Maher slams Los Angeles wildfires response and ‘wokeness’

Comedian Bill Maher slammed the government’s response to the Los Angeles fires and, in part, blamed “wokeness,” for the natural disaster in the region, saying the government’s role is to protect its residents from “crime, violence, theft, fire.”

“Now is wokeness the main reason for the fires? Of course not," he said during his Friday night monologue on "Real Time with Bill Maher."

"But it's also not wrong to associate some of the unforced errors our government made with the things normies see as hallmarks of uber-progressive politics, questionable budget priorities, high taxes that get you nothing, making everything about identity politics, virtue signaling overseas, instead of tending to the nuts and bolts at home,” Maher continued, referencing Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass's (D) visit to Ghana.

Maher in the segment slammed California’s marginal tax rate and the funding for the state’s fire department.

“That's government's job protect us from crime, violence, theft, fire. I'm not saying Alabama would have done better with fires by fighting them with prayer in school, but look me in the eye and tell me anyone could have done worse,” Maher said on Friday. “We just got our ass kicked by fire, something Neanderthals fought to a tie.”

Maher, along with other lawmakers around the country, criticized the state’s leadership and response, particularly Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) and Bass. The fires have burned hundreds of thousands of acres of land and killed at least 27 people.

“We may not be able to do much about the weather, but we do need a better plan for putting out a burning city than waiting for rain,” the comedian said.

Maher, who has been critical of Democrats during and after the 2024 presidential election, said the country is become so partisan that “even when there's a disaster of any kind, so many people choose to defend their own team, even over death.”

“A lot of Democrats in this one party state this week went right to don't blame politicians. ‘You can't do anything about the wind,’ which is exactly half true. The wind part. Yes. Fire is a tough fight out here, and yes, global warming, absolutely makes it worse,” he said. “But that's largely out of our control. What are we going to do, pass a ballot measure to make sure, Chinese, stop burning coal?”

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