Ep. #717: Nate Bargatze, Joe Scarborough, Marjorie Taylor Green

Summary

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Real Time with Bill Maher – Episode #717 (January 31, 2026)

Overview

This episode of Real Time with Bill Maher brought together comedian Nate Bargatze, political commentator Joe Scarborough, and Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene for a lively, wide-ranging discussion. The program tackled the evolving divide within the Republican party, controversies over ICE’s actions and political violence, the cultural power—or lack thereof—of celebrity activism, and the ongoing Jeffery Epstein files scandal. The episode balanced comedy and sharp critique, featuring personal anecdotes, pointed analysis, and classic Maher sarcasm.

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Key Segments and Discussion Points

1. Stand-Up Comedy, Authenticity, and Success with Nate Bargatze

(07:05–16:59)

• Nate Bargatze’s Career Path & New Projects

  • Bargatze discusses the evolution of stand-up comedy, emphasizing how the current era allows comedians to find success outside of traditional TV (“you can just be a stand up comedian.” – [10:21]).
  • He contrasts the earlier days—where shows and sitcoms were the goal—with today, where touring and direct-to-audience connections are possible.

• Finding Your Lane

  • Both Maher and Bargatze reflect on how comics are “all over the map,” with the only thing in common being a love of making people laugh.
  • Maher highlights Bargatze’s “average American” persona and how it has translated into his game show and film.

• On Reading and Education

  • They discuss Bargatze’s public persona as someone who claims not to read much, with Maher challenging him to read his own novel:

    “I think you can read this book.” – Bill Maher ([15:57])

2. The Republican Party’s Internal Rifts and ICE Controversy

(17:41–23:55)

• Republican Principles vs. Partisan Power

  • Maher questions whether Republicans have abandoned core principles such as small government and balanced budgets.

    “They finally found something with the second shooting.” – Bill Maher ([18:16])

• ICE’s Heavy-Handed Actions & Party Backlash

  • Joe Scarborough recalls a past where both Republican conservatives and civil libertarians opposed big government and police state tactics ([19:19–20:25]).
  • Marjorie Taylor Greene positions herself as still a Second Amendment absolutist, referencing her support of Kyle Rittenhouse and criticizing both sides when they “infringe” on gun rights.

• Changing Political Calculus

  • Discussion about a Minnesota GOP gubernatorial candidate dropping out due to national Republicans hurting local chances, hinting at the toxicity Trumpism has brought to local elections ([21:17]).

3. Media, Protest, and Government Crackdowns

(23:11–31:06)

• Media Crackdown and Arrests: Don Lemon Example

  • Maher and Scarborough decry government intimidation of journalists (“That is exactly what they do in fascist governments…” – Maher [25:25]).
  • Greene retorts, focusing on the notion that religious worship was disrupted, framing Don Lemon’s act as illegal under the FACE Act, not as journalism.

• Faceless State Power and Civil Liberties

  • Scarborough highlights the historic bipartisanship against police overreach, expressing shock it took so long for Republicans to be concerned.
  • Maher points to the normalization of labeling protesters as domestic terrorists, warning of “fascist” tendencies.

4. Political Violence & Overheated Rhetoric

(29:46–32:29)

• Attacks on Politicians

  • Maher brings up the attack on Rep. Ilhan Omar, framing it as part of a larger uptick in political violence.
  • Greene asserts, “as Americans, it’s okay for us to disagree…but it’s not okay to celebrate violence or death threats.”

• Call for Decency and Example-Setting

  • Scarborough shares a story about his cordial friendship with Maxine Waters despite deep political differences, using it to emphasize the need for civility ([31:06]).

5. Culture Trends & Satire: Tinder and 'Worst Behavior'

(32:29–36:10)

• Hot-Take Dating Trend
  • Maher riffs on new candid modes of dating, reading outlandish real Tinder exchanges to illustrate how “the guys are always worse than the women” ([33:27]).
  • Segment provides comic relief while lampooning modern dating honesty.

6. The Epstein Files and Government Transparency

(36:10–41:49)

• Why the Delay and Redactions?

  • All guests agree on frustration about why Epstein’s files weren't released earlier, noting bipartisan failure under multiple administrations.
  • “It protects the rich, powerful elites…and that seems to be what it’s all about.” – Marjorie Taylor Greene ([40:32])
  • Scarborough points out the broad congressional consensus to release the files (only one 'no' vote) and the continuing foot-dragging and redactions.

• Public Cynicism

  • General agreement that the Epstein scandal embodies the “one rule for the rich, another for the rest” sentiment fueling voter anger.

