Bill Maher didn’t mince words about President Donald Trump’s recent online controversy, slamming the former reality star-turned-president for sharing a potentially racist AI-generated video depicting former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama as monkeys.
In the Friday, February 6th episode, Real Time with Bill Maherthe 70-year-old host brought up the incident after President Trump, 79, briefly posted an offensive clip on Truth Social that he later deleted.
In his opening monologue, Maher addressed the timing of the post, noting that it took place during Black History Month. He joked that the Trump administration seemed to be calling for “a moment of indifference” to mark the occasion.
“No, they did worse,” Maher continued. “Trump did Roseanne” [Barr]. Did you see this? He then shared a video in which he superimposed black people on monkeys, and those people were the Obamas. I don’t want to show it because I don’t want to give it oxygen. ”
Maher also took issue with the explanation provided by the administration after the backlash.
“But I think the regime’s defense was pretty lax,” he said. “They said he didn’t mean to press ‘share.’ He meant to press ‘like.’
The late night host then turned his attention to Presidential Press Secretary Caroline Leavitt, describing her as a “very loyal press secretary” before delving into the legitimacy of her post.
“She said the president was just reposting a meme that made him, the king of the jungle, a character from ‘The Lion King’ to Democrats,” Maher said. “Just like the world leaders are doing.”
Maher disagreed, outlining what he called two major flaws in the explanation.
“One is, there are no monkeys in ‘The Lion King,'” he said. “And two, is it OK if it’s a cartoon character? Is that the rule now? Is it OK to do whatever you want in a cartoon? And is it OK if someone makes a cartoon where Elmer Fudd shoots Charlie Kirk? You damn hypocrite.”
Marr also delved into concerns about the election in a separate sit-down with former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie. You can see the pattern above. The two quarreled over Trump’s control over the Republican Party, with Mr. Christie warning of a growing push by some Republicans to control how elections are run, including who votes, and Mr. Maher clearly unconvinced that this was all “no big deal.”
Real Time with Bill Maher It airs Fridays at 10/9c on HBO.
