Bill Maher fires back after Donald Trump’s ‘sizzling’ rant
Maher told viewers that he initially didn’t realize how angry the president had become.
“I found this out last week. Oh boy, did I find out!” he said according to Mediaite. “You have to know when he’s joking, and that’s not that easy.”
The comedian argued that it has become increasingly difficult to distinguish Trump’s humor from his policy rhetoric.
“For example, this week he was talking about Melania’s movie, which actually did better than people thought. And he said, you know, she’s going to be a big movie star. And there’s no room in one family for two stars. Jokes. Jokes, okay, that’s a joke! I guess that’s it. Because now…” he joked.
Maher continued, “Look, because now it’s our job to tell you what the jokes are and what things are just part of his sometimes bat agenda, okay? We need to know this. And I didn’t know it.’
According to Maher, he woke up the next morning to what he described as an angry post from Trump.
“Look, I woke up Saturday morning to a blistering social media text from him. It went on and on. Valentine’s Day, by the way,” he said.
Maher claimed that Trump was particularly irritated by a joke about Canada and hockey.
“He was very angry with me because I didn’t understand his joke about how China is going to make Canada give up on hockey. You know, I think we have to work on that for a while,” he added.
Trump’s tirade also returned at their joint dinner, with the president reportedly canceling the meeting altogether.
“So he went up to me and said, you know, the dinner we had was a waste of time,” Maher recalled. “Well, I didn’t think so.”
Maher said Trump called him a “jerk,” mocked his ratings, called him a “lightweight” and accused him of “Trump derangement syndrome.”
‘But I never stopped criticizing him. I never said I would do that,” Maher insisted.
He then made one of the most biting comparisons of the evening.
“And I know how women feel right now. A man treats you to dinner and then expects you to leave. OK? I’m not that man,” he said.
Maher also disputed Trump’s version of how the dinner went.
“And a lot of other things he said that weren’t really true, that I immediately asked for a drink. OK, ‘he immediately wanted vodka,'” Maher said.
He clarified the details: “Okay, it was a margarita. It wasn’t vodka, and it wasn’t immediately. I had a drink before dinner, as people do.’
Maher further rejected Trump’s claim that he appeared intimidated.
“He said: I was nervous and scared, no confidence. Bulls —!”
The host noted that he faced backlash from both sides for his comments on Trump: “It’s so funny, because I got so much criticism from the left for honestly reporting that he was personally very different, very nice and very friendly. And then he says, no, he was scared. I’m like the Democrats with elections. I just can’t win!”
Before wrapping up, Maher promised viewers that he wasn’t done responding yet.
“Okay, we’re off next week. Next week, our show, I think March 6, we’ll be back. I’m going to discuss this at the end. His really long screed. Yeah, and proving that I don’t have Trump derangement syndrome,” he promised.
