HBO host Bill Maher said Friday the takeaway from a passive viewer of the Democratic debates this week would have been they "really, really care about illegal immigrants."
Maher interviewed 2020 candidate Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D., Hawaii) on Real Time and shared his thoughts about the two nights of Democratic debates, which were marked by their tack to the left.
"If I was just a passing viewer, who was like checking over the field, shopping, my first look at a lot of these people, I would have thought, 'Well, the Democrats really, really, really, really, really, really care about illegal immigrants," he said. "They also care somewhat about health care and energy and the environment, mostly about how they affect illegal immigrants."
Maher recounted how every candidate on the stage at Thursday night's debate raised their hands when asked if their health care plans would provide coverage for illegal immigrants. Former Vice President Joe Biden, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.), Sen. Kamala Harris (D., Calif.), Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D., N.Y.), Sen. Michael Bennet (D., Colo.), Andrew Yang, South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg, Marianne Williamson, former Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper, and Rep. Eric Swalwell (D., Calif.) all answered in the affirmative.
The New York Post ran a cover shot of the candidates raising their hands with the mocking headline, "Who Wants to Lose the Election?"
Asked for her thoughts, Gabbard said the media was focused more on profits and ratings than addressing issues important to candidates and the voters. Maher leans sharply left and strongly opposes President Donald Trump, but he is often critical of the Democratic party for its indulgences.
An MSNBC anchor said the raised hands moment at the debate was "Christmas" for Trump, who tweeted at the moment it happened that it was "the end of the that race."