Bill Maher, the liberal comedian who’s never shied away from calling out his own party’s nonsense, dropped a truth bomb on Friday’s HBO Real Time that should have every 2A advocate nodding in furious agreement. Praising a recent Supreme Court decision on tariffs, Maher ripped into Democrats for their sneaky habit of slapping fees on everything under the sun—essentially backdoor tax hikes that bypass voters and legislatures entirely. They do an end-run around the voters and the legislative branch by imposing fees that are basically just stealth tax increases, he said, spotlighting how politicians dodge accountability by rebranding revenue grabs as mere administrative costs. It’s classic big-government sleight of hand: call it a fee instead of a tax, and poof—no ballot box backlash.

Now, let’s connect the dots for the 2A community, where this scam hits hardest. Think ATF fees for suppressors, SBRs, and machine guns under the National Firearms Act—$200 a pop, non-waivable, and jacked up without a single vote from Congress or the people. These aren’t covering some nominal processing cost; they’re punitive revenue generators that price law-abiding gun owners out of exercising their rights, all while the agency drags its feet on approvals for months or years. Maher’s rant shines a light on the broader pattern: Dems (and compliant bureaucrats) love these stealth mechanisms because they fund their anti-gun crusades—expanding ATF staff, pushing red-flag databases, or litigating against standard-capacity magazines—without the pesky transparency of a tax bill that voters could revolt against. The Supreme Court’s tariff smackdown Maher cheered? It’s a reminder that courts might finally be reining in executive overreach, potentially opening doors to challenges against NFA transfer taxes as unconstitutional exactions.

The implications for gun rights are massive: if Maher’s awakening spreads, it could erode public tolerance for these fees masquerading as policy, pressuring Congress to sunset the NFA or at least index those fees to inflation (they haven’t budged since 1934, except upward). 2A warriors should amplify this—share Maher clips, tag blue-dog Dems, and push for fee abolition in the next spending bill. It’s not just about saving $200 on your Form 4; it’s about starving the beast that wants your AR-15 next. When even Hollywood lefties see through the grift, the tide might just be turning.