In a surprising admission that cuts against the prevailing narrative in liberal media circles, longtime progressive comedian and talk show host Bill Maher reportedly acknowledged that President Donald Trump’s trade policies, widely predicted by critics to devastate the American economy, have not delivered the economic collapse many liberals anticipated.
Speaking on his Club Random podcast in a conversation with fellow progressive commentator Brian Tyler Cohen, Maher struck an unusually reflective tone about his past economic doomsaying.
“I remember I, along with probably most people, were saying at the beginning, by the Fourth of July … the economy was going to be tanked by then,” Maher confessed. “And I was kind of like, well, that seems right to me.”
But the HBO Real Time host then offered what many would consider a rare moment of intellectual honesty. “But that didn’t happen,” Maher said flatly, referring to the Trump administration’s aggressive tariff policy, which many Democrats had warned would bring swift economic ruin.
Rather than descend into recession, the American economy has remained strong, with the stock market hitting record highs, unemployment staying low, and consumer confidence defying elite predictions.
Even Maher conceded he could not ignore what he sees outside his window: “I drive around, I don’t see a country in a depression at all,” he said with a laugh. “I see people out there just living their lives.”
Maher, no fan of Trump, still cautioned that things could change. “Now, it could happen tomorrow,” he said of the possibility of a downturn. “I’m just saying — that’s reality. So let’s work first from the reality of that, not from, ‘I just hate Donald Trump,’ because that’s boring and doesn’t get us anywhere, and leads you to dishonesty.”
This kind of candor is uncommon in the echo chambers of left-wing commentary, where partisan reflexes often take precedence over observable facts.
For many conservatives, Maher’s admission serves as long-overdue recognition of what has become increasingly difficult to deny: Trump’s economic agenda—particularly his unapologetic use of tariffs to renegotiate America’s trade relationships—has not derailed the economy as opponents warned.
Since announcing “reciprocal tariffs” on dozens of countries back in April, Trump has shaken up the global trade order by demanding fair treatment for American industry.
After a brief pause to allow for negotiation, the tariffs are set to go into full effect on August 1, despite loud protest from traditional economic elites and foreign governments.
Even Maher, a consistent Trump critic, admitted: “I would have thought … that these tariffs were going to f‑‑‑ing sink this economy by this time, and they didn’t.”
The bigger question Maher posed, and one that Democrats may soon have to grapple with, is simple: “How do we deal with that fact? Because that’s the fact.”
In an election year where economic reality could play a decisive role, acknowledging facts—even inconvenient ones—may become more important than sticking to old talking points.
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