Overview
- Maher told Patton Oswalt on his Club Random podcast that he no longer wants to tour because he worries he could “get shot by the left or the right.”
- He said non-safety factors also drove the decision, including exhaustion from travel, selling theaters rather than arenas, weekly TV exposure dampening ticket demand, and generational shifts in comedy.
- Maher noted he released his 13th HBO special earlier this year and views that body of work as a natural stopping point for live touring.
- Reports contextualized his safety concerns with recent political violence, frequently referencing the September killing of Charlie Kirk during a campus event.
- The same podcast featured a tense back-and-forth over whether Democrats have moved too far left, with Maher saying AOC would need “deprogramming” to broaden appeal and citing a New York Times editorial urging moderation.