Real Time with Bill Maher #350 04/17/15 "More Zombie Lies"

by Catherine Giordano

Zombie Lies: Environmental Edition
 

 

Back on July 11, 2014, Bill Maher did a bit about zombie lies. (See the review, Zombie Lies) On April 17, 2015, episode 350, he updated that bit. Maher named his final New Rules bit, “Zombie Lies; Environmental Division.”

Zombie lies are the lies Republicans tell, the lies that are discredited and disproven, yet they won’t die. Only the zombie lies will be worse than ever because it is presidential campaign season. If you are into drinking games, watch a newscast, or the Republican debates, and chug a drink every time you hear a zombie lie. But only play for 10 minutes –I don’t want anyone passing out.

Maher tore into many of the Republican candidates for President. Not all of them--it’s only a one hour show. For example, Ted Cruz explains away global warming by saying,"In the 1970’s, everyone said cooling was the problem." Maher corrects him saying, “Not everybody, just one Newsweek article. And the article said a FEW scientists believed it."  

[By the way, we should be entering a mini ice age about now because of the earth’s position relative to the sun. The greenhouse gasses have kept the planet warm. Which would be a good thing, except the green house gases are keeping the planet TOO warm.] 

Ted Cruz likes to say that scientific consensus can be wrong, citing the fact that at one time everyone believed that the sun revolved around the earth. Galileo was the dissenter and he was right. Maher blew a gasket. It wasn’t scientific consensus—it was Galileo against the consensus of the church leaders, the ones who believed “Bible myths from cavemen.”  

Maher said the zombie lies are for the Republican donors. Even Republican voters now accept that the earth is over-warming. “The zombie lies are for the Republican donors who make their money killing the planet. … It’s what their fellow prostitutes in the sex industry call  ‘the girlfriend experience.’”

 

Below is a video of the bit, Zombie Lies: Environmental Division.

 

 

 

CLICK HERE

Judith Miller and her Iraq War zombie lies

The interview was with Judith Miller, Pulitzer Prize winner former editor of The New York Times. She is the author of a new book The Story: A Reporter's Journey. The book is supposed to be about how everyone got it wrong When George W. Bush took the country to war. It wasn’t his fault, and it wasn’t her fault for reporting the lies (the zombie lies) in the New York Times as if they were true. It was faulty intelligence. That is her story and she is sticking to it. She insists she was a diligent skeptical reporter; I didn’t believe a word of what she said.  

The intelligence was fabricated and cherry-picked and by now everyone knows it. I’m confident that even Judith Miller knows it.  

 

Presidential Candidates

Maher spoke about the so called Clinton-Bush dynasties. There is a Bush dynasty. Prescott Bush was a senator. His son George H. W. Bush was a president. Then GHW’s son, George W. Bush was president, and now another of his sons, JEB bush is running for President. On the Clinton side—there has been only one Clinton in public office so far, President Bill Clinton. And the Clinton years were good years. Clinton gave us peace and surpluses; the Bush presidencies gave us war and bankruptcy.  
 

Rubio claims to be the young fresh face in the race. Maher remarked that “he looks like the pool boy.” He looks young, but his ideas are old ideas. Panelist Neera Tanden, president of the Center for American Progress and former advisor at the Department of Health and Human Services where she worked on The Affordable Care Act, said “Yu can’t be the candidate of the future if you are against same-sex marriage.”  

Maher said he used to like Rand Paul because he was the only one of the Republican candidates who was not a hawk. Paul is now right on board with the hawks, giving a speech in front of an air craft carrier. Maher said, “It’s like Ross Perot went into a phone booth and Mitt Romney came out.”  

 

Clay Aiken

Clay Aiken

The mid-show guest was Clay Aiken, the American Idol contestant, former congressional candidate (D, NC) and subject of Esquire Networks documentary series, The Runner Up. He has recorded numerous musical albums including Playlist: The Very Best of Clay Aiken. 

Maher berated Aiken for distancing himself from Obama during his run. Many other candidates did the dame, and Maher is critical of all of them. As am I. Stand up for you party and your principles and if you lose, at least you fought the kid fight. It’s just stupid to say, as Aiken did, “I have nothing to do with Obama.” The voters don’t believe you. Further, if they want someone who has nothing to do with Obama, there is a Republican candidate to vote for.  

 

But it is hard to be mad at Clay Aiken. He is such a nice guy.

 

Money in Politics 

Money is having a corrosive effect in politics. Each of the nominees for president in 2016 will spend about a billion dollars.  

CLICK HERE

Panelist Jon Meacham is the executive editor at Random House and Pulitzer Prize winning author. His latest book is Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power, a #1 New York Times bestseller. His next book will be about George H. W. Bush. He said, “Money is taking a physic toll on candidates.“ 
 

Michelle Caruso-Caberra, CNBC’s chief international correspondent and contributor to PBS’s Nightly Business Report, had a novel idea. She said, “We need small government, and then it will take less money to run campaigns.” Huh? Then she said, “Social security should be privatized. Then the public wouldn’t have anything to say about it.” Huh? 

 

Mid-Show Comedy Bit: 4/20

Once upon a time some young stoners in California used to meet every afternoon at 4:20 pm to smoke a little weed. Maher said it was like the English having tea everyday at four. Meacham said, "My people have bourbon every day at five."

 

So now April 20^th (4/20) is the unofficial stoner holiday to celebrate weed.  

Maher did a very funny bit—a parody of “The Night Before Christmas,” only it was The Night Before 4/20.  

“The bowls were all packed and the bakes with great care in the hopes that Willie Nelson would soon be there.“

Later on in the poem. St. Woody arrives and

"We knew by the aroma, he had brought something for my glaucoma.”

Watch the whole bit here.

 

Bill Maher: Zombie Slayer

Soon we will be more inundated than ever before with zombie lies, as more and more Republicans jump into the race for the Republican nomination. It sometimes seems to me the race for who can tell the biggest lie. A good thing we have Zombie Slayer, Bill Maher, with his trusty cross-bow of wit, satire, and truth. 

 

Bill Maher’s Guests, #350,  April 17, 2015

The interview was with Judith Miller, Pulitzer Prize winner former editor of The New York Times. She is the author of a new book The Story: A Reporter's Journey




CLICK HERE

The mid-show guest was Clay Aiken, American Idol contestant, former congressional candidate (D, NC) and subject of Esquire Networks documentary series, The Runner Up.  He has recorded numerous musical albums including Playlist: The Very Best of Clay Aiken.

Panel guests included: 

Jon Meacham: Executive editor at Random House and Pulitzer Prize winning author. His latest book is Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power, a #1 New York Times bestseller.  

Michelle Caruso-Caberra: CNBC’s chief international correspondent and contributor to PBS’s Nightly Business Report 

Neera-Tanden:  President of the Center for American Progress and former advisor at the Department of Health and Human Services where she worked on The Affordable Care Act.