Bill Maher: Political Satire Pierces Hard Rock Live Hollywood

Bill Maher: Political Satire Pierces Hard brought the room to its feet at Hard Rock Live — and reminded South Florida why live comedy is one of the city's most underrated nights out.

Iconoclast Mort Sahl was the king of political satire, attacking presidents and political leaders with sharp rhetoric and topical humor that really mattered. John F. Kennedy, President Nixon, and Dwight Eisenhower were subjects of his regular whippings, and he did it without being apologetic. Even though there is none like Mort, some have tried to emulate his style of fierce satire, but few possess the comedic talent. "Bill Maher is just negative … and the cursing! Maher likes me a lot but he thinks I am naive," Mort once said of Bill. Even so, Sahl has been the greatest influence on Maher's comedic life, and their work shares a similar spirit. Maher's politically charged jokes and acerbic tone pierced the audience at the Hard Rock Live in Hollywood, Florida, leaving some Republicans offended, Democrats pleased, and non-party affiliates in stitches from his raw humor. Sex, Clint Eastwood, religion, church, and Republican Party notables like Mitt Romney, Paul Ryan, and Sarah Palin were all fodder for the comedian's stand-up. No stones were left unturned. Coming off the heels of the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Florida, the Republicans had provided Bill with enough ammunition to unload on the audience — most of which they fully absorbed. He summed up the Republican Party in the first 30 minutes of the show: a party of NO. No more Obama, no sex, no contraceptives, no gay marriages, and the list goes on. On stage, Bill reintroduced presidential candidate Mitt Romney to the audience, describing him as the most uninteresting man in the world. He went on to say that Ann Romney tried to give a humanizing speech about her husband but instead made him sound like an appliance. He praised Clint Eastwood for his rambling Obama monologue at the RNC, noting that making an audience laugh for a full 12 minutes is a feat comedians find very hard to do — and Clint made it look easy. For Bill, Clint was the perfect representative for the Republicans: a typical old white guy talking to an imaginary Obama. Sarah Palin did not escape Bill's wrath either. He criticized her on her family and politics with brief mention of her son and her ongoing battles with FOX News over her contract. The GOP gave him plenty to discuss, and he went wild on sex and contraceptives, expressing his disdain for the Republican Party and wondering why people vote Republican when they are so against sex. He thought Todd Akin's comments were really terrible, but felt Rick Santorum was worse. According to Maher, host of Real Time on HBO, 95 percent of Catholics are practicing birth control, and the church doesn't believe in it — a contradiction he found endlessly amusing. Bill Maher relates very well with the audience, and his material laced with current events and politics was right for the moment and the crowd. During the RNC 2012, the Republicans used their platform to lash the president and his policies. At the Hard Rock, Bill tried to take some pressure off with light humor about President Obama, hoping the president would show a bolder side if re-elected. This politically charged stand-up was more like a campaign Obama 2012 fundraiser hosted by Bill Maher. Like Mort, Bill's comedy often stirs up controversy and has offended every group imaginable. Bill Maher does not roar as loudly as Mort Sahl, but he gets his point across — and if you get it, you get it. If not, oh well. September 2012 Daedrian McNaughton and Gary Sandelier | Premier Guide Media For more upcoming events across South Florida, visit the Premier Guide Miami Events Calendar .