Trump articulates a nuanced position about Bill Maher.

"Bill Maher’s ratings are so low that it is hard to believe his show can continue. In many ways it’s SAD because, in actuality, I like him. Republicans should stop using him as a sounding board, however. It makes them look sooo weak and foolish!"

Link to Truth Social.

I think he's reacting to the Republican enthusiasm for this recent Maher outburst:

“During the Obama administration they tapped the AP bureau’s phones and the phones of AP bureau reporters. They tapped their phones!

Said Atlantic writer James Kirchick on Bill Maher's show last night.

Maher chimed in: "Josh Earnest, he was in the Obama administration. He admitted it. He said: 'The White House has demonstrated our willingness to exclude Fox News from news making interviews.... He said: 'We're going to treat them like we treat an opponent.' This is exactly what I say about this country. Everybody’s like this is the worst thing in the world except when we do it. And then it’s always perfectly okay."

New York Times reporter Jonathan Swan just got a stunning reality check from both Bill Maher and author James Kirchick.

Swan was spiraling over President Trump barring CNN and MS NOW from the White House, until Kirchick reminded him of some of the Obama-era media scandals.… pic.twitter.com/GopA8f61qD

— Overton (@overton_news) September 26, 2026

"I am a virgin. I grew up with no friends. I didn't have anyone growing up besides my two girlfriends that I'm still very close with today...."

"And I didn't like like I didn't do extracurricular activities. Like I didn't go out. I didn't have fun. Like I was just school home school home. So like I never had a relationship with anyone. And then I started working. I was serving for about four years at a mom and pop restaurant. I was a waitress.... And then now I'm here and I'm just waiting for the right person. But now everyone knows me and it's like weird. So like I'm trying to date but it's going to be a little weird now. It's hard. It's hard now. So I'm just waiting for the right person. Worth it. You know I'm waiting. Worth 100 million...."

Said Sophie Rain, the 21-year-old biggest moneymaker on "Only Fans," talking to the 70-year-old Bill Maher for nearly 2 hours. Creepy? Or is this helpful insight into a business you ought to understand? She's made $100 million. And yet: lonely! 

But you know the answer when people are so remote and loveless. Animals! She's all:

I love animals. That's what I want to do is I just want to live on a farm. That's that's the goal for me is to own a lot of land and just rescue animals. That's all I want to do....

Maher is all Me too. I love animals too. I'd just love to live on a farm too.

Animals are easy. People are hard. But what do you want from people? If you have 2 very close girlfriends, why would you say I grew up with no friends? 2 is so much more than zero. 2 very close friends seems like more than any number of remote friends. Or do you love remote friends... in social media?

IN THE COMMENTS: Leland writes: "Successful farms don't 'rescue' animals. They raise them, grow them, and then sell them..."

That's true for the restricted meaning of "farm," but there is an extended version of "farm" — watch and see who uses it — that's just a home in the heart of the country.

I want a horse/I want a sheep/I wanna get me a good night's sleep...

"Every time we find out something new about GLP-1, it's a positive.... They're now saying that it reduces the likelihood of stage one cancer going to metastatic cancer..."

"... by 50%. Every time we keep waiting for another shoe to drop, we find out, 'Oh, it's actually a good thing.' Everyone at this table is going to be on a GLP-1 within 24 months....  I think when you look at the studies around the upside versus the downside here, it's the most transformative technology in the world."

Says Scott Galloway, ticking off Bill Maher:

Bill Maher shuts down Scott Galloway on the spot after he says “everyone should be” on a GLP-1 “within 24 months.”

GALLOWAY: “Every time we find out something new about GLP-1, it's a positive. They're now saying that it reduces the likelihood of stage one cancer going to… pic.twitter.com/2KUMXrkciF

— The Vigilant Fox 🦊 (@VigilantFox) August 1, 2026

AND: Speaking of Scott Galloway...

Scott Galloway is upset about being 'doxed' after he supported Mamdani's pied-à-terre tax:

"He's taken a legitimate source of tax revenue, and he's turning it into a wanted poster."

"What is the upside here? Why is he doing this?"

Incredible. pic.twitter.com/9Yrb9lw4An

— Western Lensman (@WesternLensman) August 1, 2026

"I enjoyed spending time with Maher. At the same time, I found him prickly, self-satisfied and mostly unwilling to afford good faith to his critics."

Writes Benoit Denizet-Lewis, in "Bill Maher Feuded With Trump. Did He Get the Last Laugh? How the late-night host won comedy’s biggest prize — despite the White House’s objections" (NYT).

I'll make that a gift link. It's long and hard to find good excerpts, even though many celebrities are quoted. E.g., Dave Chappelle: "I’m so [expletive] tired of his little smug, cracker-ass commentary."

Wow, that's the first gift link I've used this month. The NYT gives 10 per month, and I try to conserve them so I don't run out. Today is the 21st, and I'd conserved them all. Maybe that's some measure of the slowness of this news month, but probably it's me and the way I've set a high threshold for certain continuing subjects.

JD Vance went on Bill Maher's show, and here's a segment of what was, I think, an excellent interview.

