Stormy Daniels payout controversy continues

(RNN) – After a week full of news related to adult film actress Stormy Daniels and her disputes with President Donald Trump, “Saturday Night Live” brought in the woman herself to square off against their fake president in the show’s cold open.

The seven-minute sketch featured a phone conversation among Trump, as played by Alec Baldwin; his personal lawyer Michael Cohen, as played by Ben Stiller; and several important figures related to the president.

As usual, the show poked fun at Trump and the news of the week, but in this episode, “SNL” gave the final word to Daniels, as played by… the real Stormy Daniels.

The audience greeted Daniels’ appearance with a cheer and a round of applause.

In the sketch, Daniels briefly talked to the faux Cohen before Baldwin’s Trump took over the conversation, asking the woman what she was wearing and offering to patch things up between the two of them.

“Sorry, Donald, it’s too late for that,” Daniels said. “I know you don’t believe in climate change, but a storm’s a-comin’, baby.”

The audience again broke into cheers and applause after the line.

Daniels and the faux president then started the show with the coveted catchphrase, “And live from New York, it’s Saturday night.”

In real life, Daniels, whose legal name is Stephanie Clifford, alleges she had an affair with Trump in 2006. The White House has denied the claim.

Daniels is suing the president and Cohen to be released from a non-disclosure agreement regarding the alleged affair that she signed days before the 2016 presidential election.

In exchange, she received a $130,000 payment from Cohen.

Cohen previously claimed Trump never knew about the situation, and he used his own money for the deal.

On Wednesday, Trump’s recently-hired lawyer Rudy Giuliani – played in the “SNL” sketch by Kate McKinnon – said Trump paid Cohen back.

Giuliani later clarified in an interview with NBC News that Trump didn’t realize what the payments were for, aside from covering Cohen’s expenses and fees.

Trump has said Cohen was paid through a monthly retainer and suggested on Friday that Giuliani did not fully understand the case yet.

In addition to the Stormy Daniels controversy, “SNL” touched on the claims of Trump’s former doctor Harold Bornstein, who has said members of the Trump Organization raided his office in 2017 and that Trump dictated a 2015 letter on the then-presidential candidate’s health.

Martin Short appeared as Bornstein in the “SNL” sketch, offering drugs and his patients’ medical history to Stiller’s Cohen.

Scarlett Johansson and Jimmy Fallon also returned as Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner, respectively.

Current SNL cast members rounded out the Trump-related appearances, with Aidy Bryant playing Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Cecily Strong playing Melania Trump, Beck Bennett playing Vice President Mike Pence and Leslie Jones playing Omarosa.

Copyright 2018 Raycom News Network. All right reserved.