‘SNL’ writer suspended, apologizes for Barron Trump tweet

Saturday Night Live‘s role as an inexhaustible source of Trump mocking hit an obstacle Monday when one of the show’s writers was suspended indefinitely for a tasteless tweet about President Trump’s youngest child, 10-year-old Barron.

“Barron will be this country’s first homeschool shooter,” Katie Rich tweeted on Friday during the Trump inauguration celebrations.

Rich’s offensive remark was not the only jab at the child but it stirred up a social-media storm. Rich was deluged with angry responses, and not just from Trump supporters. Many tweeters demanded she be fired.

Her bosses at SNL weren’t happy, either. She was suspended immediately after her tweet for an indefinite period, according to a source familiar with the situation but not authorized to speak publicly.

Rich, 33, and a SNL writer since 2013, deleted her Twitter account after the pushback but revived it Monday afternoon to post an apology.

“I sincerely apologize for the insensitive tweet. I deeply regret my actions & offensive words. It was inexcusable & I’m so sorry,” it said.

The Rich debacle played out on the same day that SNL announced that Alec Baldwin — lately most famous for his taunting Trump impressions — would get another chance to lampoon him when he hosts the show’s Feb. 11 episode for a record-breaking 17th time.

Baldwin’s impersonation, repeatedly tweet-condemned by Trump (“Totally biased, not funny…just can’t get any worse. Sad.”), features the actor in a custom-made Trump wig and tan makeup. He’s opened the show multiple times this season^[1], often joined by Kate McKinnon’s as Trump amanuensis Kellyanne Conway and Beck Bennett as bare-chested Vladimir Putin. Baldwin has vowed to stop his mockery only when the president releases his tax returns.

Chelsea Clinton, herself mocked as a White House child when her father was president in the 1990s, on Sunday added her voice to the defense of Barron, saying a president’s child should be off-limits to snark.

“Barron Trump deserves the chance every child does — to be a kid,” Clinton wrote.

Then, Clinton was attacked for turning her defense of Barron into a political jab at his father. “Standing up for every kid also means opposing @POTUS^[2] policies that hurt kids,” she added.

Barron, like his four adult half-siblings, was front and center during the inauguration alongside his father and his mother, first lady Melania Trump. He has since returned to New York with his mother, where they plan to remain for the next six months while he finishes the school year.

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References

1. ^{^} multiple times this season (rssfeeds.usatoday.com)
2. ^{^} @POTUS (twitter.com)