# SNL writer suspended indefinitely for Barron Trump tweet **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 24, 2017, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snl-writer-suspended-indefinitely-for-barron-trump-tweet/777993 "2017-01-24T00:54:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2017, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snl-writer-suspended-indefinitely-for-barron-trump-tweet/777993/61 "2017-01-24T20:56:35Z")
> [@running coach](#): > > No reason to match. Remember “they go low, we go high”? > [@Miller](#): > > Yeah, and how’d that work out for us? Right - next election, no more nice guy. :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2017, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snl-writer-suspended-indefinitely-for-barron-trump-tweet/777993/62 "2017-01-24T21:15:53Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > What about the skit when the female host (was it Madonna?) sang “Happy Birthday Mr President” to Clinton (per Marylin Monroe’s famous serenade of Kennedy), and they had Chris Farley (or one of the overweight, male cast members) playing Chelsea. Was she an adult then? I do remember that one, but Chelsea was definitely not played by Chris Farley. I don’t even think it was a guy. ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2017, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snl-writer-suspended-indefinitely-for-barron-trump-tweet/777993/63 "2017-01-24T22:06:30Z")
> [@Kimstu](#): > > I disagree. All public figures to some extent use their children as props, but that’s their choice as parents. It’s one thing to complain about the **parent** ’s behavior in photo-opping with a child, but it’s not appropriate to respond by taunting or speculating about the children themselves. The Trumps have actually used Barron as a prop in far more significant ways than just photo-ops. A blog that I follow, [SorryWatch](http://www.sorrywatch.com/2017/01/23/you-shouldve-heard-them-knocking-edgar-allan-poes-kid/), has pointed out that the Trump Machine appears to have been issuing political commentary in Barron’s name.(the FB page mentioned in the article has now been shut down, BTW. The two that are left are one quite unexceptionable one featuring mostly photos, and one spoof account) Not that I disagree with your fundamental point - it’s wrong to mock a child. It’s wrong to drag them into politics. Everyone should stop it. ---
**Author:** ![Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a183cd/32.png) [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barkis_is_Willin)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2017, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snl-writer-suspended-indefinitely-for-barron-trump-tweet/777993/64 "2017-01-24T23:49:50Z")
> [@Aspidistra](#): > > The Trumps have actually used Barron as a prop in far more significant ways than just photo-ops. A blog that I follow, [SorryWatch](http://www.sorrywatch.com/2017/01/23/you-shouldve-heard-them-knocking-edgar-allan-poes-kid/), has pointed out that the Trump Machine appears to have been issuing political commentary in Barron’s name.(the FB page mentioned in the article has now been shut down, BTW. The two that are left are one quite unexceptionable one featuring mostly photos, and one spoof account) > > Not that I disagree with your fundamental point - it’s wrong to mock a child. It’s wrong to drag them into politics. Everyone should stop it. I read the blog at your link. Wondering if that wasn’t a fake FB account. ---
**Author:** ![jaycat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jaycat/32/3015_2.png) [@jaycat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jaycat)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2017, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snl-writer-suspended-indefinitely-for-barron-trump-tweet/777993/65 "2017-01-24T23:52:38Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > No reason to match. Remember “they go low, we go high”? Stay high. . . . I am trying to stay high, it’s the only way thru these difficult times. ---
**Author:** ![standingwave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@standingwave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/standingwave)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2017, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snl-writer-suspended-indefinitely-for-barron-trump-tweet/777993/66 "2017-01-25T00:11:34Z")
> [@Rigamarole](#): > > Can we make fun of his adult children though, like Donald Jr.? Is 18 the cutoff? (just to be clear) FWIW, [Triumph the Insult Comedy Dog](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OM7B56xok9M) did call Don Jr. and Eric lesser motivated Menendez Brothers. But he steered clear of Barron. ---
**Author:** ![standingwave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@standingwave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/standingwave)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2017, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snl-writer-suspended-indefinitely-for-barron-trump-tweet/777993/67 "2017-01-25T00:15:08Z")
> [@Two\_Many\_Cats](#): > > I do remember that one, but Chelsea was definitely not played by Chris Farley. I don’t even think it was a guy. It was Julia Sweeney. > **[Clinton Inaugural Gala - SNL Transcripts Tonight](https://snltranscripts.jt.org/92/92kinauguration.phtml)** > > Clinton Inaugural Gala ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2017, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snl-writer-suspended-indefinitely-for-barron-trump-tweet/777993/68 "2017-01-25T00:27:47Z")
> [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](#): > > I read the blog at your link. Wondering if that wasn’t a fake FB account. Well…maybe. Comments in the link say that the taken down page was a ‘Community’ page, not a ‘Public Figure’ one, so I take it back. SOMEONE was using Barron for pro-trump political purposes, but it might not be an actual Trump employee. The remaining [twitter](https://twitter.com/BarronTrumpJr) and [facebook](https://twitter.com/BarronTrumpJr) accounts are still overly politicised by my standards and should be taken down but not quite so bad. ---
