“Real Time” host Bill Maher got in a lot of hot water with his fans after he spoke glowingly of President Donald Trump after chowing down at the White House with the commander-in-chief.
And now Maher, a frequent critic of the president, is punching back.
HuffPost reported that Maher thinks he isn’t getting enough credit for speaking “truth to power” during the Trump dinner.
Maher, in fact, said he considers himself a “hero” after the White House meal.
“I should be a hero for going there and doing those things and saying those things to the president. I’m not the villain here,” Maher said on TMZ’s “2 Angry Men” podcast.
“I had the opportunity to go to the White House and talk to the president and not give up my principles,” Maher said. “It seems like nobody noticed that. I didn’t go MAGA.”
“I had the opportunity to talk to Donald Trump and say things to him that maybe he never hears,” Maher went on. “Literally to speak truth to power. I shouldn’t take that opportunity?”
Not that Maher expects that he influenced Trump.
“Do I have great hopes that saying anything to him is going to change anything? No,” Maher said. “But you have to try.”
Maher appalled fans when he said Trump was “gracious” and “measured” during the dinner and showed an ability to laugh at himself.
Maher on “Real Time” said that the president gave him “a very generous amount of time, and a willingness to listen and accept me as a possible friend.”
Longtime fans of Maher were quick to pounce.
One Reddit thread was titled, “I think I’m out,” with fans saying they planned to stop watching his program.
“I didn’t think Bill was this naive,” one longtime fan posted to Reddit.
Trump also gave Maher a personal tour of the White House. Rapper Kid Rock and UFC CEO Dana White were also at the dinner.