'I've never called you': Comedian Bill Maher mocks Trump over White House dinner row

Comedian Bill Maher has hit back at US President Donald Trump after the latter called him a “complete and total loser” in a lengthy Truth Social post, using his television show to mock the President and dispute several claims about their White House dinner.During Friday's episode of HBO's 'Real Time with Bill Maher', the comedian responded to Trump's 1,318-word post, joking about its contents and explaining why he believed their conversations in person had been different from the President's public remarks.According to The Hollywood Reporter, Maher began by referring to the dinner and former President Barack Obama's recent comparison of Trump's White House to a Cheesecake Factory opened by Saddam Hussein.“And the Republicans all said, ‘Leave the Cheesecake Factory out of this!’ Well, I mean, I should know. I just had dinner there. I hear it went well. What have you heard?” Maher joked.He then turned to Trump's lengthy post, saying, “Now, did you see the 1,300-word Tweet he sent out? Longest ever. Kind of a flex.”Taking another dig at the President, Maher said, “dining at the White House is the opposite of the Cheesecake Factory. After you leave, they review you.”Maher disputes Trump's claimsMaher also mocked the personal nature of Trump's criticism, saying, “He went off on me like Kelly Clarkson in a toy store.”Reading excerpts from the post, the comedian said their dinners were meant to allow them to exchange views, disagree and listen to each other, rather than turn their differences into personal attacks.“Look, I don’t want it to be this way. The whole point of having these dinners was talk, disagree, but listen, which he does in person, but don’t hate each other. And then I go back to my job here and then the heartaches begin,” he said.One point Maher challenged was Trump's claim that he did not support taking nuclear weapons away from Iran. The comedian said the President had misunderstood his position and played clips from his programme to explain what he had said.He also rejected Trump's assertion that he repeatedly called the President.“Page two, he talks about how I call him incessantly. I’ve never called you, you call me. I’d be afraid to call you. You’re the president. I think you’re too busy. Well, plainly not.”'Major POTHEAD' remark draws a jokeTrump had also referred to Maher as a “major POTHEAD” in his post. The comedian responded with humour, saying, “Well, I guess the cat’s out of the bag now. Boy, that explains a lot. I thought I was just happy.”The President had additionally mentioned that Maher was carrying alcohol while walking through the White House during their dinner. Maher read out Trump's account, including his concluding remark that he had thought the meeting went well.Trump's post also discussed Maher's friendship with producer Chuck LaBella. He claimed LaBella and musician Kid Rock had repeatedly contacted him to arrange a meeting with the comedian, The Hollywood Reporter reported.According to Trump, their first dinner took place in March 2025 after those requests. The President also criticised Maher's HBO programme and its ratings.Maher and Trump had previously met for dinner at the White House, with Kid Rock also present. The latest exchange has brought that meeting back into public focus, with the comedian now offering his account of what happened and responding to the President's criticism.You use AI every day. Now get your AI Quotient. Take the AIQ test.