Bill Maher hits back at Trump in feud over Kennedy Center prize… as he jokes he’s ‘been forced into compromise’ by White House
Bill Maher joked that the compromise that led to him receiving the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor is that he will immediately hand it over to Donald Trump.
The HBO comic was officially confirmed as the winner of the prestigious award on Thursday despite initial confusion which saw the White House flatly deny reports he was the recipient.
Maher lampooned the back-and-forth process for the trophy on the latest episode of Real Time.
‘So I was going to get it and then Friday, Trump’s spokespeople come out and said “fake news. Bill Maher is never getting it,”‘ he said to laughs from the audience.
Maher then announced that he and the White House had reached an agreement to let him get the award.
‘The compromise is I am going to get it and then I’m going to give it to him,’ he joked, adding that he just wants ‘things to work out’ before thanking the president.
‘I also want to say thank you. Okay. I’m not looking for a fight and I’m not mad that he did this,’ he said.
The joke came just after he mocked the Republican Party for presenting Trump with the inaugural created America First award.
Bill Maher joked he will immediately hand over his Mark Twain Prize for American Humor to Donald Trump
Maher was finally confirmed as the recipient this week after the White House staunchly denied he would be getting the award
The president’s desire for accolades is no secret, and he has been openly campaigning for the Nobel Peace Prize since his first term.
Last year, he was snubbed again, although he made an elaborate display of noting that this year’s winner, Maria Corina Machado, had dedicated her award to him.
Maher also reflected on his ‘complicated’ relationship with the president, which at one point saw Trump file a lawsuit against Maher in connection with a joke the comic made about his being the ‘spawn’ of an orangutan.
‘You know, this has been going on a long time. So, him trying to block me from getting it. I respect the move. Keep the game going, baby. Okay? I’m all about engagement. Disengagement gets you nothing,’ he joked.
He then brought back a page of insults Trump had once lashed at him that the president autographed during Maher’s infamous visit to the White House.
‘I would just like to say, as a low ratings lightweight and a rather dumb guy and a pathetic, bloated sleazebag, a dummy, a terrible student, a nervous failing comedian and someone who was sick, insane, very sad, totally shot and a crazy maniac. I am honored to accept the Mark Twain. Thank you very much,’ Maher said.
The Kennedy Center revealed Maher would be the honoree this Thursday, less than a week after the White House denial.
‘For nearly three decades, the Mark Twain Prize has celebrated some of the greatest minds in comedy,’ Roma Daravi, the Kennedy Center’s vice president of public relations, said in a statement.
Maher brought back his infamous page of insults Trump had once lashed at him that the president autographed during his visit to the White House as he reflected on their complicated relationship
Bill Maher has dinner in the White House with President Donald Trump, Kid Rock and Dana White on March 31, 2025
‘For even longer, Bill has been influencing American discourse – one politically incorrect joke at a time.’
An insider told Politico Washington reporter Daniel Lippman that someone had jumped the gun on the announcement.
‘Anonymous sources with half-baked information leaked to The Atlantic before conversations were finalized,’ the source said.
‘There was nothing to confirm at the time and it is not appropriate to get ahead of any settled agreement between multiple parties involved.’
The source, someone familiar with the award discussions, spoke to the outlet on condition of anonymity about the private process behind what led to the decision.
Maher said in a statement that he ‘just had the award explained to me, and apparently it’s like an Emmy, except I win.’
After The Atlantic reported last week that Maher would win the award, the White House pushed back hard.
White House communications director Steven Cheung said on social media that the story was ‘literally FAKE NEWS.’
Maher was invited last year to a White House dinner, despite criticizing Trump’s administration during his presidency (pictured together in 2004)
The Kennedy Center was renamed to ‘The Donald J. Trump and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts’ last year
Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt also called the initial report ‘fake news’ and said Maher ‘will NOT be getting this award.’
An administration official who refused to speak on the record about the award on Thursday said the situation changed after further conversations between the Kennedy Center and event organizers.
The Kennedy Center has presented the award since 1998 as a way to recognize those who have made significant contributions to humor and commentary in the United States. Previous winners include Conan O’Brien, Dave Chappelle, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, David Letterman, Carol Burnett and Tina Fey.
The award will be presented on June 28, just before Trump plans to close the Kennedy Center for renovations expected to last about two years.
Since returning to office, the Republican president has wielded tremendous influence over the venue, ousting its previous leadership and replacing it with a handpicked board of trustees that named him chairman.
The board added Trump’s name to the Kennedy Center and approved the closure, actions that have prompted legal proceedings that are ongoing.
Maher and the president have long had a fraught relationship.
Before he entered politics, Trump filed a $5 million lawsuit against Maher in 2013 for breach of contract.
Bill Maher arrives at the Vanity Fair Oscar Party in Los Angeles on March 15
Appearing on Jay Leno’s The Tonight Show, Maher said he would give $5 million to the charity of Trump’s choice if he could prove he was not ‘the spawn of his mother having sex with an orangutan.’
Trump claimed Maher failed to pay up after he presented his birth certificate, prompting the lawsuit. Trump ended up dropping it.
The Trump-Maher relationship exploded again earlier this year when the president claimed on social media that he wasted time sitting down for a meal with the comedian last year.
‘He came into the famed Oval Office much different than I thought he would be,’ Trump wrote online.
‘He was extremely nervous, had ZERO confidence in himself.’ Trump said the comedian admitted he was ‘scared.’
Maher described the dinner as a ‘good time’ during his April 11 episode of Real Time last year, noting that Trump was ‘gracious and measured’ and not like the ‘person who plays a crazy person on TV.’ He said he wasn’t scared.
He took time in his ‘New Rules’ segment to point out the various Trump policies he liked, including the ‘mass removal of stone cold criminals’ and making NATO members pay ‘their fair share.’
‘I may be the last person from the lunatic left that is still an honest broker when it comes to you,’ he said.
‘I always want the American president to succeed, and I do give credit when you have, but there’s lots of stuff you do that is not my idea of success, and I have every right to say so in a democracy.’
