コメディアンのビル・マーが番組内でドナルド・トランプと側近ナタリー・ハープの関係に言及し、過去のラウラ・ルーマーをめぐる高額な名誉毀損訴訟を引き合いに出して深入りを避けたことを明かしたと、各メディアが報じた。
ビル・マーが語ったナタリー・ハープをめぐる姿勢と過去の訴訟リスク
番組のオープニングモノローグで、マーは民主党の新たな攻撃役として注目を集めるジョージア州のジョン・オソフ上院議員の動向に触れた。オソフが週末の演説でトランプの動向やハープの名前を挙げたことで、2人の関係をめぐる様々な噂が再び飛び交う事態となった。
Bill Maher Mocks Donald Trump & Natalie Harp After
しかし、マーはそこで踏み込むことをやめ、スタジオの観客に向けてこう語った。
「Okay, let me tell you, folks. I got sued about this once. No. Not the Orangutan. No, this was just a couple years ago. Laura Loomer sued me. I won, by the way. But, it’s expensive and unpleasant to get sued. So, you know, I took one for the team on this – you handle it.ビル・マー（コメディアン）
この発言が示す通り、マーは数年前にルーマーから1億5000万ドル規模の名誉毀損訴訟を起こされた経験がある。ルーマーは、マーが番組内で自身とトランプの関係を揶揄したことが誤った不義の告発にあたると主張して提訴していた。この訴訟は連邦判事によって4月に「ユーモアであり、事実の表明ではない」として棄却されたものの、訴訟対応の負担と不快感がマーの記憶に強く残っている。
「感情的サポート要員」と称されるハープの業務実態
Bill Maher Steers Clear of Trump’s Natalie Harp Dynamic
訴訟を避ける一方で、マーはナタリー・ハープの仕事ぶりそのものについては一定の評価と擁護の姿勢を見せた。ハープはトランプの移動に常に同行し、お世辞記事の印刷やソーシャルメディアへの投稿提案などを行う「人間プリンター」や「感情的サポート要員」として広く知られている。
報道によれば、ハープの年俸は15万ドルにのぼる。マーは彼女の働きぶりについて、次のように皮肉と称賛を交えて語った。
「She travels with him everywhere and she brings a portable wireless printer so she can print out flattering news articles. Trump is old school. He wants hard copies of the smoke blown up his ass. But that’s on him.ビル・マー
さらに、彼女が決して休みを取らず、時には食事や睡眠すら忘れて仕事に没頭している点に触れ、世間一般のミレニアル世代の働き方と比較して笑いを誘った。また、彼女が過去に骨肉腫を患い、トランプが迅速化した実験的治療によって救われたと感じているという背景事情にも言及し、周囲からの厳しい視線に対して疑問を投げかけている。
Bill Maher Reveals Why He’s Too Scared to Touch
Conservative conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer famously filed a $150 million defamation lawsuit against Maher and HBO in response to the “Real Time” host’s Sept. 2024 comments suggesting that Loomer was having an arranged relationship or affair with Trump. The federal judge ultimately dismissed the lawsuit in April, ruling that Maher’s remarks constituted jokes rather than actionable statements of fact. Despite successfully defending against the legal challenge, Maher emphasized to his audience that the experience was both expensive and unpleasant. The late-night host reiterated that he had taken one for the team during that legal battle, leaving further commentary about Trump’s inner circle to others.
The recent chatter surrounding Natalie Harp intensified following remarks from Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia during a campaign rally, where the lawmaker criticized Trump’s dedication to the job by pointing out that the president would rather travel with Harp and build his ballroom. Shortly after Ossoff’s comments, The Daily Beast published two intimate letters written by Harp that showcased her profound devotion to the president. Harp, a 35-year-old former anchor and host for the right-wing news network One America News, earns a taxpayer-funded salary of $150,000 a year for her role as Trump’s aide. Known widely across media coverage as a human printer, her daily responsibilities include following the president everywhere, fulfilling his requests, fetching merchandise, running Google searches, and printing flattering stories from right-wing websites.
During the Friday episode of Real Time With Bill Maher, the host also connected his monologue topics to a recent appearance by Trump on the podcast hosted by his former lawyer Michael Cohen. Maher reminded viewers of the harsh labels Cohen previously applied to Trump, recalling that the former fixer once called Trump a cheater, a liar, a fraud, a bully, a racist, a predator, and a con-man. Expanding on the theme of strained political alliances and unconventional loyalty, Maher noted similar past insults from prominent figures within Republican circles. He reminded the audience that Vice President JD Vance once suggested Trump might be America’s Hitler, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio mocked Trump’s physical attributes during a debate. Highlighting these turbulent relationships, Maher defended Trump’s appreciation for Harp’s unwavering loyalty by asking the audience to let the man have at least one dedicated friend.
保守派サークルでの反響とメディア間の報道の違い