HBO’s Real Time host Bill Maher was a guest on Netflix’s talk show Chelsea and, together with Chelsea Handler, he hit all of the following liberal talking points: Portraying police as power-hungry, racist cowards? Check. Promoting riots? Check. Calling Republican opposition to socialist liberals racist? Check. Demonizing hunting? Check. Toss in a few fat jokes and that’s the pretty much the whole show.
Former Seattle Police Chief Norm Stamper joined Maher and Chelsea to talk about the militarization of police departments. While the nation is still reeling from the murderous attack in Dallas, this guy said often police officers get into the “boys with toys” mentality – if they have military weapons, they will want to use them. He and Maher criticized the use of the robot to bomb and kill the Dallas terrorist.
Maher blamed the cops and pretty much said they’re cowards who should suck it up and let themselves get shot because “danger is part of the job.” He said, “They shoot too many people because they say, ‘Well, we’re scared.’ Well, I’m sorry, but that’s part of the job, to be scared and to be brave.”
In the episode “Bill Maher & Dirty Water Polo Tricks,” Maher declared, “I’m rooting for a peaceful riot during the Republican convention.” Though he thought the George W. Bush presidency was comedy gold, he said of Donald Trump, “This whiny little bitch takes the cake.” I’ll note here that the description of whiny better applies to Barack Obama, but you can make your own assessment.
As Chelsea asked what he thought about Trump involving his adult children in the process of picking a vice president, Maher said, “It is very banana republic to involve your kids, very Saddam Hussein.” After mocking Trump’s two sons ruthlessly over their physical looks and for hunting in Africa, he went on to say that daughter Ivanka has got to be “some kind of ballbuster.”
Warning: Language
Moving on to their father, Maher said of Trump during his birther days against Obama, “I thought he was being a racist asshole.” Chelsea asked Maher his thoughts on who Trump would choose as his running mate. Maher, true to form, said, “I can reveal who it is – an asshole, who else would do it?” (Such a rich vocabulary he has!) He leaned towards New Jersey Governor Chris Christie because “bullies love the fat kid.” Of course we now know Maher was wrong, Trump chose Indiana Governor Mike Pence.
In the next show, called “Charlize Theron & Convention Fever,” Chelsea traveled to Florida to speak with a small group of Puerto Ricans, mostly about Donald Trump. None of the participants had a favorable word for the man. “Trump is a joke.” “He brought us down to a low level.” “He guarantees a Democrat president.” And, “I’m going to make sure that dick doesn’t become president,” from a woman in the group. Classy. No mention about the greatness of Hillary Clinton except from one who said she supports statehood for Puerto Rico and that’s supposedly good. Oh, well, as long as they aren't a state their votes don't matter in the electoral college.
Chelsea then introduced a former Egyptian heart surgeon, Bassem Youssef, to the show. He fled Islamic prosecution during the Arab Spring uprising – though he calls it the Arab Zombie Apocalypse – because he was doing videos from his home to counter the false narrative put forward by Egyptian media. “Kind of like Fox News,” he said. Oh, he's a clever one! I was not surprised to hear him proclaim he learned about America from Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert. As a matter of fact, he bragged that Stewart traveled to Egypt to be a part of his video show.
Youssef spoke of attending a Trump rally and the echo chamber he found there. Funny, he didn’t offer the same criticism of a Bernie or Hillary rally. Or the Muslim Brotherhood, for that matter. Finally, when Chelsea asked what he thought about Obama’s election in 2008, he said Egyptians were happy – “Like many Americans, we believed he was a Muslim, so we were happy.”
Frankly, the best part of this show is Chelsea’s dog, Chunk, who walks around while guests are talking. He's a far more interesting and intelligent creature than Chelsea.
