During one segment of the “Black Jeopardy” skit, Hanks appeared very reluctant to shake the hand of Kenan Thompson’s character, Darnell Hayes, who is Black.
The backlash on social media was immediate.
“This show wonders why their ratings are in the gutter,” former Robert F. Kennedy Jr. aide Link Lauren wrote on X. “Trump won the popular vote. This tired trope that MAGA is racist is disgusting. SNL is an unfunny show for snobbish liberal elites.
nother X user wrote, “SNL’s desperate attempt to smear Trump supporters as racist is tired and pathetic. Maybe if they focused on being funny instead of pushing an agenda, they wouldn’t be tanking in ratings.”
Another user said, “I used to have so much respect for @tomhanks as an actor. Now, I can’t bear to watch any of his movies- even from the 80s. I just cannot accept how he can disrespect half the country. Tom, you should have stayed neutral and just entertained because you established yourself as an entertainer.”
“Tom Hanks just came out on the SNL 50th anniversary special in a MAGA hat, doing a skit, where he acted like he didn’t want to shake a black man’s hand,” one wrote on X. “This is why SNL is in the toilet.”
“It was a great skit until Tom Hanks showed up,” said one critic, while another claimed it’s “also why his career is tanking.”
“No one in the audience laughs as Tom Hanks appears on SNL as a racist Trump supporter that refuses to shake hands with a black man,” added another.
“It was rather disgusting,” one wrote. “What a tool. What a disgrace @nbcsnl to decide to exclude an audience of millions who grew up watching your programming.”
No doubt the skit was risky given Trump’s enduring popularity and approval throughout the country.
Trump has recorded at least 50 percent approval ratings in three recent surveys, Newsweek reported, adding that the “surveys suggest that most Americans approve of the job the president is doing, despite other polls indicating that Trump’s favorability ratings have declined since his first few days back in office.”
A SurveyUSA poll of 2,000 adults found that a majority (51 percent) approve of Trump’s job as president, while 45 percent disapprove, giving him a net approval score of +6 points.
When analyzed by region, the results reveal that Trump enjoys stronger approval in rural areas (59 percent) compared to suburban (48 percent) and urban areas (51 percent).
A separate Morning Consult poll, also released on Tuesday, showed that 50 percent of voters approve of Trump’s job as president, while 47 percent disapprove, Newsweek’s report continued.
Eli Yokley, U.S. politics analyst for Morning Consult, and Cameron Easley, head of U.S. political analysis, noted in their analysis that Trump’s approval rating has “stabilized” after three consecutive weeks of decline.
Additionally, a recent survey from a Republican polling firm indicated that Trump maintains a strong approval rating.
The Napolitan News survey, conducted by Scott Rasmussen and RMG Research, showed Trump’s approval at 55 percent, with a disapproval rating of 43 percent, giving him a net approval score of +12 points, Newsweek added.
