Comedian Bill Maher calls for end to State of the Union address
USA TODAY
Bill Maher compared the State of the Union address to a king's speech. But the address is here to stay, thanks to the Constitution.
Comedian and television host Bill Maher jokingly called for an end to the State of the Union address ahead of President Donald Trump's national broadcast speech on Tuesday, Feb. 24.
During his "Real Time" HBO segment on Friday, Feb. 20, Maher compared the presidential State of the Union address to a king's speech, or more specifically, "the president's royal wedding to himself."
"Nothing has mislead the American people to the warped belief that the president can act like a king more than this stupid, boring performative after-dinner speech from hell," Maher said. "...with members of Congress lining the aisle like medieval peasants, hoping to touch the royal garments, then he proceeds to tell Congress what he wants them to do, making it look like the president is in charge of everything and it's he who sets the agenda, but that's not what it says in the operating manual, you know, the Constitution."
Maher's State of the Union comments were made during the same "Real Time" segment in which he addressed the president's Truth Social post about their dinner together at the White House in 2025. On Feb. 14, the president called Maher a "jerk" and the meeting a "waste of time," in which the comedian said he never promised to stop criticizing the president.
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