Late-night HBO host Bill Maher described his uneasiness during last week’s manhunt for the remaining Boston Marathon bombing suspect, declaring that the United States is turning into a “police state.”
“This country is becoming a police state, and it is very troubling to me,” the “Real Time” host said while showing pictures of police officers patrolling the city and searching for Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. “I want to talk about the police. I want to talk about the police, who I am a supporter of, and of course, obviously, we all are. We would be in big trouble without the police.”
Actress-playwright Anna Deavere Smith agreed that the country is becoming a police state but argued heavily that it’s becoming more of a “military state.”
Political adviser Robert Traynham disagreed, saying the heavy response was not something that happens every day on Main Street.
“What we saw was a federal response after a horrific bombing,” he said.
ABC late-night host Jimmy Kimmel jumped in, adding that he agrees the country is becoming more policed.
SEE ALSO: Russia caught Tamerlan Tsarnaev and mother on wiretap discussing jihad
“I think we are in a police state,” he said. “We have cameras and our phones are being tracked and our cars are being tracked. … We must want this; this must be something we want.”
Mr. Maher criticized the Boston police as “unprofessional” for shooting at the boat where Mr. Tsarnaev was hiding, even though it turned out he was unarmed.
“It’s out of control,” he said.
• Jessica Chasmar can be reached at jchasmar@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.