I've watched the whole thing (on HBO), and this isn't the segment I'd choose, but what am I going to do? The show selects the clips to share. Watch this though. JD gets a big laugh. 

Bill Maher lay in wait for Spencer Pratt, then suddenly sprang the trap: "Your wife... look I hate to put it this way, but what I remember about this story was huge tits...."

"What is the state of the tits? They're not what you would call huge but they were at one point. At one time they were okay. So what happened there?"

Yes, that's what Maher said to the man's face, 37 minutes into the interview, after some drinking.

I think Maher wanted to destroy Pratt and had that planned. Either Pratt loses his temper and struggles to respond or he displays a Dukakis-like coldness or Franken-like jocularity that would turn women against him.

But no:

Maher: "But so then she had breast reduction?"

Pratt: "Yes, she did.... So I don't think you respectfully would notice anything."

Maher: "I respectfully wouldn't comment...."

Pratt: "Well, you brought it up."

Touché. Maher blabbers — "Well, I just... I'm telling you..." — then jumps to his backup attack: "My history of you is like 2007 douchebag and then years of nothing?"

Anyway, I think Maher came in wanting to reduce Pratt to the nothing he believed he was — a washed up reality show star who's pissed that his own house burned down — but Pratt prevailed and I think by the end Maher either felt supportive or wanted to manufacture some last-minute evidence that he had backed the winner. 

Andy Dick and Bill Maher explain Biden to each other.

I like Dick's set up — "I don't know politics" — and then he does some nice physical comedy.

ADDED: This video has strong Man-in-Shorts content. I think the shorts work well for Dick. He's an odd little man, so shorts are fitting for him. He's not trying to convey the impression that he's A Man.

"I just don't get it. I mean, everybody says, if we're on the moon, we can get to Mars. I don't want to go there either."

"There's nothing out there — except other rocks. Let's fix the shitshow here on Earth."

Said Bill Maher in the monologue of last Friday's episode of "Real Time."

Later in the show, breaking up 2 panelists who were brawling with each other about the democracy in Hungary, Maher butted in to say, "How about that moon?"

A panelist smiled and said, "We can agree on the moon."

Maher: "Well, I don't know if we can agree on the moon. I like — who doesn't like? — the moon. To look at it. From here.

Senator Elissa Slotkin, last night on Bill Maher's show, said that what people want is "more alpha energy."

Elissa Slotkin: You're not going to get me to defend democratic messaging. We can have a whole autopsy about that.

Whether you're a Democrat or Republican, the American people want something different out of their government. Can we have a little bit more alpha energy? pic.twitter.com/h8li6EAbmq

— Blue Georgia (@BlueGeorgia) March 28, 2026

"You're not going to get me to defend Democratic messaging. That's not going to be ever something that I'm going to defend. That's part of the problem and why we lost the last election. We can have a whole autopsy about that. I think, for me, what is important, going forward, whether you're a Democrat or Republican, is like: the American people, they're telling us something, they want something different out of their government. They want, they want some alpha energy from their leaders. And they certainly — whether you agree with him or not — are getting that from some of the Republicans. And my plea to my own party is, like, can we have a little bit more alpha energy? Punch and believe in what we believe in. Show people that we give a shit, and be simple about addressing the needs that they care about the most. And that has been a struggle to be a part of that change."

That came at the end of her interview with Maher and felt prepared and tacked on. There was no time left to explore the term "alpha energy," which just felt ridiculous. Was she saying Democrats need to talk and act more like Trump because they need to get elected and the voters are pretty damned stupid and self-interested?

I see Elissa Slotkin was saying "alpha energy" last summer. There's this interview, in the NYT, from July: "Elissa Slotkin Wants Democrats to Reclaim Their 'Alpha Energy'/In a wide-ranging interview, the junior senator from Michigan took stock of her party’s deep-seated woes, warning Democrats not to be 'so damn scared.'" 

You often talk about the need for Democrats to bring back “alpha energy,” along the lines of Michigan sports coaches. What is something Democrats do that is the opposite of alpha energy?

In the Midwest, alpha energy is about emotion. Whether you’re a coach and you know what your team has put into the game, or you’re frustrated that they didn’t give it their all, you’re not speaking from wonky details. You’re speaking about your gut and your emotion. I think Democrats have lost that.

We respond to people’s pain with a long list of wonky policies.

Alpha energy is synonymous with being bold. Call the tough play, take a risk, be bold. And don’t be so damn scared of your own shadow.

Yeah, my first guess was right: She's saying Democrats need to talk and act more like Trump because they need to get elected. 

Did she answer the question "What is something Democrats do that is the opposite of alpha energy?" Only vaguely. They're "speaking from wonky details" and not "speaking about your gut and your emotion." Her statement of the problem is, ironically, lacking in the quality she's saying they need. 

And what is that quality again? And frankly, I think the idea is based on gender stereotypes but mixes up the male and the female up so we're served an unwholesome stew.

"Adam Schiff falls right into Bill Maher’s trap..."

Adam Schiff falls right into Bill Maher’s trap as he criticizes a statement he thought was from Trump but was actually from Obama.

