Donald Trump slams Bill Maher as “defenseless” after Gavin Newsom interview on ‘Real Time’

President Donald Trump is back on the offensive against Bill Maher, unloading on the late-night host after his recent interview with California Governor Gavin Newsom.

In a sprawling Truth Social post, Trump took issue with how Maher handled the governor’s appearance on Real Time with Bill Maher, accusing him of folding under pressure and letting Newsom control the conversation.

“Bill Maher was defenseless, and totally deficient,” Trump wrote. “Either he didn’t have the knowledge, or he choked…”

Newsom stopped by the HBO series on Friday to promote his memoir, Young Man in a Hurry: A Memoir of Discovery, and ended up in a wide-ranging conversation that touched on everything from California’s housing crisis to the state’s national reputation. Maher even compared the governor’s social media style to Trump’s, framing it as a kind of political trolling.

The governor pushed back forcefully on criticism, defending his record and painting a more optimistic picture of the state than many of his detractors might. Depending on who you ask, it either played as a substantive exchange—or a soft touch.

Trump is firmly in the latter camp.

Referring to Newsom as “Newscum,” he claimed the governor “took Bill Maher over the coals” while accusing the host of failing to challenge what he described as misleading claims about California’s performance.

He went on to rattle off familiar criticisms—homelessness, wildfire management, infrastructure spending, and population decline in cities like Los Angeles and San Francisco—arguing those issues were glossed over during the segment.

The post didn’t just target Maher. Trump also turned his attention to Fox News, which discussed the interview on The Big Weekend Show, and didn’t like what he saw.

“Fox should stop putting this person on,” he wrote. “You look weak, stupid, and ineffective…”

Of course, this latest flare-up is just the newest chapter in Trump and Maher’s long-running back-and-forth. The two briefly appeared to call a truce last year after sharing a private dinner at the White House, which Maher later described as surprisingly cordial, even saying Trump came across as “gracious and measured” in person.

That goodwill didn’t stick.

Trump revisited the dinner again in his latest post, using it to paint Maher as uneasy and out of his depth.

“Bill Maher is a weak and ineffective person who I got to know very well during my dinner with him at the White House,” he wrote. “He was nervous, scared, and the first words he uttered as he entered the Oval Office were, ‘Can I have a drink?’ It was very endearing but, at the same time, absolutely pathetic.”

And because it wouldn’t be a Trump media broadside without a few extra targets, Jimmy Kimmel also got a mention.

“Bill Maher is a MORON, though slightly more talented than Jimmy Kimmel,” Trump added.

So far, Maher, Newsom, and Kimmel have stayed quiet. But with Trump continuing to zero in on late-night voices—and the political spotlight only getting brighter as 2026 approaches—this particular feud doesn’t look like it’s cooling off anytime soon.

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