Leftist comedian Bill Maher continues to draw backlash from Hollywood progressives, particularly after refusing to conform to what critics expect of him. At the Golden Globes, Maher faced renewed criticism for openly expressing his views and declining to tailor his behavior to industry norms.
Most recently, Maher had the most pointed and logical response to singer Billie Eilish following her viral Grammys remark declaring that no one is illegal on “stolen land.” Maher highlighted the asinine hypocrisy among wealthy celebrities weighing in on political issues that do not directly impact their lives.
Maher effectively mocked Eilish’s comment, referring to her as an idiot and joking that if the logic were followed to its conclusion, everyone would have to give back their land and return to living in teepees — an outcome he made clear was unrealistic. Maher’s comments included:
They did not hear me at the Grammys because Billie Eilish, big controversy this week, she said there’s no illegals on stolen land.”
“And she said ‘it’s hard to know what to say,’ which I would say, then don’t say anything, because you don’t know things.”
“You didn’t go to school, I don’t think, and you don’t know facts.”
“She said keep fighting and protesting and speaking up. I totally agree with that. She said voices matter, people matter.”
“And I would just say so does knowledge.”
“What is the practical next step if you say that there’s no such thing as illegal people on stolen land?”
“No, of course, immediately the people, the tribe here in California asked for her house.”
“Which, I thought was pretty great!”
“But what is the practical next step? This is my problem always with things like this from the left that are always so performative.”
“Okay, even if we agreed with that stolen land — and yes, lots of land is stolen by the way, not just here — what do we do about that?”
“We give it all back and go back to living in teepees?”
“What is the practical next step?”
Observers noted the irony that Eilish herself lives in a multimillion-dollar mansion situated on what could also be described as “stolen land.” Residents of gated communities, Maher suggested, often speak most forcefully about immigration and public safety — themes that were heavily emphasized during this year’s Grammy Awards, which included pointed criticism of ICE.
Townhall reported that Maher appeared at the Golden Globes after receiving a nomination for Best Performance in Stand-Up Comedy on Television. He acknowledged ahead of time that he did not expect to win, explaining that the industry rarely rewards someone who openly “speaks his mind.”