We ran that video last week, and found it was linked to by an enormous number of rightwing websites, using the opportunity to suggest that Maher now agreed with them about Obama.
This week (video above-right) Maher clarified the record. He first noted: “Last week in this space, I criticized President Obama for not fighting corporate influence enough, and it made some Liberals very angry. My phone rang off the hook.” But he then removed any doubt about whether he was actually “in league” with those on the Right.
“As far as you folks on the Right that think that we’re somehow in league — we’re not in league! I was criticizing Obama for not being hard enough on the corporate douche bags you live to defend. I don’t wanna be on your team. Pick another kid.”
“So I stand by my words,” Maher said, before launching into a no-holds barred attack on the Democrats and Obama for their failings, yet again. “There is another side to the story. And that is, that every time Obama tries to take on a Progressive cause, there’s a major political party standing in his way — the Democrats.”
“We don’t have a Left and a Right party in this country anymore. We have a center-Right party and a crazy party. And over the last thirty-odd years, Democrats have moved to the Right, and the Right has moved into a mental hospital.”
He went on to criticize Democrats for becoming the party of “hedge fund managers, credit card companies, banks, defense contractors, big agriculture and the pharmaceutical lobby [who] sit across the aisle from a small group of religious lunatics, flat-earthers, and Civil War re-enacters…who mostly communicate by AM radio and call themselves the Republicans.”
The major concluding thesis in his scathing criticism: “Bottom line, Democrats are the new Republicans”
Diane Sweet of RAW STORY observed in her coverage: “If Maher had finished by declaring his candidacy for public office, by the sound of the applause in response to his monologue, he would have left the studio Friday evening with an audience full of supporters.”
If you’re unable to watch the video (above right), a text-transcript of the key quotes from this week’s must-see monologue follow below. As with last week’s, we find ourselves hard-pressed to disagree with a word of it…
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As far as you folks on the Right that think that we’re somehow in league — we’re not in league! I was criticizing Obama for not being hard enough on the corporate douche bags you live to defend. I don’t wanna be on your team. Pick another kid.
So I stand by my words. But there is another side to the story. And that is, that every time Obama tries to take on a Progressive cause, there’s a major political party standing in his way — the Democrats.
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We don’t need a third party, we need a first party. You go to the polls and your choices are the guy who voted for the first Wall Street bailout, or the guy who voted for the next ten.
We don’t have a Left and a Right party in this country anymore. We have a center-Right party and a crazy party. And over the last thirty-odd years, Democrats have moved to the Right, and the Right has moved into a mental hospital.
So what we have is one perfectly good party for hedge fund managers, credit card companies, banks, defense contractors, big agriculture and the pharmaceutical lobby — that’s the Democrats.
And they sit across the aisle from a small group of religious lunatics, flat-earthers, and Civil War re-enacters…who mostly communicate by AM radio and call themselves the Republicans. And who actually worry that Obama is a Socialist. Socialist? He’s not even a Liberal. I know he’s not, because he’s on TV. And while I see Democrats on television, I don’t see actual Liberals. And if occassionally you do get to hear Ralph Nader or Noam Chomsky or Dennis Kucinich, they’re treated like buffoons.
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Shouldn’t there be one party that unambiguously supports cutting the military party? A party that is straight up in favor of gun control, gay marriage, higher taxes on the right, universal healthcare, legalizing pot and steep direct taxing of polluters?
These aren’t radical ideas. A majority of Americans are either already for them, or would be if they were properly argued and defended. And what we need is an actual Progressive party to represent the millions of Americans who aren’t being served by the Democrats. Because, bottom line, Democrats are the new Republicans.
bill maher for president 2012 least i no he wont sell me out like that motherfucker obama did
Good post, thanks for bring to my attention. I don’t follow maher – don’t agree with him on some things, but do respect he way to put issues in clear terms.
He is spot-on here – the dem party is actually the problem now. They have a historic opportunity to create the change obama promised (wooing liberal and progressive voters) and now they are all no shows (including obama).
They have a million excuses – but I understand that – it’s politics as usual. After all, clinton got away with implementing some wingnut ideas that ronald reagan would never have dared trying!
What is most disappointing is the way certain political blogs (not your’s brad, respect your posts) have jumped on the bandwagon, providing cover, excuses and outright lies to justify no-change/no-action. In fact, most of the superblogs will tell you they are not about change at all – they will tell you “it’s not a netroots thing (WTF?!?!?!?!)
One that I used to get news from has degenerated into 24/7 coverage of lying liars and backwashes – posting all day what the latest thing some marginalized wingnut has said – like it is news.
Glad that mayers sees that, at this point, it is not the neocons, repugs, cheney, or chimpy that are holding us back.
It is obama and the dems and they need to be called out on it and held accountable.
Maher is 100% correct in his criticism of the Dems. I’m sitting here this morning watching the Dems on the Sunday morning ‘news’ shows talk about why the time isn’t right for universal coverage and yet 75% of the citizens- the ‘little people’ want it. The Repubs don’t even have to argue against it because the Dems are doing that job for them.
I dunno, Brad…it does seem that Maher makes some pretty good points. Yes, Obama’s only been in office five months, he’s only one guy, and he’s got to compromise…all true. And he’s done quite a bit of good already, seems to me…
But he does seem to be hedging, or even outright changing his tune? on gay rights, gov’t secrecy, investigating bushco crimes, a bunch of issues.
I know he’s not Superman (despite JibJab), but I agree with Maher that I’d like to see him push a bit more!!
My two cents.
the democratic party is done we need a progessive party i am still waiting for the other blogs out there to to start telling the truth about obama and how fake he is specially the huffington post run by ariana huffington the former republican she is nothing but a trojan horse i think never trusted her ass
Don’t wait too long – if you read the “other” blogs you will actually find progressives are not welcome.
And the notion that “superblogs” could be a meaningful part of organizing action?
They will be the first to tell you it is not what they are for – looks like it is really just about selling our eyeballs to online advertisers.
you are right joe those soo called superblogs use censor ship why the fuck do there need us for if there going to censor everything we right i tell u why there need eyeballs for the advertisers like you said joe
i dont go on there sites any more i go on rawstory and here there dont censor at all
So is Maher actually going to go out and get dirty and start a new party? I don’t think so. I like the guy, and I realize he’s a comedian, but he’s short on action. We do need a new, progressive third party. The Greens were done after Nader in 2000.
Why is Maher so popular with white male ‘progressives’?
Actually what I mean to ask is why aren’t commentators who offer the same analysis as Maher but years prior so unpopular with white male progressives?
i am a blk male progressive and i like bill maher