Bill Maher tells Vance that his 'vote is in play' after socialists' victories
Liberal comedian Bill Maher on Friday said the rise of socialism in the modern-day Democratic Party is increasingly pushing him towards Republicans, during an interview with Vice President JD Vance.
Maher invited Vance on his HBO show, Real Time with Bill Maher, where he complained that major Democrats, including leading socialists, have declined his invitation to appear on the late-night program. Referencing a string of socialist victories in New York, the late night host said this “Democratic socialist, this obsession with Israel, with the Jew hating, they don’t believe in capitalism, no prisons,” concerned him, and told Vance that given the dynamic in his home party, he might be casting a vote for the vice president or Secretary of State Marco Rubio in 2028, should the two men make a bid for the White House.
“If this is where they’re going, my vote is in play,” the liberal comedian said. “It actually always has been. Every year, I don’t make my decision by who has an R or a D, I actually always came to the conclusion that the Democrat was probably better and voted for them.”
Maher’s warning comes after several socialist candidates won primary elections in New York earlier this week, who ran in opposition to establishment Democratic politicians. Darializa Avila Chevalier, an anti-billionaire candidate and self-described “prison abolitionist”, is against deporting anyone from the United States and has declined to directly answer whether she believes Israel should continue to exist as a country. New York State Assembly member Claire Valdez is among other socialists who carried off victories on Tuesday and has embraced a strong anti-Israel platform, among other progressive policies.
Maher said he couldn’t get Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) or New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who both embraced Darializa Avila Chevalier and Valdez, to come on his show, in addition to former Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris.
“Took me eight years to get Obama,” he said, referring to the popular former Democratic president. “I’m just glad you’re talking to me, you know? I mean, I say it every time, the Republicans come here, and they take their beating like a man!”
“It’s the people I vote for, they’re the ones who won’t talk to me,” the comedian complained. “That’s odd, isn’t it?”
“I laughed my ass off backstage,” the vice president said, breaking into a chuckle. “That was a good monologue. Even though you were making fun of me, I kind of liked it.”