Comedian Bill Maher expressed frustration with the White House on Friday, just over 100 days since President Trump took office, citing economic uncertainty brought to the forefront by President Trump’s latest tariffs.
“We hit the 100-day mark of the Trump administration, as you know, this week, and ooh, the numbers are kind of in the toilet,” Maher said, while pointing to market dips and polls that highlight the president’s dismal 39 percent approval rating since returning to office.
“That’s the lowest 100-day mark for a president in 80 years. It’s like America remarried their ex and remembered why they got divorced in the first place,” he continued in an episode of “Real Time with Bill Maher.”
Maher also noted that the U.S.’s gross domestic product (GDP) has shrunk by 0.3 percent in the first quarter of 2025 and that consumer confidence is at its lowest point in five years.
“Kind of a high price for getting back plastic straws,” he said in a clip highlighted by Mediaite, joking about the president’s executive order targeting paper straws from earlier this year.
His critique comes after Trump last month levied a 10 percent baseline tax on nearly all foreign imports and announced higher reciprocal taxes on many nations. Following backlash, he paused most of the retaliatory tariffs for up to 90 days to allow room for negotiation. But, the administration notably left out one of the nation’s top trading partners: China.
The “Liberation Day” fallout has spooked many on Wall Street, with some experts suggesting the U.S. is headed for or is already in a recession. The president has largely brushed off the concerns — even claiming earlier this week that children would be OK with fewer toys.
“But, you know, Trump, he only doubles down,” Maher said Friday. “I mean, this guy, I got to say, the balls on him, they asked him about what’s going to happen Christmas, because … 80 percent of the toys come from China, and this is the time they’re starting to plan for that.”
“The thing is that people in this country now, we don’t understand why we’re doing this,” he added later. “Why are we f—ing putting ourselves through this? To bring manufacturing back from China to make the things here that they make in China? That’s the American dream?”
Trump has mostly defended his sweeping tariff agenda, arguing it will bring jobs and domestic production back to the U.S. But, after Wednesday’s GDP report, he acknowledged that the U.S. may feel some pain from the steep taxes — and asked for time to fix it.
When asked by NBC’s “Meet the Press” in an interview set to air Sunday about whether Americans should be worried about a recession, he said “anything can happen.”
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