'I think you're gross': Bill Maher sharply criticized those who mocked the murder of Charlie Kirk

On Friday night, in his monologue on "Real Time," host Bill Maher commented that the United States has experienced a "very ugly week" after the murder of Charlie Kirk last Wednesday, after he was shot during an event at Utah Valley University. As the audience applauded, Maher commented during the prolonged ovation, "I hope that's for what I think it's for — because I've always been someone who wants to talk to people."

Later in the episode, which featured guests like The Atlantic editor Tim Alberta, political analyst Ben Shapiro and actor Charlie Sheen, Maher added: "I like everybody, I talk to everybody, I’m glad I took that approach. But he was shot under a banner that said, ‘Prove me wrong,’ because he was a debater, and too many people think that the way to do that — to prove you wrong — is to just eliminate you from talking altogether. So the people who mocked his death or justified it, I think you’re gross. I have no use for you. The people who are saying now we’re at war, I’ve no use for you."

Criticism of Congress and social media

Early in his presentation, he criticized the way Kirk's death was handled in the House of Representatives, explaining, "And then today in the Congress, because Charlie Kirk got assassinated, [Colorado Representative] Lauren Boebert stood up and said, 'We need to have a prayer.' So they started to have a silent prayer. And then she started screaming, 'No! Silent prayers get silent results.' As if praying out loud gets big results. So then the Democrats started screaming at her that there was a school shooting in her state. I tell you, so far, the civil war is not very civil."

Similarly, Maher strongly criticized the way in which social media became a stage on which numerous left-wing users celebrated Kirk's death, adding that both sides needed to understand each other to prevent the extreme polarization and tension in the United States from leading to more tragedies like the one suffered by the young conservative activist.

"The governor of the state said, 'Social media is a cancer,' which I think is true because when you read some of the comments from people, they really are in such a bubble that they don't understand that it's happening on both sides, and I think the only way this starts to get better is if both sides admit, 'OK, let's not have this debate about who started it. Let's not debate about who's worse because, plainly, both sides do it now.' And the right has done it too. A lot," Maher detailed.