Dave Chappelle’s 16 minute monologue on “SNL” last night was one of the show’s longest ever.
Chappelle– smoking, of course, and mostly sitting on a stool — hit a number of current subjects before launching a tribute to Jimmy Carter.
He warned Donald Trump: “The presidency is no place for petty people.”
The Carter tribute seemed lovely, but it soon turned to Chappelle talking about Carter’s long ago visit to Gaza — and the book he wrote about the Middle East. Chappelle, while praising Carter, also reminded us of us his previous statements of Israel being an apartheid state. His book, “Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid,” was hugely criticized in 1996 and raised questions about Carter’s criticism of Israel.
So this is what Chappelle does. He lures you in, then sandbags you. That’s what he did here. He closed by admonishing Trump to remember displaced persons — ok, that sounds good — then adds we should have empathy for displaced people whether they’re in the Palisades or Palestine.
One watches Chappelle with a burning feeling in the pit of your stomach. You’re always waiting for him to deliver a point it didn’t look like he was making.
Dave Chappelle's monologue! pic.twitter.com/qSkjGsfnv1
— Saturday Night Live – SNL (@nbcsnl) January 19, 2025