**Author:** ![F.U.Shakespeare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aca169/32.png) [@F.U.Shakespeare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.U.Shakespeare)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2017, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snl-writer-suspended-indefinitely-for-barron-trump-tweet/777993/69 "2017-01-25T01:09:09Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > What about the skit when the female host (was it Madonna?) sang “Happy Birthday Mr President” to Clinton (per Marylin Monroe’s famous serenade of Kennedy), and they had Chris Farley (or one of the overweight, male cast members) playing Chelsea. Was she an adult then? I thought it was even more interesting how the sketch ended: As Madonna sang, Bill returned her attention, gesturing that he wanted to slip off with her, and caught hell from Hillary for it. After Hillary had looked away, Bill returned to his gesturing to Madonna. Who replied, “Not you (pointing at Bill) - _you!_”, pointing at Chelsea. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2017, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snl-writer-suspended-indefinitely-for-barron-trump-tweet/777993/70 "2017-01-25T02:23:59Z")
> [@drad\_dog](#): > > Please. They call them jokes.It was open season on Chelsea Clinton in the 90s. > > I can’t see piling onto this woman at the moment. It will be used as a distraction so the plutocrats can pick your country clean, while you whine about it. It was not ‘open season’ on Chelsea. If it was, Limbaugh wouldn’t have received the outrage he got over that ‘accident’ (which was clearly intentional, although Limbaugh later on tried to claim that it was.a sincere accident). And why did he have to backpedal? Because presidential children have always been off limits, and Limbaugh crossed a line. ---
**Author:** ![Fuzzy\_wuzzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a8b319/32.png) [@Fuzzy\_wuzzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fuzzy_wuzzy)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2017, 9:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snl-writer-suspended-indefinitely-for-barron-trump-tweet/777993/71 "2017-01-25T09:26:23Z")
> [@gigi](#): > > That brings up the separate question of whether social media posts on one’s own time should affect one’s employment. > **And the joke isn’t about Barron, it’s about his father.** How do you know this? Im fairly sure you have no way of coming to that conclusion with any degree of certainty. Earlier I said the tweet was hinting at Barron Trump and Aspergers. I still believe the Tweet was probably about that, but am willing to admit this SNL writer does have some wiggle room here. Her tweet is opaque **enough**. However, you cannot conclude from her Tweet that the comment was only at the expense of Donald, and in no way suggestive of some rumored mental dysfunction in Barron. A rumored mental dysfunction that had already went somewhat viral on Twitter. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2017, 10:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snl-writer-suspended-indefinitely-for-barron-trump-tweet/777993/72 "2017-01-25T10:40:38Z")
Not appropriate to use a child in a joke on social media, doesn’t matter if there is some subtle underlying joke, the child is likely not to understand that subtlety. Remember when the Onion tweeted out a joke about then 10 year old Quvenzhané Wallis calling her a cunt? The joke was that she was clearly lovable and cute so calling her a cunt was absurd; but they were talking about a real 10 year old child. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2017, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snl-writer-suspended-indefinitely-for-barron-trump-tweet/777993/73 "2017-01-25T14:51:58Z")
> [@gigi](#): > > That brings up the separate question of whether social media posts on one’s own time should affect one’s employment. That question became moot years ago; it does and that’s not going to change. > [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](#): > > I daresay in any given week somebody somewhere is getting fired for something they said or did on their own time. I personally know someone who was fired from his job for putting out an insensitive tweet. > > That said, I’ll be surprised if Katie Rich ends up getting fired. She has issued what appears to be a sincere apology. A suspension of some length (a month?) and moving on with our lives seems appropriate. Writers on SNL have about the same job security as migrant farm workers. > [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > I thought the joke was funny. Not guffaw funny, just wry smile funny. Maybe even a small chuckle. > > But I also think political figures’ children should not be used as targets of ridicule. And when the Repubs stop doing it, I’ll feel bad about having laughed. But since that ain’t happening, Donnie can just suck it. He’s hurt a lot of people, so if this makes him feel bad, good. I’ll bet Barron is so isolated that he has never even heard the insult. > > Remember, this kid could conceivably grow up to be President!:eek: It doesn’t matter if some random republican on Twitter or some famous right wing talk show host does it. Beyond the logical fallacy already pointed out what matters in this case is what Lorne Michaels thinks. He regrets some of what they did in the past to Chelsea and Amy Carter and he won’t tolerate it any more. ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2017, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snl-writer-suspended-indefinitely-for-barron-trump-tweet/777993/74 "2017-01-25T19:59:06Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > But I’m not okay with someone being fired before we decided this. Well good thing that hasn’t happened yet. And I didn’t know you were a producer on SNL. That’s pretty cool. ---
**Author:** ![drad\_dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@drad\_dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drad_dog)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2017, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snl-writer-suspended-indefinitely-for-barron-trump-tweet/777993/75 "2017-01-26T21:55:12Z")
The voting for don the con was a greater injury to this kid than a tweet. His dad should not be president. I say that for the sake of the kids own mental health and future, not to mention donnies. The family are adults except for him and they make their own decisions. But their actions are going to be shamed and well known for generations. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snl-writer-suspended-indefinitely-for-barron-trump-tweet/777993.md?page=3)