Bill Maher was honored with the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor, a prestigious recognition presented annually by the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. He released a statement expressing his gratitude for the honor and noted that now he understands its significance. Earlier, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt denied reports of Maher receiving the honor, calling them “fake news.”
Bill Maher honored with Mark Twain Prize
Last week, The Atlantic reported that Bill Maher is about to receive the Mark Twain Prize. The report was quickly denied by Karoline Leavitt, who deemed it false news to the same outlet. She was joined by White House Director of Communications, who debunked the news as well, calling it “Literally FAKE NEWS” on X (formerly Twitter).
It has been less than a week since Leavitt publicly disagreed with reports about Maher receiving the Mark Twain Prize. However, the well-known Kennedy Center announced that he is indeed getting the honor, which contradicts Leavitt’s earlier claim.
Expressing his thanks for the prestigious honor, Maher said in the statement, “Thank you to the Mark Twain people: I just had the award explained to me, and apparently it’s like an Emmy, except I win. 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.”
Earlier this month, Maher reflected on where he stands with President Donald Trump after the latter criticized him on social media amid the ongoing Iran conflict. During his “New Rules” segment, he responded to Trump’s Truth Social post, where he claimed that the comedian suffers from “Trump Derangement Syndrome.” The president also slammed him for wasting his time on their past dinner together.
“Someone has to help Donald Trump understand that I don’t suffer from Trump Derangement Syndrome. He suffers from Bill Maher Derangement Syndrome. Three weeks ago, I woke up to some things the president had written on his Truth Social media platform that somehow were not true. I don’t know how they got in there. It’s not like the president to just make things up when he’s mad,” he said, referring to Trump’s earlier comments.
