Comedian Bill Maher on Friday poked fun at Vice President Kamala Harris‘ first interview since launching her presidential campaign last month.
President Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential race on July 21 following weeks of interparty fighting among Democrats on whether he should pass the torch to the next generation after his debate fiasco against former President Donald Trump in late June in Atlanta. Biden endorsed Harris the day he withdrew from the race.
On Thursday, Harris and her running mate Minnesota Governor Tim Walz appeared for their first major television interview of the 2024 Democratic ticket’s campaign in a pre-recorded conversation with CNN host Dana Bash.
The interview came as Harris faced repeated criticism from Republican figures for not granting an interview or having held a news conference since Biden ended his reelection campaign.
But while the interview may have been overdue, for Maher, it was still “exciting.”
“It’s a very exciting time of year. It’s Labor Day. This is always, they say, this is when the race really starts, and it really did. We finally had an interview last night with Kamala Harris,” Maher said on HBO‘s Real Time with Bill Maher on Friday.
“Not just her, with Tim Walz, her emotional support VP,” he joked, adding that Walz’s appearance in the interview was “a little odd.”
“He was just sitting there for a very long time without saying anything. He was just nodding while she did all the talking. The women’s focus group said he must be a wonderful husband,” Maher quipped. “It just kept going and he was saying nothing. It’s like watching Jeopardy! when one of the players can’t work the buzzer.”
Newsweek has contacted the Harris campaign for comment via email.
Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at a campaign rally in Savannah, Georgia, on August 29. Comedian Bill Maher on Friday poked fun at Harris’ first interview since launching her presidential campaign last month.
Jacquelyn Martin/AP
During the interview, Harris was questioned about whether “Bidenomics”—the onetime slogan of Biden’s economic agenda—has been a success.
“I’ll say that that’s good work. There’s more to do, but that’s good work.” Harris said, touting the Biden administration’s efforts to expand domestic manufacturing and provide families with children tax credits to lower the poverty rate.
She was also questioned on her position on fracking and the U.S.-Mexico border. Harris has been accused of reversing her stance on both issues—something she denied. “I think the most important and most significant aspect of my policy perspective and decisions is my values have not changed,” Harris told Bash.
Harris did not discuss topics such as abortion or the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war during her interview, something Maher was not impressed by.
“It’s so funny, the media has been furious that she will not give an interview, and now she finally does. Not a single question about abortion, Ukraine, the homeless, the opioid crisis, the national debt, and then they wonder why the kids get their news from TikTok,” he said.
However, there was one question in particular that Maher was not a fan of.
“They always ask the stupidest question in the world, ‘What would you do on day one?” You know it’s not that kind of a f***ing job, okay? It’s just not that kind of a job. I’d cure cancer. What do you think I’d do?” he said. “I would just one time love somebody to go, ‘You know what I’d do? I’d unpack some boxes, and I’d get dressed for the inaugural party like anybody else.'”
Harris told Bash she would implement her “opportunity economy” strategy on her first day in office to help lower the cost of everyday goods and extend the child tax credit to $6,000 for families for the first year of their child’s life.
After the CNN interview concluded, Trump reacted to it on Truth Social, his social media platform, with just one word and wrote, “BORING!!!”
“Good. I’d love some boring,” Maher responded on his late-night talk show. “That’s what I want in this ticket. It’s Harris/Walz, not Deadpool/Wolverine.”
