A preachy comedian, often criticized for his hypocrisy, outdid himself during the January 30, 2026 edition of his HBO series, Real Time with Bill Maher.

A regular feature of the program is called "New Rule," in which Maher goes "tsk tsk" and points out a mistake in our culture, illustrating with a few funny examples to get laughs that lighten his lecture. Maher's messages are prepared by a staff of writers, but they obviously support the comedian's point of view. Frankly, I agree most of the time because Maher leans left and so do I.

During Maher's early years, I put him in a category of comics that included Mort Sahl, Dick Gregory, Godfrey Cambridge and the latter day George Carlin. So it wasn't surprising Maher eventually found success as host of a program which, when he is not pontificating, has him chatting with a variety of celebrities, many of whom are politicians.

(On the night in question, one of his guests was controversial Georgia congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene.)

But it was the "New Rule" segment of the January 30 program that caught my attention. That's when Maher said entertainers and, I guess, athletes, should stick to what they do best and stop offering their opinions on our problems and our politics.

At one point, it seemed Maher was simply offering a tip, especially to celebrities who support Democratic candidates. He had some statistics to show celebrity endorsements sometimes hurt the candidates who receive them. Apparently, there's a survey that indicated about one-quarter of Ohio voters who supported Donald Trump in the 2024 election did so because celebrities, particularly Taylor Swift, had endorsed Kamala Harris.

Maher said entertainers ought to stick to entertaining. Oh, they have the right to speak out, but Maher told them, "Don't!"

The one exception he made was Bruce Springsteen, and that exception disproved Maher's rule. What makes Springsteen any more qualified to speak out than any other entertainer? (I've had the impression for years that show business people regard Springsteen the way MAGA Republicans regard Trump. "The Boss" really is the boss.)

Maher said entertainers, in general, know nothing about "real life," and his reasons apply more to him than they do most singers, actors and athletes. Maher has never been married, nor does he have children, which means he's escaped some responsibilities that are essential in the understanding of "real life." For more than thirty years Maher has lived in a bubble, mingling mostly with other celebrities.

(One thing I've resented about Maher is his frequent endorsement of marijuana, not because I have a strong opinion about the drug, but because I suspect he does it to pander to his target audience. Many oher comedians do the same thing. It guarantees a round of applause, like mentioning you are married or just had a baby.)

From what Maher said on January 30, one would conclude the people more deserving of a lecture are those too stupid or lazy to learn more about political candidates than the celebrities who support them.

(Judging by the people they've sent to Washington, Ohio voters may be the dumbest of them all, though I may be giving a pass to voters in my current home state, South Carolina, which has elected Lindsay Graham, Tim Scott and Nancy Mace.)

Anyway, if the HBO performer keeps talking out of both sides of his mouth, I won't be surprised if billmaher enters dictionaries as another word for hypocrite.

Meanwhile, other hosts of television shows  — Seth Meyers, Jimmy Kimmel and Jon Stewart — are proving why entertainers should speak out on important issues. Their political commentary is about all that's keeping me sane during the MAGA craziness.