Bill Maher Defends Chris Matthews Because Old White Misogynists Have to Stick Together

(Nicholas Hunt/Getty Images)

As sure as the Sun rises in the east, as sure as there are stars in the sky, Bill Maher will always have an hour on HBO every week to air his grievances. This week, Maher delivered a preachy defense of his friend and colleague Chris Matthews, who abruptly retired earlier this week in the wake of several scandals.

Matthews’ most recent gaffes included comparing the rise of Bernie Sanders to Hitler invading France and confusing South Carolina Senate candidate Jaime Harrison with South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, both of whom are African American.

In addition, Matthews has been accused of decades of sexual harassment, which is most evident in his grilling and talking over of female candidates and guests. If you’ve ever seen Matthews interview a woman, you know exactly what I’m talking about.

But Maher was quick to defend his buddy, chalking up Matthews’ departure to overly sensitive snowflakes and political correctness. Maher said in his opening monologue, “MSNBC used to run this thing: this is who we are. Well, I didn’t like who you were this week, and I don’t think a lot of people who work there liked this ether, and I think this ‘cancel culture’ is a cancer on progressivism … Liberals always have to fight a two-front war. Republicans only have to fight the Democrats; Democrats have to fight the Republicans, and each other.”

Maher continued by calling out journalist Laura Bassett, who accused Matthews of behaving inappropriately with her when she was a guest on his show, an experience she recounted in a GQ article.

Maher said Matthews may have “said some things that are kind of creepy to women,” and followed that statement by proclaiming, “You know, I just, guys are married for a million years, they want to flirt for two seconds … Thank you, Rosa Parks. I mean, Jesus fucking Christ! I guess my question is: Do you wonder how Democrats lose?”

Ah yes, the downfall of the Democratic party is surely this: women who don’t want men to flirt with them and objectify them in a professional setting! Ugh, why can’t these ladies just be cool and take some casual harassment for the team so that decrepit old men can feel good about their sagging boners? What a bunch of witches!

The ultimate irony is Maher belittling marginalized people for demanding better from the party. Because it’s “the party” getting attacked from all sides, not women or people of color or Muslims. Cool cool cool. Maher must have known that his comments would lead to a torrent of online abuse for Bassett, but he simply didn’t care. It’s interesting how Maher is more than willing to attack his fellow liberals, yet allows plenty of airtime for folks like Steve Bannon and Milo Yiannopoulos.

Many journalists on social media came out to criticize Maher and his ignorant comments:

(via The Daily Beast)

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Chelsea Steiner

Chelsea was born and raised in New Orleans, which explains her affinity for cheesy grits and Britney Spears. An pop culture journalist since 2012, her work has appeared on Autostraddle, AfterEllen, and more. Her beats include queer popular culture, film, television, republican clownery, and the unwavering belief that 'The Long Kiss Goodnight' is the greatest movie ever made. She currently resides in sunny Los Angeles, with her husband, 2 sons, and one poorly behaved rescue dog. She is a former roller derby girl and a black belt in Judo, so she is not to be trifled with. She loves the word “Jewess” and wishes more people used it to describe her.

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