American political commentator Bill Maher has launched a scathing critique against Jimmy Kimmel's wife, Molly McNearney, following her revelation that she severed ties with family members who continued supporting Donald Trump in last November's election.
The Family Political Divide
McNearney, who serves as co-head writer and executive producer of Jimmy Kimmel Live!, recently appeared on the We Can Do Hard Things podcast where she disclosed the emotional toll of political divisions within her family. She explained that she had sent relatives an email outlining ten reasons why they shouldn't vote for Trump before the election, but ultimately ended relationships with those who supported him anyway.
"To me, them voting for Trump is them not voting for my husband and me and our family," McNearney stated during the podcast appearance earlier this month. She described receiving either silence or what she called "truly insane responses" from family members, acknowledging that the situation has "definitely caused a strain" in family relationships.
Maher's Criticism of 'Purity Test Culture'
Maher, hosting his Real Time programme, seized on McNearney's comments as emblematic of what he termed a growing 'purity test culture' among liberals. The veteran host, known for criticising political tribalism on both sides, specifically mocked the concept of issuing family ultimatums over political differences.
"She says she's lost relationships with relatives because she wrote them an email before the election with ten reasons why they shouldn't vote for Trump, and some still didn't obey," Maher remarked. "Ten reasons? I can think of 100. But I would never present it to someone as an ultimatum."
Maher delivered his central criticism forcefully: "Ultimatums don't make people rethink their politics. They make them rethink you."
Broader Political Implications
The HBO host expanded his critique beyond the personal family drama, suggesting that attitudes like McNearney's represent a broader problem for the left that ultimately costs them political power. Maher connected this approach to Vice President Kamala Harris's defeat in the 2024 election and the return of what he called a 'second helping of MAGA' to the White House.
Maher, who noted that he himself votes Democratic, challenged liberals to engage in more self-reflection: "Write a top ten list to yourself where you try to imagine ten reasons why 77 million Americans didn't want to trust you with taking power."
He added a pointed remark aimed at his "very pure friends" on the left: "As I like to remind my very pure friends, we voted for the same person. You're just why she lost."
The family political drama unfolds against a backdrop of ongoing tension between Kimmel and Trump. Earlier this year, Trump succeeded in pressuring Disney to remove Kimmel's show from air for several days in September after the host made controversial comments following Charlie Kirk's assassination.
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr had threatened to revoke ABC's broadcast license if Kimmel wasn't held accountable, though the popular host returned to air after swift backlash and has continued targeting Trump in his monologues.
Meanwhile, McNearney revealed that despite the family ruptures, she has grown closer to relatives who share her values. "I've definitely pulled in closer with the family that I feel more aligned with," she said, emphasising that for her, the divide isn't about politics but fundamental values.
