Bill Maher Slams Obama’s Remarks on Israel-Hamas War: ‘Enough with the Moral Equivalencies’

Master of ceremonies Bill Maher speaks onstage during the 6th Annual Sean Penn & Frien
Michael Kovac/Getty Images for J/P Haitian Relief Organization, Scott Olson/Getty Images
Joshua Klein

Despite his longtime support for former President Barack Obama, HBO’s Bill Maher admitted to feeling disappointment while “struggling” with the Democrat ex-president’s “moral equivalency” between the Jewish state and the U.S.-designated terrorist group Hamas.

On Friday’s broadcast of HBO’s Real Time, host and political commentator Bill Maher expressed his dismay over Obama’s recent remarks regarding the current conflict between Israel and Hamas. 

“I must say I am struggling with people’s moral equivalencies, still,” Maher said during a panel discussion. 

“I mean, Barack Obama, who has rarely disappointed me, did so this week,” he continued. “His statement — I mean, it’s not a horrible statement — but he said, ‘If you want to solve the problem, then you have to take in the whole truth and then you have to admit nobody’s hands are clean.’”

Last week, Obama told his former staffers on Pod Save America that “all of us are complicit to some degree” in the violence in Gaza, as he appeared to describe a moral equivalence between Hamas murdering Israelis and the Israeli “occupation” of Gaza.

Some referred to his remarks as a version of “very fine people on both sides.”

Admitting that the 44th president’s comments were “literally” true, Maher offered two examples of why they were nonetheless unhelpful “at this moment.”

“First of all, the attack was only a month ago. A more savage attack than we’ve ever seen in reverse,” he said. “There’s a big difference between collateral damage and what Hamas did.”

In addition, the liberal comedian contrasted Israel’s humane gestures with Hamas’ brutal conduct.

“Secondly, the Israelis are now allowing a four-hour pause for people to get out,” he said. “So people say ‘oh, wow, big of them.’ Ok, but it is a war that the other side started!”

“It’s so interesting. When they fire at Israel, it’s a war. When Israel fires back, it’s a war crime,” he added. “Little crazy.”

WATCH — Jake Sullivan: 9 Americans Still Missing After Hamas Terror Attack:

He contrasted Hamas’ practices with Israel’s attempts to minimize casualties by pausing military actions to allow civilians to evacuate, questioning whether or not the terror group would undertake similar humanitarian actions.

“Also, would Hamas do that? Would they give four-hour pauses?” he asked. “No, no pausing.” 

Maher then highlighted the response of the Israeli government to controversial statements made by its own officials, referencing an instance where a minister who mentioned using a nuclear weapon against Gaza was removed from the Cabinet. 

In contrast, he argued, such accountability is unlikely to be seen from Hamas.

“And then Israel’s heritage minister was asked in an interview about using a nuke on Gaza. And he said ‘that’s one of the possibilities.’ He was fired, not allowed in the Cabinet meeting anymore, disavowed by the Prime Minister,” he said. 

“Would that happen in reverse? So enough with the moral equivalencies, please,” he added.

WATCH — Netanyahu: Hamas Taking Babies Hostage Is “Savagery of the Highest Order”:

He also claimed media coverage of the Israel-Hamas war “couldn’t be more pro-Hamas than it is now.”

Despite Obama’s remarks about Israeli “occupation,” Gaza has not been “occupied” by Israel since 2005, when Israel withdrew all of its soldiers and civilians in a “disengagement” that aimed to reduce violence in the region. 

In response, Hamas launched thousands of rockets at Israel and started several wars.

Though last month, in the wake of the October 7 massacre which saw Hamas perpetrate the worst terrorist attack in Israel’s history, Obama said that Israel must “dismantle” Hamas; he has since spent the last several weeks backtracking in the face of anti-Israel and antisemitic activism emanating from the “progressive” left.

Responding to Obama’s comments, the Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC) issued a blistering response, accusing the former president of being “complicit” in terror and war.

In addition, Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) head Morton Klein called Obama a “monstrous and dangerous Jew-hater and Israel-hater who must be condemned, delegitimized, and removed from polite society.”

WATCH — Maher: Media “Couldn’t Be More Pro-Hamas than It Is Now”:

The October 7 attack saw Hamas terrorists gun down hundreds of young participants at an outdoor music festival while others hunted Jewish men, women, and children in local towns, who were then subjected to torture, rape, execution, immolation, and kidnapping.

The onslaught resulted in more than 1,200 dead inside the Jewish state, over 5,300 more wounded, and at least 241 hostages of all ages taken.

The vast majority of the victims are civilians and include dozens of American citizens.

Last month, Maher argued that anti-Israel and pro-Hamas sentiment is a majority view on elite college campuses, describing them as “the mouth of the river from which most of this nonsense flows.” 

“And they’re very influential and those are the people who graduate and become the assholes in society,” he said.

Joshua Klein is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at jklein@breitbart.com. Follow him on Twitter @JoshuaKlein.

COMMENTS

Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.