Fran Lebowitz Apologizes After Telling Bill Maher That Trump ‘Deserves’ What Khashoggi Got From the Saudis (Video)

Humorist walks back comment made on HBO’s “Real Time”

Humorist Fran Lebowitz apologized late Friday after telling Bill Maher on “Real Time” that President Trump “deserves” the same treatment that journalist Jamal Khashoggi received at the hands of the Saudi government — who are widely believed responsible for the Washington Post columnist’s 2018 murder and dismemberment.

Twitter lit up almost immediately after Lebowitz’s comments, which began with a riff on how she believes Trump should be impeached for the actions detailed in the Mueller report.

“Certainly, he deserves to be impeached. I mean, impeachment is just the beginning of what he deserves. Not even scratching the surface of what he deserves,” Lebowitz told Maher. “Whenever I think about this and what he really deserves, I think, ‘We should turn him over to the Saudis, you know, his buddies. The same Saudis who got rid of that reporter, you know. Maybe they can do the same for him.’”

But she walked back those comments during the “Overtime” segment that HBO records and posts online after the show. “We’re making a joke, we went too far, is that where we’re at?” Maher said at the top of the segment.”

Lebowitz noted that show’s producers had seen almost immediate “blowback on Twitter.”

“I saw your face when I said it,” she told Maher. “I didn’t realize that I had said it. I had 12 cups of coffee. I regret saying it.”

Maher leapt in to defend his guest. “You know, everyone’s too, too, too, too … ” Maher told his guests on the panel. “I mean, it’s a live show. You really don’t want to see the president dismembered by the Saudis. I don’t like Donald Trump either. … But no matter who the president is, we don’t want physical harm.”

Lebowitz added, “I did not mean that and I regret saying it. I regret that everyone misinterpreted it because they misinterpret everything.”

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