Bill Maher didn’t hold back on his HBO show Real Time this week, unleashing some scathing criticism aimed squarely at the political Left. The target of his ire? The attacks on actress Cheryl Hines, wife of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who’s been catching flak ever since her husband endorsed Donald Trump for president. And according to Maher, the Left’s reaction has been nothing short of ugly.
Maher opened by noting how Hines, beloved for her role in Curb Your Enthusiasm and widely admired by colleagues, was suddenly public enemy number one in certain circles, all because she didn’t publicly condemn her husband’s decision.
“His wife is Cheryl Hines, who Larry David was quoted as describing as ‘the best person I ever met, the one person in Hollywood who doesn’t have a single enemy,’” Maher pointed out. Well, that changed quickly. The moment Kennedy threw his support behind Trump, the social media mobs descended, demanding Hines denounce her husband despite her having made it clear she didn’t agree with him.
But that didn’t satisfy the Twitter warriors. Instead of allowing her the grace to stay out of her husband’s political choices, they harassed her relentlessly. He didn’t mince words, expressing how this kind of behavior—going after the spouse—crosses a line. Even the mafia, Maher quipped, wouldn’t stoop to that level.
This is where Maher’s larger point really hit home: the hypocrisy of certain liberals who claim to stand against bullying but have no issue engaging in it when it serves their agenda. As Maher put it, “You want to know why I have a bug up my a** about the Left more than I used to?” he asked. “It’s s*** like this. There’s an ugliness they never used to have. The Liberals I grew up respecting, none of them are like this. Going after the wife? Even the mafia doesn’t do that.”
What really grinds Maher’s gears is the failure to understand a basic human dilemma—marriage often means standing by your partner, even when you don’t agree with them. He summed it up with his trademark snark: “In practice, this guy can’t even understand one of the most basic dilemmas common to all humans, that when you’re married, sometimes you have to swallow some s***.”
“There’s a lot of people these days who I call liberals in theory,” he continued. “In theory, they hate bullying, terrible. In practice, their attitude is, it’s not bullying when I stick your head in the toilet. In theory, liberals are compassionate. In practice, this guy can’t even understand one of the most basic dilemmas common to all humans, that when you’re married, sometimes you have to swallow some s***.”
Bill Maher rips @BradleyWhitford for going after RFK Jr’s wife, Cheryl Hines.
“The liberals I grew up respecting—none of them are like this. Going after the wife. Even the mafia doesn’t do that.”pic.twitter.com/IeYfDXghM1
— Cameron Cawthorne (@Cam_Cawthorne) September 7, 2024
In Maher’s view, the Left’s increasing rigidity and penchant for mob-like behavior is becoming a real problem, one that’s distancing itself from the more tolerant, open-minded liberalism of the past. He may be a liberal, but Maher isn’t afraid to call out the ugliness he sees brewing on his own side. And judging by the reaction to his comments, a lot of people are starting to feel the same way.