MAHER: “This statement from the administration: ‘The president had the constitutional authority to direct the use of military force because he could… pic.twitter.com/5jg3wpdAQZ

— Vigilant Fox 🦊 (@VigilantFox) March 7, 2026

And earlier in last night's show:

Bill Maher apologizes to his liberal audience as he delivers this take on the “Iran war”:

“This week, war. Did you hear about that thing?”

“We bombed Iran, and it’s going on now. If you expected me to say I hate it, I don’t. Sorry.”

“Sorry. And you cannot name one horrible… pic.twitter.com/rHnGhMpK2g

— Vigilant Fox 🦊 (@VigilantFox) March 7, 2026

Trump sought to influence Bill Maher and he's now going to complain that he didn't get as much favorable press/comedy as he thinks — or pretends to think — he deserves.

"Sometimes in life you waste time! T.V. Host Bill Maher asked to have dinner with me through one of his friends, also a friend of mine, and I agreed," said Trump (at Truth Social).

He came into the famed Oval Office much different than I thought he would be. He was extremely nervous, had ZERO confidence in himself and, to soothe his nerves, immediately, within seconds, asked for a "Vodka Tonic." He said to me, "I’ve never felt like this before, I’m actually scared." In one respect, it was somewhat endearing!"

Trump seems to enjoy diminishing Maher, but I suspect Maher adopted this "little me" pose to disarm Trump. Obviously, Maher was bullshitting. There's no one who has never been scared. It's a joke. He's a comedian. And so is Trump.

Trump continues:

"Get out, drink more, and make a series of bad decisions that might pay off."

Earlier in that "Real Time" interview, not on that clip, Scott Galloway said, "We've unwittingly built an economy dependent on our ability to evolve a new species of asocial, asexual men. And what you have is Big Tech is trying to sequester people — especially young people, especially young men — from the most important thing in their life and that is relationships."

AND: Here's the "Overtime" part. Galloway brings out beers for the boys:

This topic reminds me of some thing I've quoted before — from Paul Johnson's "Intellectuals" — about the playwright Henrik Ibsen:

Cheryl Hines does a fabulous job of establishing rapport with Bill Maher right at the beginning of this Club Random podcast.

I'm listening to the whole thing, but only 26 minutes in.

She's fascinatingly skillful at personal interaction... and he appreciates it. He raises the dumb subject of wearing orange — because it's "right before Halloween" — and somehow she's got him talking about women in "blood red" lingerie and how he doesn't want to be touching a woman wearing leather in the middle of the night....

They talk about Bobby and Trump too. Watch it for yourself.

"America is being sued for attempted karma."

"The blizzard struck on Friday evening, coinciding with China’s eight-day National Day holiday, a peak season for hiking and tourism in the area."

"Trekkers had flocked to the Karma Valley, a high-altitude trail at over 4,900 metres (16,000 feet) that leads to the Kangshung Face, Everest’s eastern approach, making rescue efforts particularly challenging."

From "Blizzard traps nearly 1,000 hikers on slopes of Mount Everest/Rescue effort under way for trekkers stranded on mountain following sudden snowstorm" (The Telegraph).

I read this headline out loud to Meade whose response exemplified what human minds can do that A.I. will never do. He said that Hillary Clinton should get herself in shape and climb Mount Everest. I knew where that came from and said we need to write a political satire in which Hillary Clinton, returning to her "Politics of Meaning" roots, gets in touch with the spirit of Sir Edmund Hillary, her (supposed) namesake, and trains to climb Mount Everest.

Normally, I would give this post my "unwritten books" tag and move on, ever onward and upward, but I yielded to the temptation to prompt Grok to outline the book.

"I've been a little bit divisive in the sense that I've been hitting people pretty hard — a little bit, yeah."

Said Donald Trump, on December 17, 2015 — with Jimmy Kimmel, in happier times:

And here's Bill Maher, last night, commenting on the hard hit against Jimmy Kimmel:

Bill Maher has another awkward conversation with an over-90 celebrity he admired when he was a kid. And he's 71.

Last week it was Barbara Eden. This week it's Woody Allen.

 

MAHER: You say... in your unconvincing defense of how you're not an intellectual...  that you never read "Great Expectations," you never read "Ulysses," you never read "1984," "Catch 22, "Don Quixote"....

WOODY: That's right. I've never read any of the ones you've just mentioned.

MAHER: I've read 'em all. You want to get the skinny on them. You want to, you want to get...

WOODY: Yeah, you could condense 'em? 

MAHER: Yeah, well... 

WOODY: I hadn't the patience to read any of them. I was never a reader. I never enjoyed reading as a kid.

"When did uh everyone catch on you were so hot?... Come on... I mean, you must have been like such a smoke show in high school...."

Said Bill Maher, interviewing the 94-year-old Barbara Eden:

Eden is perfectly with it and self-possessed and maintains her dignity as Bill — like probably thousands of men who've had a chance to meet her over the years — seems hell bent on letting her know she was the photograph — or one of the photographs — to which he masturbated when he was a boy. 

"It might sound like snake oil to you, but remember, Bobby Kennedy actually cooks with snake oil."