After bringing Saturday Night Live into the national spotlight by calling out the comedy show during last Tuesday’s debate, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton herself appeared in the opening sketch of last night’s episode.

Clinton brought up last week’s sketch - in which debate moderators openly fawned over Sen. Barack Obama - during a Tuesday debate between the candidates in Ohio. Some feel it underscores a real trend in the Democratic race.

Last night’s episode opened with a similar sketch, one recreating the debate. It portrayed NBC’s Brian Williams and Tim Russert asking Clinton (played by Amy Poehler) tough questions while lobbing more softballs at Obama.

Amy Poehler as Hillary Clinton… with the actual Hillary Clinton.

The real Hillary Clinton then appeared with an “editorial response.”

When Poehler asked her how the campaign was going, Clinton responded: “The campaign is going very well. Very, very well… Why, what have you heard?”

Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who dropped out of the GOP race in January, also appeared later on the show’s “Weekend Update” segment.

Giuliani blamed his failed bid not on a flawed Florida strategy or evoking 9/11 with every breath for political gain, but on a 1997 SNL appearance in drag.

Last week, Republican candidate Mike Huckabee appeared on “Weekend Update” and similarly poked fun at his dwindling chances of catching John McCain.

On a November episode, Barack Obama played himself as a guest at a Halloween party thrown by the faux Hillary and Bill Clinton.