No matter what you may think of Bill Maher, you can’t deny that the man is a legend. He’s one of the most popular, polarizing, and talented personalities in entertainment and news media. Maher says things that most people won’t, and some things that shouldn’t. Nevertheless, it’s given him a career that’s spanned three decades. Even longer when you factor in that he’s been a stand-up comedian since the late 1970s. With all of these accolades, it makes sense that he’d be honored with the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. Sadly, this was being disputed.
According to Variety, after the Atlantic announced that Bill Maher would receive the Mark Twain Prize, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt called it “Fake news.” This isn’t shocking since anyone President Donald Trump doesn’t like, his cabinet tends to follow their leader’s sentiment. Thankfully, despite what’s coming from her and Assistant to the President & White House Director of Communications, Steven Cheung, the announcement is real.
"I’d just like to say that it is indeed humbling to get anything named for a man who’s been thrown out of as many school libraries as Mark Twain."Bill Maher
Bill Maher and Donald Trump’s relationship is, at best, tense. In fact, Maher is quoted as saying that the two have a “complicated relationship.” But, in typical Bill Maher fashion, he turned the fake news comments into a way to remind people that he doesn’t take things like this seriously. “So, him trying to block me from getting it–– I respect the move. Keep it going, baby. I just want things to work out, and also I want to say thank you, OK?”
A personal favorite is Maher taking a shot at Trump for adding his name to the historic Kennedy Center. “I will be there, Don, and I hope you will be too. I mean, the place is named after you now, you really should show up…” If you don’t get the reference, allow this writer to explain.
Back in late 2025, a vote was passed to change the name of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts to the (checks notes), The Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts. Even as I attempt to be unbiased, this was a move of extreme arrogance on a long list of arrogant moves from President Donald Trump. And even though Maher had dinner with POTUS, and said nice things, Trump said this about their dinner, “it was a total waste of time for me to have this jerk at the White House.”
Bill Maher’s award will be the third since 2024 (Kevin Hart and then Conan O’Brien) that Netflix has hosted. As of now, there’s no official date for when it will air on the streaming platform. However, the award will be given to Maher on June 28, 2026. That means there will likely be a good amount of commentary from the Trump administration and Bill Maher. Unfortunately, when it comes to a war of words, this isn’t a battle that the President or his people want. It will go just as well as their current one in Iran.