Why SNL needs to remove Alec Baldwin from the fake presidency

The Boston Globe

The problem with Baldwin's Trump impression is that it's too precise, says Michael Andor Brodeur, adding that a dead-on impression isn't what is needed nowadays. "Put everything about Baldwin’s performance together: His focus on faithfully capturing appearances, his valiant attempt to locate humanity where none exists, and his flaw as an actor, the animating force of spite, all combine to make Baldwin the perfect Trump — which is not what we need," says Brodeur. "You could argue that Baldwin’s Trump isn’t nearly crude or cruel enough. But as Trump and Trumpism have demonstrated over and over again, shamelessly and brazenly, accuracy doesn’t count for much in this administration. Even if you’re an actor, the more you listen to Trump, the less you learn. The hazard of relying on impressively faithful impressions of an impressively dishonest president is that it treats Trump more like a character than a crisis. Political comedy of the sort that Saturday Night Live should be attempting requires more than a canny impression, it requires an uncanny sense of the circus around the clown."