On the October 11 episode of Saturday Night Live, Amy Poehler returned to host after 15 years. Her appearance also coincided with SNL’s 50th birthday celebration. For this episode’s cold open, she played Attorney General Pam Bondi, reuniting with Tina Fey, who played Kristi Noem, Secretary of Homeland Security.
Pam Bondi and DHS respond to this Week’s SNL cold open
In the sketch, Poehler as Pam Bondi and Fey as Kristi Noem joke about the October 7 Senate hearing, which saw a few heated moments. Poehler can be seen facing questions and comments about Immigration and Customs Enforcement and even the Epstein files. At one point, she responds by saying, “I don’t know; you’ll have to ask Homeland Security Director Kristi Noem.” This leads to Fey’s entrance as the DHS Secretary.
Reacting to this, Bondi took to X, posting a still from the sketch and writing, “@Sec_Noem[Kristi Noem], should we recreate this picture in Chicago? Loving Amy Poehler!” Noem did not respond to the post. However, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement to Entertainment Weekly, “SNL is absolutely right — the Democrats’ shutdown does need to end!”
Poehler starts the cold open by introducing herself as Pam Bondi. She says, “What’s up nerds? My name is Pam Bondi. I spell it with an ‘I’ ’cause ‘I ain’t gonna answer any of your questions.’ My time is valuable.” She then refuses to answer questions from Sens. Richard Blumenthal, Sheldon Whitehouse, and John Kennedy, played by Mikey Day, Jeremy Culhane, and Andrew Dismukes, respectively. Soon, she is joined onstage by Fey as Kristi Noem.
Fey begins by tossing the assault rifle she’s holding as she says, “Hold my gun.” She then continues, “That’s right, it’s me Kristi Noem. I spell my name with an ‘I’ because that’s how I thought it was spelled. And I’m the rarest type of person in Washington, D.C. — a brunette that Donald Trump listens to. I’m here to tell you that this Democrat government shutdown needs to end now.”
Check out the cold open from the October 11 SNL episode here:
Originally reported by Elton Fernandes for ComingSoon.
