UPDATED
Bill Maher has transformed from progressive ally to self-anointed centrist crusader, but his recent commentary reveals more about media branding than political courage.
Maher has made a second career out of bashing the “lunatic far left,” warning that wokeness is dooming Democrats and fueling Trumpism. The latest installment in this trend came when he criticized former Vice President Harris’s book 107 Days. As The Daily Beast recently reported, he slammed late-night hosts like Colbert, Stewart, Oliver, and Kimmel for “parroting whatever MSNBC was saying,” casting himself as the last honest man in political media.
But, Bill Maher is only politically incorrect when it’s politically convenient.
He attributes Democratic failures like Vice President Harris’s 2024 loss to progressive overreach, but that critique feels more like bandwagon politics. Maher had no problem with “the lunatic far-left” under President Obama. In fact, he sometimes criticized Obama for not being progressive enough. He neglects to acknowledge that Obama’s presidency was perhaps the first example of how radical left backlash helped fuel Trumpism, as Trump got elected after Obama.
He currently calls on Democrats to cater to moderates, yet during the 2020 primary he scoffed at the idea of a Biden campaign, only embracing him once Biden became the inevitable nominee.
Maher reinforced that message during a recent appearance on ABC’s This Week, again criticizing Democrats for allowing more radical voices to define the party. Maher openly said his “vote is in play,” and when asked whether he could see himself voting for JD Vance in 2028, he answered yes. That represents a significant shift from Maher’s earlier political identity, including his 2016 pledge to donate $1 million to Elizabeth Warren’s campaign. His comments show that this has become a consistent theme of his political commentary rather than a reaction to one election or one candidate.
Lately, Maher has criticized liberal cities for lenient crime policies and played host to Andrew Cuomo (who blasted the Defund the Police movement). However, here in New York City, the “lunatic far-left” is on the rise, with Zohran Mamdani leading in the polls in the mayoral elections. Maher has been interestingly silent on the New York City mayoral race. Biden, Harris, and Cuomo never ran on “Defund The Police.” Democratic nominee Mamdani did (calling the NYPD “wicked and corrupt.”) Even if Mamdani claims to have shifted, a supermajority of his supporters still back the cause.
It’s easy to bash the far left when it’s losing, and even easier to support old-school centrist Democrats like Cuomo when they win. But if someone like Mamdani actually wins, or even just creates the illusion of momentum? Will Maher keep railing against the “lunatic far-left progressives”? Or will he apply the same standard when the political landscape changes?