The Tonight Show head writer exits after 6 months over Trump jokes

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Rebecca Drysdale, a Key and Peele veteran who joined The Tonight Show as head writer in April, said in a private Facebook post, first picked up by Chicago Sun-Times, that her departure was mutual. “They made it clear that I was not a good fit for the show, and I did not disagree. I wish it had gone differently and I had been able to be what they needed but that is not how it shook out,” Drysdale wrote. But Drysdale -- who got her start in comedy two decades ago forming the Two White Guys comedy troupe with her former college roommate Jordan Peele -- made it clear she disagreed with the show's use of Trump jokes. "I believe that comedy is a powerful tool,” she wrote. “I believe that it can handle anything, no matter how unfunny. I don’t believe that making fun of this man, doing impressions of him, or making him silly, is a good use of that power. It only adds to his.” She added: “I am making the decision for myself to never work on, write, or be involved with, another Trump sketch ever again. I have landed in several jobs and situations over the last few years, not just The Tonight Show, where the project of making fun of Trump, or doing material about Trump, has led to divided creative teams, anxiety, tears and pain. I can’t decide the outcome of this election, but I can make the choice for myself, to vote him out of my creative life.” Drysdale's exit comes in a busy news week for Fallon's Tonight Show. Earlier this week, Fallon announced that he signed a contract extension, while longtime producer Jamie Granet-Bederman was named as the new showrunner.