Please, Please Come Back Melissa McCarthy. The White House Press Corps Needs You

S.N.L.: Did Melissa McCarthy Debut an Explosively On-Point Sean Spicer Impression That Will Define the Press Secretary For All Time?

One week ago tonight, it was hard to imagine a S.N.L. character more captivating than Alec Baldwin's Donald Trump. Wrong! Melissa McCarthy's vision of White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer brought down the house with her Feb. 4 appearance on S.N.L. and we want her back, the sooner the better.

Alex Baldwin is the host of tonight's show, meaning we'll get a triple dose of his magnificent impersonation of our American president. Most viewers though Trumpland couldn't get any better. Wrong!

Comedian Melissa McCarthy's dressed-in-drag, masterful caricature of White House press secretary Sean Spicer has truly rattled the White House, according to reports. When Trump doesn't take to Twitter, you know he's very unhappy with what he witnessed.  The man who cares about appearances (all but his own) is doubly upset that Spicer was done in by a woman. This cannot happen in Trumpland, where a woman mocking a man makes him look defacto weak.

Tina Nguyen writes Saturday for Vanity Fair that Trump insists that the administration find a Communications Director pronto, unburdening Spicer of his dual role. The problem is that no one is signing up for the job, and that challenge could become more difficult in the coming days. 

Queen Conway Digs, Digs, Digs

In all honesty, Spicer really can't cut a break. Rumours are that Trump was unhappy over the press secretary's response that Kellyanne Conway was 'counseled' for her ethics-breaching comments telling Americans to buy Ivanka Trump's brand. Ready to pounce, Conway inflicted a major dig to Spicer in her Twitter feed, saying that Trump preferred 'counselor' more than 'counseled'.  

With the reality of House Oversight Committee Chairman Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) said that Conway's remarks were 'clearly over the line and 'unacceptable', and he and top Democrat on the committee Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md) would jointly refer Conway to the Office of Government Ethics for an investigation, Spicer's discrete response seemed applause-worthy. But not in the Oval Office.

Sean Spicer, arriving in his White House press secretary position, is not new to Washington. In a mid-week article, Tina Nguyen remarked:

Spicer was a generally well-liked communications director at the Republican National Committee, with a quick wit and a sense of humor. One reporter who worked with Spicer described him to me as a “chill” and “very reasonable guy.” In the last two weeks, however, Spicer has been subject to a rare and cruel, and occasionally darkly funny, form of public torture. He has, in some ways, become Trump’s very own Baghdad Bob.

A New & Unproven White House Press Briefing?

While it's true that Sean Spicer's exasperation with press questions flares often and with total exasperation, he has brought changes to the daily press briefing. In a move that makes sense to me, Spicer has introduced "Skype seats" that appear on two large flat-screens on either side of the lectern, Expanding the range of the press pool seems like a good idea for the people and as a action of humility-inducement for the Washington Press Corps. 

Spicer routinely gives questions to obscure right-wing news sources like LifeZette. In total, the mainstream press in out in the cold at press briefings, compared to past administrations. The New York Times shares an in-depth analysis of Spicer's changes.  In a separate article, the Times writes "He is no match for 'The Young and the Restless.' But he is beating 'The Bold and the Beautiful.'  Bottom-line, the White House soap opera that is Spicer's daily press briefing causes Fox News, MSNBC and CNN audiences to jump at least 10 percent. Overall, the Times reports that Fox, CNN and MSNBC have seen big increases in daytime audiences. 

“There’s huge interest in everything Trump does, and Sean is benefiting from that,” said Alex Conant, a Republican consultant who helped lead Senator Marco Rubio’s presidential campaign. “Depending on your perspective, you either tune in to watch Sean defend the indefensible, or to watch media bias in action.”

Melissa McCarthy Drag Queen

In the wake of her mind-boggling, now-legendary performance on S.N.L. a bit of digging unearthed a 2014 interview with Rolling Stone in which McCarthy talks about living in Hell's Kitchen in Manhattan, encouraged to pursue comedy by her gay best friend, shoe designer Brian Atwood. 

With his support, Huff Po writes, McCarthy morphed in a "dragged-out, over the top character named Miss Y.

“It was the time of Lady Miss Kier, RuPaul and Lady Bunny, and Miss Y was Missy’s great alter ego,” Atwood told Rolling Stone. “When we went to Wigstock at Tompkins Square Park, Miss Y was at her prime there. Full-on. That was her time. It was hilarious.”

Related: White House rattled by McCarthy's spoof of Spicer Politico

Someone Give Melissa McCarthy an Emmy for Her Screamin' Good Sean Spicer Impression New York Magazine