Bill Maher defends inviting ‘hard right-winger’ Ann Coulter on his talk show: ‘She’s not stupid’

Bill Maher has defended his choice to invite previous controversial guests, including Ann Coulter, onto his long-running talk series.

Over the course of his twenty season self-hosted show, Real Time with Bill Maher, the 66-year-old comedian-turned-political commentator has featured a slew of provocative guests.

In 2019, Maher was booed by audience members after he announced conservative media pundit, Coulter, was going to join him the following week.

“She’s a hard right-winger,” Maher acknowledged in a new interview with Variety.

However, “a lot of the country likes Ann Coulter and listens to her, and she’s not stupid,” he defended.

“I don’t exactly read her books. But I know from when we’ve covered her issues in the past, it’s not like she doesn’t do research.”

Maher continued: “Sometimes people say to me, ‘Is she just saying something to be provocative?’ I don’t think she is. I think you need to hear from all voices.

“There are certainly people I would not bring on [the show]. I wouldn’t have on someone from the Ku Klux Klan or a Nazi or something like that,” he said.

When further asked where he draws the line when deciding who to have on his show, he explained that “it’s a case-by-case basis”.

“I don’t know. Sometimes people change. One man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter,” Maher added: “And if you don’t like these people, just understand sunshine is the best disinfectant.”

Real Time with Bill Maher premieres on Fridays at 10pm ET on HBO Max in the US.