Bill Maher: Mel Gibson and Tom DeLay Are Anti-Semites

Controversial TV talker Bill Maher attacked religious conservatives in an early morning interview on Wednesday, claiming that movie star Mel Gibson and House Majority Leader Tom DeLay were "anti-Semitic."

"I do think Mel Gibson is anti-Semitic," Maher told radio host Don Imus. "So, by the way, is Tom DeLay. So, by the way, are all these Christian right people who pretend to be friends of Israel."

Then Maher accused Christian fundamentalists of befriending Israel only because, ultimately, they'd like to see Jews die:

"You know, this is the sickest thing. They go over to Israel and they're not for the Bush road map to peace over there in the Middle East. Because they don't want Arabs in Jerusalem – because what they say is the Bible says that when Jesus comes back for the Second Coming, Jerusalem has to be just the way he left it."

The host of HBO's "Real Time" continued:

"It can't be full of Arabs, because there were no Arabs then. It has to be full of Jews. Because when the Second Coming takes place and we all go up to heaven, the Jews have a place in that little play – which of course is to die. The Jews have to die when Jesus comes back."

Then the TV talker adopted the voice of a mock movie director and announced, "Places, everybody. Where are my Jews? You have a place to play in this, and that's dying – or converting."

Earlier in the interview, Maher charged that President Bush had misled the American people about Saddam Hussein's ties to terrorists, saying that any affiliation between the Iraqi dictator and folks like Osama bin Laden was purely social.

"It's so preposterous," he told Imus. "I mean, I always said it was like the link between – you know, they keep putting Sug Knight in jail because he associates with gang members."

The HBO host explained:

"Well, yes. He's a black guy from the hood who was in the rap industry. Of course he is going to know a few people with a criminal record. And Saddam Hussein is an Arab. Of course he's going to know a few terrorists socially."

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Editor's note:
James Hirsen's "Tales from the Left Coast" - Find out the real story behind Mel Gibson's "The Passion," and more!