7. Republican Party Splits: MAGA, Anti-Semitism, and Ideology

(41:49–47:10)

• Party Fragmentation

  • Maher runs down rightwing infighting: MAGA splits, anti-Semitism flare-ups, Tucker Carlson’s “Nazi-curious” interviews, etc.
  • Greene articulates core MAGA principles, lamenting how the movement’s focus has “evolved into something else”.
  • Joe Scarborough notes the party’s increasing struggles among Hispanics, Asian Americans, and young voters.

• Antisemitism in Conservative Circles

  • The discussion includes calls for condemnation of figures like Nick Fuentes and skepticism of Candace Owens, with Maher noting:

    “The trouble is... Candace Owens, Bannon… Sometimes Megyn Kelly is on the wrong side…” ([45:49])

• Israel and Foreign Aid

  • Consensus that criticism of Israeli government is legitimate political speech, but lines are being blurred by the far-right.

8. The Futility of Celebrity Activism

(47:10–54:44)

• Celebrity Virtue-Signaling

  • Maher delivers a monologue on the ineffectiveness of celebrity “ribbon” activism, slamming the performativity of Hollywood’s approach to social issues.
  • Memorable quote:

    “You can’t name a problem from guns to AIDS to bullying to breast cancer that still exists after people wore a ribbon for it. Except all of them, you fucking posers.” – Bill Maher ([53:45])

• Celebrity Endorsements Backfiring

  • He points to studies showing negative or negligible impact of celebrity endorsements in politics (Taylor Swift, Kamala Harris, etc.).
  • Argues that celebrities, while talented and well-intentioned, are disconnected from real-world issues.

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Notable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps)

• “We are just all over the map… you met your wife at Applebee’s. I don’t even have a wife. Why would I go? …I guess I don’t think [Applebee’s] existed when I was poor and now I’m fucking rich.”
  – Bill Maher ([08:28])

• “For us now… you can just be a stand-up comedian.”
  – Nate Bargatze ([10:21])

• “Standup is like the last pure art form… people want that authenticity, where so much else in their life is not authentic.”
  – Bill Maher ([11:27])

• “I don’t think younger artists are getting developed properly… it’s all about social media, getting the watches and the views. And you’re not developing anybody, which is going to make your system crumble.”
  – Nate Bargatze ([13:25])

• “They finally found something with the second shooting. …the guy had a gun, right? …And they said, the fuck we can't. They guns—I think that is the ultimate third rail for them.”
  – Bill Maher ([18:16])

• “We didn’t want big government. …We didn’t want the FBI to be able to have, you know, warrantless wiretaps. We didn’t want to see the sort of things that we’ve seen in Minneapolis over the past week.” – Joe Scarborough ([19:19])

• “We need to see people on both sides really agree that [gun rights are] the right thing to do.” – Marjorie Taylor Greene ([20:49])

• “That is exactly what they do in fascist governments. Whenever you’re a protester, you’re actually an enemy of the state, and we arrest you. That’s what’s going on in Iran right now.”
  – Bill Maher ([25:25])

• “As Americans, it’s okay for us to disagree…but it’s not okay to celebrate violence or death threats or anything like that towards one another.” – Marjorie Taylor Greene ([30:26])

• “Everybody in Congress voted for it except for one member. …We’re about six weeks past the deadline where they were required by law [to release Epstein files].”
  – Joe Scarborough ([41:27])

• “MAGA to me meant secure the border. No more foreign wars… and we should release the Epstein files. …And I don’t know how in one year’s time, MAGA all of a sudden becomes okay with bombing foreign countries… That’s the split…” – Marjorie Taylor Greene ([43:00])

• “You can’t name a problem... that still exists after people wore a ribbon for it. Except all of them, you fucking posers.” – Bill Maher ([53:45])

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Memorable Moments

• Bill Maher gifting Nate Bargatze his novel, challenging him to read more ([15:35–16:55])
• Tinder “hot take” joke segment lampooning radical honesty in online dating ([33:24–34:37])
• The cross-party civility anecdote between Scarborough and Maxine Waters ([31:02–31:27])
• Scarborough and Greene, unlikely as co-commentators, agreeing that the system shields the elite (Epstein files) while ordinary people get the book thrown at them ([41:49–42:13])
• Maher’s excoriating monologue on Hollywood activism, snarkily listing celebrity excesses ([54:00–54:44])

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Tone and Style

The episode maintained Real Time's signature blend of satire, exasperation, political critique, and frank honesty. Maher frequently pulled back the curtain, calling out both left and right for hypocrisy, while the guests oscillated between introspection and partisanship, with occasional flashes of agreement that transcended the usual divides. The humor, though biting at times, provided necessary relief amid weighty topics.

