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Pete Buttigieg Polls A Literal Zero With Black Voters, And Bill Maher Wants Answers

Comedian and HBO host Bill Maher demanded answers when he discovered that former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg — who ran for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020 and garnered a sizable chunk of the party’s support — was getting no love from black voters.

Maher discussed the phenomenon with guests Dr. Phil McGraw and Stephen A. Smith during his Friday night panel discussion, and it was Smith who finally gave him an answer: “[Buttigieg] doesn’t move us.”

WATCH:

“Democratic primary voters, 16% would support Buttigieg,” Maher read from his show notes. “That’s the highest of any candidate. Pete Buttigieg.”

Smith’s response to that was immediate: “I don’t believe it. I think that’s just a poll number. I can’t see that happening.”

Maher went on to qualify his initial statement, noting that there was some disparity in that support.

“Okay, but wait. 16%. Black voters? Zero,” Maher clarified. “Zero. You don’t usually see zero. Anywhere. Zero’s low.”

“For who?” Smith quipped.

“For Buttigieg,” Maher said. “Okay, explain that. I mean — why do black voters have this — I mean, he’s a nice guy …”

“Yeah, he’s under indexing a little bit with black voters,” McGraw added with a laugh.

“A little? What is that all about.” Maher asked again.

“He doesn’t move us,” Smith replied, prompting laughs from Maher and the audience. “I respect the man. I’ve interviewed him before. Very nice man, highly intelligent. But you gotta be able to move us, bro. He doesn’t move us.”

The audience kept laughing as he added, “You can speculate as to why that is, I’m not going there. He doesn’t move us.”

Comments from popular radio host Charlamagne tha God appear to back up Smith’s assertions, as he complained in 2024 that the Democratic Party had no viable prospects ahead of 2028.

WATCH:

“They don’t even have one person to be president,” Jason Schulz said.

“Not one!” Charlamagne agreed, adding, “I saw Bill Maher say that the Democratic ticket, I don’t know if he was being funny … John Fetterman and Pete Buttigieg. That ain’t gon’ do it bruh … The Democrats are in such shambles.”

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