Smallscreen News
'Real Time with Bill Maher' on Larry, Fred and naive America
By Stone Martindale Sep 1, 2007, 18:20 GMT
“Real Time with Bill Maher” welcomed singer John Mellencamp, former. Sen. Mike Gravel (D-AK), and former U.S. Ambassador Barbara Bodine.
Last night’s show was better with regards to simple production issues, like miking the host properly, exception being Mellencamp’s mic was next to his pendant necklace, so when the dialogue heated up, the tapping noise was audible during one point in the show.
Maher was off to the races over the disgraced Senator Craig situation and commentary on the seemingly “naive” state of the American public.
Bill posed the question that, why, if you are a gay man, do you become a Republican and join a club that doesn’t want you?
Gravel cited the hypocrisy and for them to just simply come out of the closet. Mellenamp wryly noted it demonstrated “bad thinking, and a bad idea,” for politicians to chase anonymous sex in a bathroom.
“Haven’t you ever followed a woman into a bathroom?” quipped Mellenamp to Maher.
Maher stated it was better to be a musician than a comedian with regards to those fleeting opportunities.
Larry Craig was resurrected in a 1999 Chris Matthews "Meet the Press" TV clip for his famous “naughty boy, nasty, bad, naughty boy” rant about ex President Bill Clinton, with a shocked Chris Matthews rendered speechless afterwards. NASTY-BAD-LARRY
“He just needs his Charles Nelson Reilly ascot over there, you naughty bad boy,” smacked Maher, mocking Craig’s over-the-top admonishing of Clinton.
Fred Thompson got his too. “By God, that’s the guy from Gucci gulch, a K-street lobbyist,” snapped Gravel
“Politics as usual,” finished Gravel, noting the whole pickup truck ruse that Thompson's using to promote his phony, “I’m a regular guy too image,” that rubs just about everyone the wrong way.
“It’s a swindle,” said Mellencamp, disgusted at all the hypocrisy and lying liars of politics, some who get away with murder.
Maher pressed about Mellencamp's notable love of the USA in his lyrics, and asked him what the fascination was.
“You don’t know about it because you aren’t out there,” said Mellencamp to a mystified Maher, explaining his reoccurring theme of his love of America in his songs.
Maher became combative with Mellencamp for a moment over “naďve American voters" and Gravel tried to insert himself defending Mellencamp's position, to which Maher stated, “you’re in the race!”
“Empowering the people the sovereigns that what is important …empower people to make laws, and when we can do that you will see all of this dissipated,” said Gravel.
Mellencamp said he didn’t want to live in a world where you assumed everyone in public office was speaking only lies. He was disgusted with the swindling of Americans by their politicians.
“We don’t understand these Bush-Cheney signs in front of people's houses,” said Mellencamp when driving through Indiana with his wife.
“They've been swindled,” reiterated Mellencamp.
Bill also interviewed actor and voice over artist Harry Shearer from his new home of New Orleans via satellite, and PETA animal activist Ingrid Newkirk, who shared it was the cows farting and burping that was causing the real “Inconvenient Truth.”
Giving up eating meat to end the factory farms and resulting pollution and emissions was cited as more important than any other Planet saving move.
