No compromises: Bill Maher comes out swinging

The Morning Call:

Bill Maher is not ready for moderation. While his fellow comedians Jon Stewart and Steven Colbert recently held a rally in Washington to "turn it down a notch," Maher came out swinging at the far right without compromise Sunday night at Easton's State Theatre.

Dressed in a black T-shirt and black pants, he alternated facts (which he says are hated by the tea party) and one liners to give his views on U.S. politics. The 54-year old said that in his lifetime, the left has moved to the center and the right has moved to a mental hospital. Responding to those who say, "I want my country back," he said, "I want my country forward!"

He said President Obama could never achieve reconciliation with Republicans, advising him instead to grow a huge Afro and wear a track suit. On televised tours, he could say at the Lincoln bedroom, "This is where I make my babies. Now get outta my crib!"

Maher occasionally glanced at a notes on a music stand, a necessity for his mix of political rant and comedy that continuously changes with the latest news. He gave many statistics to prove America's standing has fallen in many measures. "We are 49th in life expectancy, behind Bosnia, where the biggest cause of death are wolfmen."

Maher name checked Christine O'Donnell, who was a guest some years ago on his show "Politically Incorrect." "She is a sweet girl, but if I had to predict that a guest on my show would become a political candidate, she would have fallen somewhere between Danny Bonaduce and the lady who does the Snapple commercials."

The tea party came in for the most barbs during the show of about an hour and a half. "Why is it everything they want is what Steve Forbes wants? It is a to-do list for a billionaire." He noted the advanced ages of those at a rally, many who were using oxygen; "One match could have wiped out Bill O' Reilly's entire audience." As for their views on evolution, "They think Darwin was the second husband on 'Bewitched'."

Toward the end of the show, Maher took on an even touchier subject for many, religion, which he also took on his feature film, "Religulous. The avowed atheist wondered why God never revealed himself to everyone, only to lone people out in the wilderness who return and call themselves prophets. He also read from Rick Warren's book "The Purpose Driven Life," inserting his own asides and comments.

Using terms like "inbred bigots" and "hillbillies" is not likely to bring any on the right over to his side. But Maher was preaching to the choir (a term he would probably not use), and his 1,550 fans responded as true believers.