Real Time with Bill Maher, alongside The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, is one of the few late night TV shows to film live on Friday nights. This past Friday was no different, except that news that a Paris concert had been the target of a devastating terrorist attack was just being released. Both Colbert and Maher commented on the attacks, but it was Maher who stuck his foot in it with many by apparently victim shaming and proclaiming the Western World is to blame for the ISIS attack.
The controversial comments were made during his discussion panel segment. The panelists this night were former MSNBC host Dylan Ratigan, Jay Leno of Tonight Show fame and Michael Steele, a political analyst for MSNBC. Right off the bat, Maher caused waves by saying, "I'm going to ask this question what we asked after 9/11 because I still don't think we know the answer. Why do they hate us?"
Crickets could almost be heard in the stunned silence that followed the question, which Maher followed up with a joke about how he had "stumped" his panel. Soon after, "Dylan Ratigan brought up the U.S. funding Saudi Arabia as one reason that Islamic terrorists are upset with America."
It was then that Maher disagreed with Ratigan, "Bombing them over there is what is causing the Paris thing to happen," said Maher. "That connection needs to be made. We don't have to be bombing them there."
In contrast to Maher's deeply controversial and apparent victim shaming comments, Colbert closed his show on a more sincere note, sending his thoughts and prayers to Paris. He found out about the attacks after the show's live performance had been taped, but went back to his desk to provide what little information he could about the attacks.
At the beginning of his show, Maher did sing France's National Anthem, "La Marseillaise," in a show of support to the people of France.
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