Comedian and longtime Trump critic Bill Maher stunned his HBO audience by offering an unexpectedly positive account of a private dinner he recently shared with President Donald Trump—saying the man he met was a far cry from the caricature often portrayed in the media.
During a segment on his show Real Time, Maher detailed a White House dinner hosted by Trump and arranged through mutual friend Kid Rock. The evening also included UFC President Dana White. Maher admitted he had entered the evening with heavy skepticism but left with a surprisingly different impression of the 45th—and now 47th—President of the United States.
“Everything I’ve not liked about him was, I swear to God, absent. At least on this night, with this guy,” Maher told his audience. “He was gracious, self-aware, even funny. And yes, he listened—really listened.”
In a particularly striking moment, Maher said Trump even used the word “lost” while referring to the 2020 election. “I remember thinking, ‘Wow, I never thought I’d hear you say that,’” Maher recalled. “And he didn’t get defensive. He just smiled.”
Maher, who has been one of Trump’s harshest entertainment-industry critics for years, said he brought along a list of past insults Trump had thrown his way. Rather than take offense, Trump signed the list and reportedly laughed it off.
“He even gave me a few MAGA hats,” Maher added with a smirk, clarifying that while he didn’t feel politically aligned with Trump, he also didn’t feel pressured to be.
Twelve days ago, I had dinner with President Trump, a dinner that my friend @KidRock set up because we share the belief that there has to be something better than hurling insults from 3000 miles away. pic.twitter.com/KE2t2eyBkI
— Bill Maher (@billmaher) April 12, 2025
Maher emphasized that what surprised him most wasn’t just Trump’s civility, but the disconnect between the man he met privately and the image relentlessly promoted by the media. “I walked away thinking—if more people met that version of Trump, it would absolutely change things. A crazy person doesn’t live in the White House.”
While Maher stopped short of endorsing Trump, his reflections added an unexpected layer of nuance to the cultural conversation. The dinner showed that behind the bombast and media spin is a leader who, at least in private, demonstrates composure, humor, and the ability to engage respectfully—even with his fiercest critics.
For a comedian who has built much of his career ridiculing Trump, Maher’s revelation was more than just an anecdote—it was a reminder that the media narrative is rarely the whole picture. And perhaps, as Maher subtly suggested, the American people might benefit from seeing more of the side he encountered that night.