ for the DNC. To be fair, it’s in good company considering comedy showcases littering the TV landscape essentially serve the same purpose.

We’re still waiting for one that supports or even gives Republican voters their say. Clearly, “SNL” doesn’t fit that description.

RELATED: 4 Ways ‘SNL’ Weaponized Trump Against GOP

It would take more than one sketch to revive “SNL’s” bipartisan brand at this point.

The one-two punch of the Hillary Clinton “Hallelujah” farewell and the “To Sir, With Love” song saying sayonara to President Barack Obama torched the show’s credibility.

Election Week Cold Open - SNL

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That’s not funny. It’s pathetic.

We’d need a full season of balanced yuks to convince us show creator Lorne Michaels cares more about restoring the show’s luster than lending comfort to “The Resistance.”

“SNL” did air a sketch a few weeks back mocking liberal groupthink. It came out of the blue and hardly left a mark. Still, it did more than catch viewers flat-footed. It offered hope the show’s writers occasionally click away from Think Progress on their laptops.

The Bubble - SNL

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Longtime fans, either conservatives or folks looking for surprising humor, need more than that. Here’s where the show must start, and now before it’s too late.

Mock the anti-free speech zealots pretending to fight fascism. Hard.

Berkeley riots backer proud of shutting down 'fascist' Milo

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This wouldn’t be a sketch you program close to the 1 am hour. We’re talking cold open material. Maybe get a famous guest star or two to add extra gravitas to the material.

Tom Hanks? Melissa McCarthy? Baldwin himself?

What’s to make fun of? Let’s count the ways:

Compare the 1960s protesters to those of today (placards vs man buns and mobile phones)

How many arrests there are at these events (very few to none?)

Democratic politicians who say nada while this black mark against free speech goes on

The sheer insanity of the rants on display

Where were these folks on Election Day 2016?

The protesters themselves, from their black handkerchiefs to their ludicrous statements (see Carlson, Tucker for just a few examples)

This isn’t time to pull punches. And the material couldn’t be any timelier. We just saw a college professor get sent to the hospital by these fascist thugs. Is the next Berkeley moment coming soon? Would anyone bet against it?

RELATED: Why Media Won’t Fact Check ‘SNL’ Sketches?

The fascinating part would come next. Watch the “SNL” YouTube clip go viral. Bigly. Conservatives craving this material will make it trend like Kim Kardashian sharing colonic tips.

Next, the mainstream media will probably attempt to neuter it. It wouldn’t be the first time. Coverage may be light … or perhaps even critical. Some pearl clutching might occur. That should go viral, too. If only to give consumers the umpteenth sample of pure, unabashed media bias.

Will this sketch actually happen? Unlikely. Heck, we should have seen it by now. It’s like all the other oh, so obvious sketches Team “SNL” somehow missed.

Eight years of Vice President Joe Biden – not one iconic sketch. Same for President Obama

Those smug celebrity political PSAs

Every other word out of Nancy Pelosi’s mouth. Or Maxine Waters’

So there you go, “SNL.” Here’s a chance to do damage control to half the country you mock each week.

Yes, the show’s ratings are high at the moment, but will that last? Can “SNL” continue to write off such a massive part of its potential audience? Think of the longtime viewers who no longer make it a point to watch a former TV mainstay.

Will liberals keep tuning in week after week to see Baldwin, McKinnon and the rest hit the same targets with increasingly mean material?

Maybe.

The damage to the show’s legacy may never recover. Here’s where it can start.

Photo credit: Joe Parks via Foter.com / CC BY-NC