‘Straight-up communism’: Bill Maher gives dire warning to Dems over Zohran Mamdani, left-wing radicals

In the comments made during the “Overtime” segment, Maher said Democrats are suffering from an “identity crisis” and must decide whether they stand with Western civilization or with extremists.

“The world is a complicated place and it's not just about oppressor and oppressed,” Maher said. “They have a thought in their head that white people did some very bad things and white people did some very bad things, but so did everybody else in the world. But they don't know that, they see the world through this one prism. And until they do, I don't think you're going to get them off this issue and I don't think the Democratic Party is going to go forward until they make a decision: whose side are you on here?"

"Are you on the side of Western civilization and Western values or are you on the side of the terrorists?” Maher cited Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani, a New York City mayoral candidate, as an example of the extremism infiltrating the party. “Are you with those kids? Because Mamdani, he's the perfect candidate for them,” Maher added.

His comments followed a sharp exchange with Rep. Jason Crow (D-CO) earlier in the main episode of Real Time. The two clashed over Mamdani’s candidacy, with Maher calling Mamdani dangerously extreme.

“There's a lot of opposition [to Mamdani] because we've never had someone this radical,” Maher said. “Some of the things he says, you know he quotes Marxists, 'each according to their need.' I mean, that's straight-up communism.”

Crow pushed back, calling the criticism overblown. “They always try to create a villain is my point,” Crow said. “They always try to create some boogeyman or bogeywoman.”

“No, these are quotes. I'm not creating anything, I'm quoting [Mamdani],” Maher replied.

James Kirchick, author of Secret City and also a guest on the program, expanded on Maher’s warning and said Mamdani represented everything the far-right once accused Barack Obama of being.

“Everything that the crazy far-right alleged about Obama, wasn't born in America, Islamist, socialist, antisemite, hates America, it's all true about this guy [Mamdani],” Kirchick said.

“He defends the expression 'globalize the intifada,' which explicitly means, and I don't wanna hear anyone deny this, it means kill Jews whenever and wherever you can find them.”

Kirchick criticized Democratic leaders for refusing to denounce Mamdani, comparing their silence to how Republicans failed to confront Donald Trump early on. “Cowardice and spinelessness,” Kirchick said, describing Democratic leadership.

While Mamdani said he would stop using the phrase “globalize the intifada” and would “discourage” others from using it, tensions remain.

A July poll by American Pulse found that 30 percent of New York City voters support Mamdani’s refusal to condemn the slogan and his backing of the anti-Israel boycott movement, further revealing a widening divide within the Democratic Party.