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Summary Table of Key Segments

| Time | Topic | Speakers | Highlight/Quote | |-----------|---------------------------------------------|------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------| | 07:05–16:59 | Comedy, authenticity, new media | Bill Maher, Nate Bargatze | “You can just be a stand up comedian.” – Bargatze | | 17:41–23:55 | Republican divides, ICE overreach | Maher, Scarborough, Greene | “They finally found something with the second shooting…” – Maher | | 23:11–31:06 | Media, civil liberties | Maher, Scarborough, Greene | “That is exactly what they do in fascist governments…” – Maher | | 29:46–32:29 | Political violence | Maher, Greene, Scarborough | “It’s okay for us to disagree… but not celebrate violence…” – Greene | | 32:29–36:10 | Tinder satire, hot-take dating | Maher | “The guys are always worse than the women.” – Maher | | 36:10–41:49 | Epstein files, system rigging | Maher, Scarborough, Greene | “It protects the rich, powerful elites… ” – Greene | | 41:49–47:10 | Party splits, anti-Semitism, MAGA | Maher, Scarborough, Greene | “MAGA to me meant... we should release the Epstein files.” – Greene | | 47:10–54:44 | Celebrity activism, futility and backfire | Maher | “Except all of them, you fucking posers.” – Maher (re: ribbons) |

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Conclusion

This episode of Real Time provided a no-holds-barred examination of American politics in 2026, shaped by cynicism over elite impunity, cracks in the Republican coalition, the search for authenticity in art, and deep skepticism about the cultural influence of celebrity. The episode’s highlights ranged from sharp policy debates to personal stories and blistering satire, making it both engaging for newcomers and thought-provoking for political junkies.

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Transcript

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[Bill Maher]

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[Commercial Narrator]

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[Bill Maher]

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[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

Welcome to an hbo podcast from the hbo late night series real time with bill maher.

[Bill Maher]

Sam, thank you. All right, well, thank you very much. Wow, what a reception. Thank you so much. Wow. This is a. Thank you. Okay. Boy, highly excitable crowd. I love it. And I think I know why you're excited this week. Because it's one week before the super bowl and six days since ICE killed anybody, so. Oh, it's getting really chippy out there in Minnesota. Boy, everything happens in anybody here from Minnesota. Don't bring that shit here. Always. I mean, Elon Omar, the congresswoman, I have nothing in common with her politically, but this is horrible. We cannot allow this to happen. It happens. More and more politicians getting attacked. Luckily, it wasn't harmful when somebody went after her yesterday where she was making a speech with a syringe. Could have been anything in there. Turned out it was. You know what it was? Apple cider vinegar. The guy was charged with one count of aggravated assault and two counts of disturbing the pH, which. No, look, there are mass protests today all across the country. It turns out that what ICE is doing in Minnesota is something even Trump's base cannot quite abide. All the way. And Trump, interesting. He once famously said that he could stay popular if he shot somebody in the middle of Fifth Avenue. Maybe, but not Minnesota. Minnesota is proving a different case. And by the way, in this fight between the two sides, the thugs and the protesters, the other side blinked this week. That's the story. This guy, Gregory Bevino, you saw this guy, he was the border out. They got rid of him.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

Put in.

[Bill Maher]

Tom Holman, who is using words now like, we're drawing down. Okay, good, let's draw down. And he. Tom Holman also met with Governor Tim Walz and they said it was cordial. And they realized that they had a lot in common at the end of the meeting when they exchanged brown paper bags full of money. I kid the politicians. Oh, and another thing that was kind of positive this week. Last week I said, next, we're going into Maine. And they went. And this week they said, no, we've ended operations in Maine after nine days of scouring the state and finding only white people. So. But one place ICE is still going to go. They have not changed on this. The Super Bowl. They're going to the Super Bowl. Even worse, Kristi Noem is going to the Puppy Bowl. That's really going to. Not to defend ice, of course, but if you're an immigrant and you can afford the $6,000 Super bowl ticket, you actually might be a drug dealer. Yeah, I mean, I'm not going to lie about that one. But look, I'm going to go ahead and call this a positive week for America because I feel like the level of lying that they have done in Minnesota, they got to a place where even they couldn't take it. Even the case here of the second shooting that happened in Minneapolis, Kristi Noem is now saying that she got her information wrong. Okay? The guy wasn't a terrorist. He wasn't brandishing a gun. He wasn't trying to kill law enforcement. But she did get the city. Right. It was Minneapolis. And again, this is positive. We're definitely not going to be invading Greenland anymore. If America needs to stretch out, you can always go to the Melania movie.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

And.

[Bill Maher]

And here's some interesting news. Luigi Mangione fans. Do we have any Luigi Mangione fans here? Right. Because street executions. Street executions are always okay when it's a cause you like. Yeah, but okay, so here's the. The judge said he will not fly, faced a death penalty now, Luisi Mangione. But he will reassess in 15 years when he's less hot. All right, we got a great show. We have Marjorie Taylor Greene is back with us and Joe Scarborough. But first up, a comedian and actor, the host of the Greatest Average American game show, premiering February 22nd on ABC and star of the upcoming film the Breadwinner. Please welcome Nate Garbagey is here. Wow. Thank you very much. Comedian. How you doing?

