Bill Maher, the outspoken host of HBO’s “Real Time,” has understandably never been a favorite of the right, and he didn’t exactly endear himself to his legions of haters with his latest slam of Middle America. “ ‘The flyover states have become the passed over states. That’s why red state voters are so pissed off. They don’t hate us, they want to be us. They want to go to the party. It’s like we’re the British royal family, and they’re Meghan Markle’s dad.’ ” That’s just a snippet from Maher’s closing segment on Friday’s “Real Time.” His lampooning of everywhere between the coasts went on for several minutes. “The blue parts of America are having a big prosperity party, while that big sea of red feels like their invitation got lost in the mail. And they still use the mail,” he said. “They turn on the TV and all the shows take place in a few hip cities, there’s no ‘Real Housewives of Toledo’ or ‘CSI: Lubbock.’ Jokes aside, the overarching point of his bit was that Amazon AMZN, +0.19% should have done its part to help revitalize areas of the country that could use a boost instead of choosing two already prosperous locales for HQ2. Read:Amazon cancels New York HQ2 — critics said it would have pushed hundreds of people into homelessness “Amazon picked two places that didn’t need them at all,” he said. “Bezos, you’re worth $130 billion, take one for the team. Stop playing cities off against one another and help a dying one come back to life.” Maher argued that red states are “going to keep getting angrier and crazier” if they keep getting left behind. He envisioned what Amazon West Virginia would mean for that state’s population, for instance. “People get better jobs that don’t give them black lung,” Maher quipped. “The locals meet people of different races and backgrounds and sexual orientations, none of whom kill them... Before you know it there’s legal weed and decent healthcare and the schools are teaching science again.” Watch the full segment: As expected, there was plenty of internet outrage over the weekend. Here’s just a taste of the social-media response: A few voices, however, say his bashers are missing the bigger picture:<doc-sep>Bill Maher, host of HBO's "Real Time with Bill Maher," made fun of Americans living in flyover states during his the Friday night broadcast of his show. Why? During his monologue, Maher addressed the news that Amazon had nixed its plans to build a New York City headquarters. Amazon issued a statement last week detailing their reason behind withdrawing its intent to build the campus. The statement read: After much thought and deliberation, we've decided not to move forward with our plans to build a headquarters for Amazon in Long Island City, Queens. For Amazon, the commitment to build a new headquarters requires positive, collaborative relationships with state and local elected officials who will be supportive over the long-term. While polls show that 70% of New Yorkers support our plans and investment, a number of state and local politicians have made it clear that they oppose our presence and will not work with us to build the type of relationships that are required to go forward with the project we and many others envisioned in Long Island City. So what did Maher say? Maher blamed at least a portion of Amazon's decision on the division between liberal-leaning areas and conservative-leaning areas, calling the problem "spatial geographic inequality." "We have a problem in America called 'spatial geographic inequality,' which means the most affluent and educated people are clustered in just a few cities," Maher told his viewers. "We have orchestras and theaters districts and world-class shopping. We have Chef Wolfgang Puck, they have Chef Boyardee," he continued to joke. "Our roofs have solar panels, theirs have last year's Christmas lights." Maher went on to say that conservatives might just have a chip on their shoulders when it comes to liberals. "Maybe that has something to do with why Trump voters are obsessed with 'owning the libs,'" the late-night show host mused, "because the libs own everything else. The blue parts of America are having a big prosperity party while that big sea of red feels like their invitation got lost in the mail." He added, "The fly-over states have become the passed-over states, that's why red state voters are so p****d off. They don't hate us, they want to be us." Maher went on to add that Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos should perhaps create a headquarters in one of these "less affluent" areas of the country. Maher later joked that Amazon could purchase the state of Mississippi and rename it "Amazippi." "Bezos, you're worth $130 billion. Take one for the team!" he demanded. "Stop playing cities off against one another and help a dying one come back to life. If we keep leaving the red states behind, they're going to keep getting angrier and crazier, because if you're not invited to the party, the next best thing is to throw a turd in the punch bowl."<doc-sep>“Real Time” host Bill Maher on Friday derided Middle Americans in red states as envious of their blue-state counterparts, in wide-ranging remarks that also included criticism of Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos for not building its headquarters in poorer states. HBO's Maher blamed Bezos for pitting wealthy cities against one another in a real estate battle over where the next Amazon headquarters would be built, while ignoring states that he argued would benefit most from thousands of new jobs. This, after a previous deal to build in New York City fell through. BILL MAHER ON JUSSIE SMOLLETT: VICTIMS SHOULDN’T ALWAYS BE BELIEVED, THEY SHOULD BE TAKEN ‘SERIOUSLY’ “We have a problem in America called spatial geographic inequality which means the most affluent and educated people are clustered in just a few cities,” he said. He said there are “two Americas,” referencing states that historically vote Democratic versus ones that skew Republican. “We have orchestras and theaters districts and world-class shopping. We have Chef Wolfgang Puck, they have Chef Boyardee.” He continued: “The blue parts of America are having a big prosperity party while the big sea of red feels like their invitation got lost in the mail -- and they still use the mail.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP The comedian went on to explain why he thinks red-state voters are so “pissed off.” “The fly-over states have become the passed-over states, that’s why red state voters are so pissed off. They don’t hate us, they want to be us.”