Bill Maher’s Studio Audience Groans at Joke About Trump Getting Protest ‘Pointers’ From Iran | Video
Bill Maher issued a number of biting jokes as his show returned for a new season Friday evening. However, one quip regarding Iran and Donald Trump sparked noticeable groans rather than laughter.
“Iran, I know this is big here in LA, big Iranian population here,” Maher noted during his monologue. “Largest protests ever there. And, you know, they think this might succeed this time. Overthrow that awful theocracy, because Trump has promised to help.”
He continued: “Iran is dealing with the protesters by killing them in the streets. And Trump said, ‘We are watching … mostly for pointers.'”
In response to the comment, many in Maher’s studio audience let out an audible groan. Though, many others laughed, offering up scattered applause at the dig.
Maher himself couldn’t help but react to the joke, stifling a laugh and taking a moment before moving on with his monologue.
As Maher went on, he brought up the protests in Minneapolis, which have further erupted in the wake of ICE fatally shooting 37-year-old Renee Good earlier this month.
“The images out of Minneapolis are just f–king ugly, are they not?” he said. “I mean, wow. Did you see this one? The 5-year-old boy who was going to school … but, you know, if you looked at his penmanship you can see he is the worst of the worst.”
Later on his address, Maher laid into Trump’s plans to send ICE to Maine, sarcastically saying the Pine Tree State had a “hotbed of crime.”
“This is Trump’s s–t list: Greenland, Maine and Minnesota, the axis of hot chocolate,” he quipped.
This is Trump's shit list: Greenland, Maine, and Minnesota, the axis of hot chocolate. pic.twitter.com/SRuB0nf5UN
— Bill Maher (@billmaher) January 24, 2026
Watch Maher’s full monologue above.
“Real Time With Bill Maher” airs new episodes Fridays at 10 p.m. ET on HBO.
The post Bill Maher’s Studio Audience Groans at Joke About Trump Getting Protest ‘Pointers’ From Iran | Video appeared first on TheWrap.