Sen. Ted Cruz took his book tour to HBO and Real Time with Bill Maher on Friday where, after some mutual backscratching, the duo battled it out on the left’s history of election denialism, specifically the 2000 election between George W. Bush and Al Gore.
After Cruz alleged a double standard and cited the 2000, 2004, and 2016 elections, Maher claimed that is because the reaction to those elections is not the same as the reaction to 2020, “Okay, well, there is a double standard because there's two different things going on. One of them’s a remonstration, a mild protestation of something. Al Gore was the head of the Senate at that time he had to pass the baton and in he knew he won and his—”
Cruz then interrupted to point out the obvious, ‘“He knew he won,’ are you an election denier? You just said Al Gore won that election. Using your definition—”
Immediately backtracking, Maher conceded, “Well, okay, he did not win, I’m sorry, you’re right, you’re right, I meant to say he won the popular vote.”
After Cruz reminded him the popular vote doesn’t matter, Maher reached deeper into the bag of 2000 denialism, “The Supreme Court stopped the count, his own brother ran that election in Florida.”
Again, Cruz reminded him that Jeb Bush was the governor at the time, to which Maher tried to get out a thought, “Okay, what I’m—”
This time Cruz interjected with a more detailed response, “Hold on a second, I mean, facts matter. They counted the votes four times in Florida. George W. Bush won all four times I was part of the legal team litigating that case o I was intimately involved in Bush v. Gore. Every time they counted the votes Bush won.”
Maher still tried to claim that the two situations are different:
The bigger point is that Al Gore took one for the team. He came out and said okay, you know, this is a really fucked up election, this America, the jewel in our crown as we pass power peacefully and I'm not going to be the first guy not to do that. Nixon let it go in 1960, that could have been a screwy election and Hillary came out in her goddamn purple suit—so he did it before the sun rose, she did it. Before the cock crowed three times, she came out and said Trump is the president, that's what you guys will not do.
It is one thing for Maher to say that there was never a riot at the Capitol after 2000, 2004, or 2016, but the fact is Democrats did object to Bush’s 2004 win, which Republicans cited as precedent for objecting to Biden’s 2020 win. Nobody who signed on to that thought there would be a riot. To use Maher’s words, they thought it was ”a mild protestation.”
As for Hillary, just this last week, the liberals of The View told her that she really did win. And as for Cruz, he replied, “Joe Biden is the president, what do you mean we won’t do it? I'm fighting him every day and he’s screwing up the country and the world so I’m quite aware Joe Biden’s the president, I wish he wasn’t.”
Here is a transcript for the November 10 show:
HBO Real Time with Bill Maher
11/10/2023
10:17 PM ET
BILL MAHER: Okay, well, there is a double standard because there's two different things going on. One of them’s a remonstration, a mild protestation of something. Al Gore was the head of the Senate at that time he had to pass the baton and in he knew he won and his—
TED CRUZ: “He knew he won,” are you an election denier? You just said Al Gore won that election. Using your definition—
MAHER: Well, okay, he did not win, I’m sorry, you’re right, you’re right, I meant to say he won the popular vote.
CRUZ: But, that’s not actually what chooses the president.
MAHER: Yes, I understand, I understand but the other candidate's brother stopped the count.
CRUZ: Okay, that is-- that's not accurate.
MAHER: The Supreme Court stopped the count, his own brother ran that election in Florida.
CRUZ: His brother was the governor of Florida. You know—
MAHER: Okay, what I’m—
CRUZ: Hold on a second, I mean, facts matter. They counted the votes four times in Florida.
MAHER: Okay.
CRUZ: George W. Bush won all four times I was part of the legal team litigating that case--
MAHER: But the--
CRUZ: -- so I was intimately involved in Bush v. Gore. Every time they counted the votes Bush won.
MAHER: The bigger point is that Al Gore took one for the team. He came out and said okay, you know, this is a really fucked up election, this America, the jewel in our crown as we pass power peacefully and I'm not going to be the first guy not to do that. Nixon let it go in 1960, that could have been—
CRUZ: I agree.
MAHER: -- a screwy election and Hillary came out in her goddamn purple suit—so he did it before the sun rose, she did it. Before the cock crowed three times, she came out and said Trump is the president, that's what you guys will not do.
CRUZ: Joe Biden is the president, what do you mean we won’t do it? I'm fighting him every day and he’s screwing up the country and the world so I’m quite aware Joe Biden’s the president, I wish he wasn’t.
