President Donald Trump’s Cabinet, packed with Fox News personalities, inexperienced sycophants and other fringe figures, has provided plenty of fodder for “Saturday Night Live.”
The president recently provided the show with even more material with his appointment of former judge — and Fox News host — Jeanine Pirro, who had already been parodied on “SNL” for her alleged heavy drinking and relentless Trump boosterism, to be D.C.’s interim U.S. attorney, replacing Ed Martin.
Critics of Pirro, nicknamed Judge Box of Wine, have accused her of being drunk on air more than once.
In their most recent sketch featuring Pirro, portrayed by Cecily Strong, the judge is introduced by Trump, played by James Austin Johnson, as “one of the loudest people he knows.”
“Look at this,” Trump said, pointing to Pirro’s briefcase. “Jeanine has brought her files and she’s ready to work.”
Pirro surprises him by producing a bottle of red wine.
“Oh no this — it’s a cozy for my merlot-zy,” she said.
Defense Secretary Pete Hesgeth, played by Colin Jost, is then brought out. Pirro describes him as her “old drinking buddy.”
Hesgeth has also been accused of having a drinking problem. In an article from The New Yorker following his nomination, the magazine alleges he was seen drunk just last year at several events hosted by two veteran groups, including one he led.
In the skit, Trump asks Hesgeth if he was still drinking.
“No, absolutely not, sir. I promised I would never have a bottle touch my lips,” the volatile defense secretary responds.
“But I do have some news to share, but before I do, Jeanine — you wanna take a swig of this?” he adds offering a bottle of whiskey to Pirro.
“I accidentally added Kim Jong Un to the group chat,” Hesgeth says, causing Pirro to spit up the whiskey she had just downed.
The camera then cuts to Trump, who acknowledges, “Folks, they’re not the A Team, they’re the AA Team.”
Rumors of Pirro’s drinking stretch back to March 2020, when viewers pointed out that the judge appeared disheveled, with her hair out of place and her speech slurred.
Fox News, in a statement, explained that Pirro was broadcasting from her home for the first time and “encountered several technical difficulties which impacted the quality of her show, including the loss of a teleprompter.”
Similar accusations followed in March 2022 when Pirro struggled to say the name of Leon Panetta, a D.C. lifer who served as Bill Clinton’s White House chief of staff, the director of the CIA and secretary of defense.
Republican strategist Rick Wilson declared she was “drunk even by naval standards.”
The 73-year-old Pirro has never addressed the rumors about her alleged drinking problem.
Announcing Pirro’s appointment earlier this month, Trump, posting on Truth Social, lauded her experience. “Jeanine was assistant district attorney for Westchester County, New York, and then went on to serve as county judge, and district attorney, where she was the first woman ever to be elected to those positions.”
Accepting the nomination, Pirro vowed, “No more mercy for criminals. Violence will be addressed directly with the appropriate punishment.”
Video of her nomination was met with multiple reminders of her allegedly drinking.
“She’s a drunk. This is an embarrassment for the country and the administration,” wrote one X user.
Hesgeth, in an interview last year with Megyn Kelley, denied he drank excessively.
“No one’s ever approached me and said, ‘You should really look at getting help for drinking,'” Hesgeth told Kelly. “Never, never sought counseling, never sought help, but I respect and appreciate people who do.”
