Bill Maher, the host of HBO’s Real Time with Bill Maher, was one of the more surprising voices to back the Donald Trump administration when the U.S. launched its first strikes on Iran in February 2026. Six weeks later, he is making it clear that his support has limits, and that he now hopes the president walks away from the conflict entirely.
When the strikes first began, Maher was notably supportive. He said he believed Iran was weeks away from having 11 nuclear bombs, citing claims made by Steve Witkoff, Trump’s Special Envoy for the Middle East. According to Huffpost, he pushed back against critics of the war, including Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens, saying he would stand with Trump on the matter.