<doc-sep>Real Time host Bill Maher mocked Americans living in red states as less 'affluent and educated' than those living in blue states. The comment was part of a message to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos after he and his company pulled out of a deal to have a headquarters in Queens in New York City. He said the company now had a chance to 'actually do good' and help out areas of the country that are less prosperous. In the closing remarks of his HBO show on Friday night, Maher compared Bezos to Bugsy Siegel, remarking that if the mobster built Las Vegas in the midst of a desert, then Amazon could do the same by turning Nebraska 'into the next Silicon Valley'. 'We have a problem in America called spatial geographic inequality which means the most affluent and educated people are clustered in just a few cities,' Maher said. SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO Real Time host Bill Maher said the 'most affluent and educated people are clustered in just a few cities', referring to those in blue states, in the closing remarks of his Friday show He then went on to mention a comment made by Hillary Clinton about how she 'won the places that represent two-thirds of America's gross domestic product' in the 2016 presidential election. Maher then shows a map where the majority of Middle America is in red while the coasts are heavy in blue, indicating where the plurality voted Democrat or Republican. 'The blue parts of America are having a prosperity party while that big sea of red feels like their invitation got lost in the mail,' Maher said. He then goes on to say there are clearly 'two Americas'. 'We have orchestras and theaters districts and world-class shopping. We have Chef Wolfgang Puck, they have Chef Boyardee,' Maher said. 'Our roofs have solar panels. Theirs has last year's Christmas lights.' The late-night host said Middle America, or 'the passed-over states', are not just angry - they're 'pissed off'. 'They don't hate us, they want to be us,' Maher said. Maher also accused Amazon of 'playing cities off against one another' during its bidding process for new headquarters. After 238 cities and regions submitted proposal, Amazon chose New York City and Arlington, Virginia, which is suburban Washington, DC. 'And Amazon picked two places that didn't need them at all, places where prosperity already was. Bezos you're worth 130 billion,' Maher said. 'Take one for the team. Stop playing cities off against one another and help a dying one come back to life!' Maher (left in December 2018 and right in August 2017) then goes on to say there are clearly 'two Americas', one where there is 'Chef Wolfgang Puck' and another when there is 'Chef Boyardee' On February 14, Amazon abruptly dropped plans Thursday for a big new headquarters in New York that would have brought 25,000 jobs to the city. Several politicians and activists objected to the nearly $3 billion in incentives promised to what is already one of the world's richest, most powerful companies. 'We are disappointed to have reached this conclusion - we love New York,' the online giant from Seattle said in a blog post announcing its withdrawal. The stunning move was a serious blow to Governor Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Bill de Blasio, who had lobbied intensely to land the project. New York City competed against more than 200 other metropolitan areas across the continent that were practically tripping over each other to offer incentives to Amazon in a bidding war the company stoked. Cuomo lashed out at fellow New York politicians over Amazon's change of heart, saying the project would have helped diversify the city's economy, cement its status as an emerging tech hub and generate money for schools, housing and transit. 'A small group (of) politicians put their own narrow political interests above their community,' he said. But Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, New York City's new liberal firebrand, exulted over Amazon's pullout. 'Today was the day a group of dedicated, everyday New Yorkers and their neighbors defeated Amazon's corporate greed, its worker exploitation, and the power of the richest man in the world,' she tweeted, referring to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos. In pulling out, Amazon said it isn't looking for a replacement location 'at this time.' It said it plans to spread the technology jobs that were slated for New York to other offices around the U.S. and Canada, including Chicago, Toronto and Austin, Texas. It will also expand its existing New York offices, which already have about 5,000 employees.<doc-sep>
Left-wing HBO host Bill Maher mocked voters in middle America on Friday’s edition of Real Time, explaining that less “affluent and educated” people in red states are jealous of those living in more prosperous states that tend to vote Democrat. Maher’s monologue was in response to the news this week that Amazon had scrapped its plan to build a new headquarters in New York, a proposal he argued was symbolic of the geographic inequality that exists in America. “We have a problem in America called spatial geographic inequality which means the most affluent and educated people are clustered in just a few cities,” Maher explained. “We have orchestras and theaters districts and world-class shopping. We have Chef Wolfgang Puck, they have Chef Boyardee.” “Maybe that has something to do with why Trump voters are obsessed with ‘owning the libs.’ Because the libs own everything else,” he continued. “The blue parts of America are having a big prosperity party while that big sea of red feels like their invitation got lost in the mail.” Maher then urged Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos to “take one for the team” and invest in a less prosperous state such as Mississipi, creating thousands of jobs for the local economy and preventing voters from throwing a “turd in the punch bowl” by voting for Republican politicians. “The blue parts of America are having a big prosperity party while the big sea of red feels like their invitation got lost in the mail — and they still use the mail,” he explained. “The fly-over states have become the passed-over states, that’s why red state voters are so pissed off. They don’t hate us, they want to be us.” “Bezos, you’re worth $130 billion. Take one for the team! Stop playing cities off against one another and help a dying one come back to life,” he said. “If we keep leaving the red states behind, they’re going to keep getting angrier and crazier, because if you’re not invited to the party, the next best thing is to throw a turd in the punch bowl.” Follow Ben Kew on Facebook, Twitter at @ben_kew, or email him at bkew@breitbart.com.