Donald Trump launched a 1,300-word social media rant against US television host Bill Maher on Sunday evening, calling him a “TOTAL LOSER” in a new attack on the media.
“Let’s talk about this COMPLETE AND TOTAL LOSER, Bill Maher,” wrote the American president. “He has a low-rated show on HBO, equally low-rated, that used to be, a long time ago, a network of quality and enthusiasm – but all that is gone.”
Trump’s lengthy and detailed message about Maher came after the host interviewed Karoline Leavitt, the former White House press secretary, on his program Real Time with Bill Maher.
Maher asked Leavitt about Trump’s “lame duck” presidency and whether the president would act out of “vengeance” if Republicans lost by a wide margin to Democrats in next week’s midterms.
“I’m afraid that if this election goes as badly as it seems for him and the Republicans, we’re going to have a guy who doesn’t have as much power as he does…and we know he likes revenge,” Maher told Leavitt.
But Leavitt remained steadfast in her support for Trump and expressed confidence that Republicans could still outperform expectations.
Trump called Maher “a coward who is afraid to tell the truth about how our country works,” saying Maher praised him behind the scenes but on television insulted him with jokes.
“And also turn off your Laugh Machine, it’s a joke when they laugh uncontrollably, even when you don’t say anything funny, and I’m going to make sure the Republicans don’t cover you anymore, because they try to talk about you as a transformative man,” Trump wrote.
Trump has previously insulted late-night hosts and comedians on his platform and taken personal offense to those who make his punchline. Earlier this year, Trump called for Jimmy Kimmel’s show to be taken off the air after the ABC late-night host joked about Melania Trump. Last year, the US president also called for the dismissal of Seth Meyers.
But Trump’s lengthy attack on Maher is notable, coming just a week before the US midterm elections, where Republicans are trying to fend off challenges from Democratic opponents.
The US president chose to launch a tirade against Maher as public polls show Americans are increasingly unhappy with Trump’s handling of the US economy, the cost of living and the war with Iran.
But Trump chose to take issue with several specific points Maher made on his show, including the host’s comments about the Justice Department’s efforts to target ballots they say were cast by non-citizens in California, rumors that Trump would turn the White House press briefing room into a swimming pool, and Trump’s support for Republican candidates in the upcoming midterm elections.
Maher, who has been described as a moderate liberal, had dinner with Trump twice during the US president’s second administration. Maher shared his experience with Trump on his HBO show.
Among other insults Trump lobbed at Maher, he accused the host of drinking a lot of alcohol when they dined together, of being a “POTHEAD,” of not being nice, and of speaking to a viewer base that “don’t like to work.”
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