What To Know
- Bill Maher argued that Democrats lose elections because of their handling of crime, particularly their failure to address repeat offenders in New York City.
- Maher and Charlie Sheen discussed the idea of isolating career criminals.
- NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch highlighted a significant recidivism problem in New York City, noting that 39% of people arrested in early 2025 were rearrested within weeks of release.
Bill Maher has suggested the reason Democrats lose elections is because of the party’s approach to crime, particularly when it comes to repeat offenders in major cities such as New York.
The Real Time host discussed the issue with Charlie Sheen on the most recent episode of his Club Random podcast, which began with the pair talking about social media.
“Ninety per cent of Twitter is from the ten percent of people who use it,’ Maher said, per The Daily Mail. “That’s their hobby.”
“It’s like crime!” Sheen responded.
Maher added to Sheen’s interjection, stating, “In New York, they had some crazy stat… because, you know, they throw people in jail and then they’re out the next day. Like, some crazy percentage of crimes, some side of crime, was like from 600 people who just over and over did like 80 per cent of whatever.”
The Two and a Half Men alum had an answer, suggesting, “They clearly know who the f*** these people are. If you know who they are, why not take just those 600 people and build a special place for them? Call it the 600 Building,’
Maher praised the idea, telling Sheen, “That’s good. That’s very good. The 600 Building.”
“This is why Republicans get elected. Democrats run cities and they don’t do that,” Maher continued. “Everyone should like that. These are career criminals. Call me crazy, but I don’t think crime should be a career.”
“Or be allowed to become one,” Sheen added.
Back in April, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch noted a drop in major crimes in the first quarter of 2025 but claimed the city still has a “surging recidivism problem.”
“Every New Yorker should know that they (the crime statistics) could be even better. We are still up above 2018 high levels, and there are several reasons why,” Tisch told reporters, per the New York Post. “Most notably, 2018 was the last full year before drastic changes to our state’s criminal justice system took effect.”
She continued, “These changes had wide-ranging consequences, and over the past seven years, one thing has become very clear: New York City does not have a certain high level, but we do have a surging recidivism problem.”
Tisch added that more than a third of individuals arrested in the first quarter of 2025 ended up back in handcuffs within weeks of their release. “Looking at just the first quarter, 39% of the people arrested this quarter were arrested at least twice in the same three-month period,” she stated, claiming that the recidivism rate is up nearly 50% since 2018.