Via Mediaite:
Um, no?Maher then gave a full-throated defense of Franken, pointing out his first accuser Leeann Tweeden is friendly with folks like Sean Hannity and Donald Trump Jr. and that the infamous photo Franken took was only a joke and "no one died." He also invoked Franken statement from when he resigned from Congress that he didn't actually admit to any wrongdoing.
"I believe Al. I think that's still my right as an American to say," Maher told his audience. "Women should be heard always. And we should always keep in mind that vast majority of women reporting serious abuse are truthful. But women didn't also lose the ability to lie in 2017."
He noted the seven other accusers who said Franken grabbed them and singled out two of them for "being ridiculous."
"Are Democrats really going to permanently send away one of our ablest warriors for being a waist grabber?" Maher asked. "He didn't drive her off a bridge and leave her drown. Can we get some perspective? Does every infraction, no matter how small, have to be rehashed for an entire lifetime? That's not politics, that's marriage."
Maher added that "being touchy feely" is "part of the job" as a politician.
"Have you ever met Joe Biden? It's like meeting a great dane who smells bacon on your clothes," he joked. "Some guys just aren't good at hugs."