Bill Maher slams Karen Bass for ‘fiddling in Ghana’ after failed response of officials to raging LA fires

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Comedian Bill Maher lashed out against Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and other local government officials over their response to the devastating fire that ravaged southern California last week, in his monologue on the Friday, January 17, episode of his HBO show 'Real Time With Bill Maher'

As per the New York Post, Maher called out LA Fire Chief Kristin Crowley among others in his rant and accused her of prioritizing diversity within her department at the cost of effectiveness.

Bill Maher's rant on government response to LA wildfires

Bill Maher appeared furious with the response of state officials to the Los Angeles wildfires and slammed Mayor Bass for being out of the country when the tragedy began.

The Palisades fire began on January 7 and due to strong winds, soon spread to other areas, causing large-scale destruction and displacing about 100,000 people.

"LA's mayor, Karen Bass, the Nero of American politics, was fiddling in Ghana while the city burned,” said the 68-year-old, before tearing into the government's statement of not having sufficient resources to fight the flames.

Referring to an Axios report on the complications faced by officials to get water out of fire hydrants in the neighborhood of Pacific Palisades, Maher mocked, "I’m sure it is. I’m sure it’s very complicated. That’s why I pay 13 percent of my income in the state every year to people who I assume were working on things like this.”

He further quoted Bass saying that the fires got out of hand because of “eight months of negligible rain and winds that have not been seen in LA in at least 14 years".

"Yeah, that’s not that long a time. Maybe look in the history books to see how our ancestors handled it back in 2011," he sarcastically quipped.

At another point on his show, Maher referred to California as the state that “spends money and gets nothing, which is why you may have noticed when the fires broke out, no one escaped by high-speed rail".

“We have the highest marginal tax rate in America, higher than almost all other states … What is included for that? Breadsticks? Because it clearly doesn’t cover fire,” he argued. “That’s the government’s job. Protect us from crime, violence, theft, fire. I’m not saying Alabama would have done better with fires by fighting them with prayer in school, but look me in the eye and tell me anyone could have done worse.”

Bill Maher's take on LA Fire Department

Bill Maher brought up the subject of the Los Angeles Fire Department while slamming Mayor Bass. The latter reportedly cut $17 million from the LAFD’s budget in the fiscal year 2024-25, which department Chief Kristin Crowley claimed hurt their ability to provide the emergency service.

While the talk show host agreed with Crowley's claim, he went on to criticize her for apparently prioritizing DEI initiatives, saying, "We just got our a** kicked by fire, something Neanderthals fought to a tie. The good news is our fire chief is a lesbian."

Maher clarified that he had no objection to the fire chief being a lesbian. However, he was opposed to her getting the job because of her sexual identity.

"Maybe they really wanted a lesbian in that job and she’s just the best lesbian for the job, and with essential services, that’s not good enough," he noted.

He further went through Crowley's LAFD bio, which read, "Chief Crowley leads a diverse department… Creating, supporting, and promoting a culture that values diversity, inclusion, and equity while striving to meet and exceed the expectations of the communities…”

“Well, you didn’t exceed my expectations, which was that the whole city wouldn’t burn down. But it’s telling that diversity was mentioned twice before we get to ‘while’ – ‘while striving’ to meet ‘expectations,’” quipped the comedian.

Internet agrees with Bill Maher's criticism of Mayor Karen Bass

Netizens, especially conservatives on the social media platform X, agreed with Bill Maher as he slammed Mayor Karen Bass and Fire Chief Kristin Crowley.

"Bill Maher always tells it like it is, love him or hate him he's a true original. Great to see someone calling out the failures of Democrat leadership in LA, Karen Bass has been a disaster as Mayor. Time for some real change in LA, not just more empty promises from career politicians," wrote a user.

"Powerful words. It's crucial for leaders to take accountability and truly connect with their communities," shared another.

"Now would be the time to get them both out of office," noted a third.

"Nothing but good points here," quipped one user.

"Every now and then, @billmaher hits the nail on the head," tweeted another.

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.