The U.S. Secret Service investigated comedian John Mulaney over what it called “inappropriate statements regarding President Trump” on “Saturday Night Live,” according to records obtained by The Associated Press.
During his opening monologue on the Feb. 29, 2020, show, Mulaney made a joke about Julius Caesar, who was stabbed to death by a group of senators.
After talking about the Roman dictator’s role in creating the calendar that includes a leap day, Mulaney said: “Another thing that happened under Julius Caesar, he was such a powerful maniac that all the senators grabbed knives, and they stabbed him to death. That would be an interesting thing if we brought that back now.”
Mulaney had mentioned the investigation during an appearance last month on “Jimmy Kimmel Live.” The file obtained by the AP through Freedom of Information Act request showed the bureau contacted NBC but did not interview the comedian for its inquiry, which found no wrongdoing. The investigation was closed on Dec. 8.
The Secret Service file (embedded at the bottom of this article) notes that Mulaney made no direct threats toward Trump.
On the Jimmy Kimmel show on Dec. 2, Mulaney said he had asked his lawyer if the line would get him in trouble and was told, “If it’s a joke, then I am cleared by the Secret Service.”
Mulaney told Kimmel he had gotten much stronger negative backlash for his SNL monologue on Oct. 31, in which he suggested that the upcoming presidential election was of little import. “So there’s two elderly men and you’re supposed to pick your favorite of the elderly men,” he said. “… Then we might have the same elderly man or we might have a new elderly man. But just rest assured, no matter what happens, nothing much will change in the United States.”
Mulaney, 38, was most recently in the news when it was announced on Dec. 21 that he had entered a 60-day rehabilitation program for alcohol and cocaine addiction.
