- Maher connected San Francisco clean-up for Xi visit to Trump's 2024 chances
- Notes SF cleaned up homelessness and drugs briefly for summit
- Says it shows why Trump's law and order pitch resonates
- Maher warns elderly Biden should step aside to avoid Trump win
On his HBO show “Real Time” Friday, Maher noted how San Francisco officials rushed to clear homeless encampments and wash the streets before Xi arrived for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit with President Biden. For years, Maher said, the city has faced criticism over problems like homelessness and public drug use.
“I want to try a theory out on you why Trump is killing it — not just within the party, but he’s beating Biden heavily too,” Maher said at the beginning of his panel discussion on Friday. “Because Xi, President Xi of China, came to our state this week and met with Biden up in San Francisco, and they had a little summit.”
“And they did something very interesting in San Francisco. I mean, I have done many, many jokes as many comedians have about stepping and poop in San Francisco and, you know, it’s a city that needs to be put under control — so they did! Because Xi was coming! Put aside the fact that you only clean up with company coming over?” Maher quipped. “OK, so they cleaned it up, they rinse off the street, the homeless, you know, God forbid the guy who sends us the fentanyl sees somebody on fentanyl.”
“This, to me, is why Trump is winning, because he talks about, ‘I’m going to open up the mental hospitals.’ Again, I’m not saying these are necessarily a good solution,” Maher continued. “When he talks, ‘I’m gonna put people in camps, the immigrants,’ all this kind of stuff, and people just see a place — a country, especially in the cities that look out-of-control. And the fact that the Democrats could control it for three days, how about making it permanent?”
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has received presidential buzz, admitted officials only cleaned up for world leaders. “I know folks are saying, ‘Oh, they’re just cleaning up this place because all those fancy leaders are coming to town.’ That’s true, because it’s true,” Newsom said last week, sparking backlash.
Maher has warned Democrats that the aging Biden should step aside in 2024 to avoid losing to Trump again. He compared Biden to the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, dubbing him “Ruth Bader Biden” for refusing to relinquish power.
