Pete Davidson SNL sketch mocks Tom Homan immigration pep talk
TOI GLOBAL DESK | TOI GLOBAL | Feb 01, 2026, 15:35 IST
In a recent episode of Saturday Night Live, Pete Davidson took on the role of Tom Homan, portraying bewildered federal immigration agents in Minneapolis grappling with their directives. The sketch cleverly highlighted the turmoil following President Trump's controversial decision to highlight Homan’s role amidst a surge in federal immigration enforcement.
Pete Davidson impersonated Tom Homan on Saturday Night Live during a sketch for the show's 1,000th episode, portraying Homan giving a pep talk to federal immigration agents in Minneapolis. This appearance followed President Donald Trump deploying Homan to Minnesota amid increased federal immigration activity, which had led to hundreds of arrests and several fatal shootings. Homan had announced "massive changes" in Minneapolis after reaching an agreement with local and state officials to reduce the number of agents in the city.
Davidson's Homan characterized the situation as "crazy" that he appeared to be the only "reasonable adult" present, while the agents around him struggled to understand their mission. The sketch highlighted the confusion among the agents regarding their purpose in Minneapolis.
The long-running series' 1,000th episode sketch comes days after President Donald Trump deployed Homan to Minnesota. This deployment was intended to help defuse tensions sparked by a surge of federal immigration officers. These officers had carried out hundreds of arrests and several fatal shootings. This surge had sparked international outrage. Minnesota had emerged as the epicenter of the president’s mass deportation campaign.
On Thursday, Homan, who previously served under former President Barack Obama, announced "massive changes" would be coming to Minneapolis. This announcement followed an agreement with local and state officials. The agreement would "draw down" the number of agents in the city.
Davidson’s Homan questioned the dismissal of a previous figure, Greg Bovino. “Now I'm sure a lot of you are wondering why Greg Bovino , the last guy, was dismissed,” Davidson’s Homan said.
He clarified the reasons for Bovino's dismissal. “I want to stress that it wasn’t because he did a bad job, or publicly lied about the shooting of an American citizen, or even, uh-oh, dressed like a Nazi. It was that he was filmed doing these things.”
Davidson’s Homan then emphasized the need for improved performance. “So I’m here now and we need to tighten up,” he said. Davidson’s Homan proceeded to ask the agents basic questions about their mission in the city. None of the agents could answer correctly. “Now who can tell me why we’re here in Minneapolis?” he said.
One agent responded with uncertainty. “One agent said “pass.” Another agent offered a guess. “Another chimed in: “This could be wrong but, Army?” Davidson’s Homan then inquired about their instructions. “What were you told you should be doing?” Davidson’s Homan followed up.” An agent provided a vague answer. “Um, wilding out?” said another.” Another agent questioned the objective.
“Another questioned if the job was to keep Americans safe from former CNN reporter Don Lemon , who was arrested this week.” An exasperated Davidson as Homan expressed his frustration.
“Look, I’m Tom Homan, OK? I’m the ‘ separating families at the border guy . I’m the ‘on-film taking a $50,000 bribe guy.’ And y’all are making me look like the upstanding, reasonable adult in the room. That’s crazy.”
These lines referenced Homan’s role in Trump’s first administration. They also alluded to an allegation that he accepted a cash bribe from federal agents, which he has denied.
Davidson’s Homan attempted to summarize the session. “Let’s recap,” Davidson’s Homan said. “What did we learn today?” A federal agent offered a critical assessment of the hiring and training process. “This could be wrong,” one federal agent responded. “But that you hired a bunch of angry, aggressive guys, gave us guns and didn’t train us, so this is maybe what you wanted to happen?”
Davidson’s Homan reacted to this statement. “Oh come on, man,” Davidson’s Homan said. “Don’t start thinking now.”
Davidson's Homan characterized the situation as "crazy" that he appeared to be the only "reasonable adult" present, while the agents around him struggled to understand their mission. The sketch highlighted the confusion among the agents regarding their purpose in Minneapolis.
The long-running series' 1,000th episode sketch comes days after President Donald Trump deployed Homan to Minnesota. This deployment was intended to help defuse tensions sparked by a surge of federal immigration officers. These officers had carried out hundreds of arrests and several fatal shootings. This surge had sparked international outrage. Minnesota had emerged as the epicenter of the president’s mass deportation campaign.
On Thursday, Homan, who previously served under former President Barack Obama, announced "massive changes" would be coming to Minneapolis. This announcement followed an agreement with local and state officials. The agreement would "draw down" the number of agents in the city.
Davidson’s Homan questioned the dismissal of a previous figure, Greg Bovino. “Now I'm sure a lot of you are wondering why Greg Bovino , the last guy, was dismissed,” Davidson’s Homan said.
He clarified the reasons for Bovino's dismissal. “I want to stress that it wasn’t because he did a bad job, or publicly lied about the shooting of an American citizen, or even, uh-oh, dressed like a Nazi. It was that he was filmed doing these things.”
Davidson’s Homan then emphasized the need for improved performance. “So I’m here now and we need to tighten up,” he said. Davidson’s Homan proceeded to ask the agents basic questions about their mission in the city. None of the agents could answer correctly. “Now who can tell me why we’re here in Minneapolis?” he said.
One agent responded with uncertainty. “One agent said “pass.” Another agent offered a guess. “Another chimed in: “This could be wrong but, Army?” Davidson’s Homan then inquired about their instructions. “What were you told you should be doing?” Davidson’s Homan followed up.” An agent provided a vague answer. “Um, wilding out?” said another.” Another agent questioned the objective.
“Another questioned if the job was to keep Americans safe from former CNN reporter Don Lemon , who was arrested this week.” An exasperated Davidson as Homan expressed his frustration.
“Look, I’m Tom Homan, OK? I’m the ‘ separating families at the border guy . I’m the ‘on-film taking a $50,000 bribe guy.’ And y’all are making me look like the upstanding, reasonable adult in the room. That’s crazy.”
These lines referenced Homan’s role in Trump’s first administration. They also alluded to an allegation that he accepted a cash bribe from federal agents, which he has denied.
Davidson’s Homan attempted to summarize the session. “Let’s recap,” Davidson’s Homan said. “What did we learn today?” A federal agent offered a critical assessment of the hiring and training process. “This could be wrong,” one federal agent responded. “But that you hired a bunch of angry, aggressive guys, gave us guns and didn’t train us, so this is maybe what you wanted to happen?”
Davidson’s Homan reacted to this statement. “Oh come on, man,” Davidson’s Homan said. “Don’t start thinking now.”