President Trump (James Austin Johnson) and White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt (Ashley Padilla) faced a tough line of questioning in tonight’s “Saturday Night Live” cold open.
While Padilla’s Leavitt tried to convince White House reporters that “no weird information” had been revealed recently, it did not take long for CNN anchor Kaitlan Collins (Chloe Fineman) to ask her why Trump’s name was mentioned in so many of the emails written by deceased sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein that were released by House Republicans and Democrats this week.
“You know, you suck, right?” Padilla’s unhappy press secretary responded. When Fineman’s Collins subsequently asked if anyone at the Department of Justice was investigating Trump’s ties to Epstein, Padilla’s Leavitt argued, “Look, the only thing these emails prove is that President Trump did nothing wrong. If anything, his crime was loving too much — and possibly too young.”
Leavitt’s problems only got worse when another reporter asked, “Are you not worried about the office of Trump giving Epstein’s partner in crime, Ghislaine Maxwell, a sweetheart deal?” In response, Padilla’s White House official said, “Hey, Ghislaine Maxwell said in the sworn deposition she gave to Trump’s friend that Trump always acted like a gentleman, and a little thing about me… I believe women. Now, seriously, can we please move off the topic of Epstein?”
One journalist tried to grant Leavitt’s wish, pivoting to ask, “Is it true the administration secretly sent $840 million to Argentina to pay off their debts?” Padilla’s flustered Leavitt then promptly announced, “We shall return to Epstein!”
You can watch the “SNL” cold open yourself below.
White House press briefing with Karoline Leavitt and Trump pic.twitter.com/tgVarzhDrl
— Saturday Night Live – SNL (@nbcsnl) November 16, 2025
Eventually, Trump himself took to the White House’s press podium to answer some questions. “I am hiding almost nothing — just enough to make it extremely suspicious,” Johnson’s Trump said. “I barely knew the guy, OK? As evidenced by the 1,000s of pictures of us together, dancing and grinding our teeth at various parties, always leering and pointing at something just off-camera… probably a book we’re excited to read.”
“I thought Megyn Kelly made a terrific point this week. She said Epstein’s not a pedophile. Terrific thing to just say out of nowhere. Great job, Megyn. We love Megyn. They should put her back on TV. Legalize Megyn!” Johnson’s Trump added, referencing the conservative pundit’s comments about Epstein earlier this week. The president then announced his unexpected plan to actually release the government’s Epstein Files.
“Each file will be on sale for the low, low price of $800,” Johnson’s Trump revealed, while holding up a gold-framed version of one of the Epstein emails released this week. “This is a beautiful, one-of-a-kind, printed-out screenshot in very low-res of one of the many files mentioning President Trump. It makes a great stocking stuffer.”
“SNL” then capped off its cold open with a nod to another one of this week’s strangest stories. “I just ordered the one that says, ‘Does Putin have the photo of Trump blowing Bubba?’” Johnson’s Trump told viewers. “We love that one. Whatever the hell that means.”
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