[Nate Bargatze]

Yeah, I'm great.

[Bill Maher]

I'm great. Thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you, mate. First of all, exciting. I know you. You stayed in LA a couple of extra days just to do this. I so appreciate that.

[Nate Bargatze]

Oh, yeah.

[Bill Maher]

You are America's hottest comedian. You're a middle of the country guy. Do you. When you have to stay in la, is it Painful or do you like it here?

[Nate Bargatze]

I love it. It's great. Your weather. I mean, it's freezing in Nashville now, so it's. It was. You know, you guys got great weather. I get it. I get it. Yeah.

[Bill Maher]

All right. Well, one reason I wanted to have you here is because, you know, I've been a comedian a very long time, and one of the great things about us comics is that we are just all over the map. Yeah. We have one thing in common, is that we make people laugh. We love to do it, but we're all so different. And you and I, we could not be more different. Yeah, right. I mean, you met your wife at Applebee's, and that's not.

[Nate Bargatze]

That's not yours.

[Bill Maher]

I don't even have a wife, you know. You don't have a wife. Yeah. Yeah.

[Nate Bargatze]

When's the last time you've been to Applebee's?

[Bill Maher]

Applebee's? Never.

[Nate Bargatze]

Never been to Applebee's.

[Bill Maher]

Why would I go? I guess I don't think it existed when I was poor and now I'm fucking rich. But, you know, there is things we do have in common. Like, I've heard you grew up in a Christian household. You know what? So did I. I was raised Catholic. Yeah, Catholic.

[Nate Bargatze]

I think you took a much harder turn than I did. Yeah, yeah.

[Bill Maher]

Why you think Catholic? It's more hardcore.

[Nate Bargatze]

No, no, I'm saying, you know, just your belief of nothing.

[Bill Maher]

Oh, I see. Like, you went. Yes. Yeah. You went completely. Yeah, no, you're right. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Ye. Well, nothing to do with Catholicism. Yeah, yeah, yeah, exactly. I think Jesus is a wonderful moral philosopher, and I believe in ethics and lots of other stuff. We don't have to get into that.

[Nate Bargatze]

I'm a big fan. I'm a big fan as well, so.

[Bill Maher]

Yeah, yeah, so. But what I love about what's going on with you now is that you found your lane, which we all do and have to do in show business. Your show is your game show. I mean, you got a movie, you got a game show, you got a theme park.

[Nate Bargatze]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. We're building.

[Bill Maher]

We're.

[Nate Bargatze]

It's not there yet, but.

[Bill Maher]

Yeah, I mean, that's. That's. I've never heard anybody, you know, have that much going on at this.

[Nate Bargatze]

Well, I'm just going. No one's. No one's saying no.

[Bill Maher]

Like, so, you know. Yeah. Just kind of. Yeah. While they're offering it. Because show business is not dependable.

[Nate Bargatze]

No. Well, you know what is?

[Bill Maher]

Like.

[Nate Bargatze]

Because when we started, like, where I started in Comedy we started like for you guys, you had to go to get on tv. Really. It wasn't a path where now as a stand up comic and I was able to go through the whole system and you start selling your own tickets and you start like really doing bigger stuff. And there's a path for standups that wasn't the path when you started. And when you talk to comics and Seinfeld and stuff that you know, they needed to show, it was about getting on sitcoms and it was about that kind of stuff. And so for us now it's like, you know, it's really opened up to be. You can just be a stand up comedian.

[Bill Maher]

Well, you have to be a good one.

[Nate Bargatze]

Yes, well, yes.

[Bill Maher]

Yes.

[Nate Bargatze]

Yeah.

[Bill Maher]

People have to like what you're doing and you have to find that lane. I mean, I mean you're.

[Nate Bargatze]

Well, it's the most honest too. That's what's great about it. Because you find out in that second if that was the worst or not. You tell a joke and it's immediate. That's what's been. I mean, I'm excited about the movie and the game show, but it's like to create something that I have to really wait for, the reaction is kind of weird. Cause it's. I'm so used to. You can try a joke tonight. You can try. You can do anything and see if something works, you know.

[Bill Maher]

Well, it better. Cause we don't re. Tape. Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's for sure. This is it. This is it. You know, I'm not. I mean, that's, that's why I have loved so much doing this show for 23 years. Cause it's as it's happening, you know, I don't have to think about it after. Cause I can't because it's done. Cause we're home. And as you say, where everything, especially these days is. Can you really be sure if that's true? You know, everything with AI and so forth. And I think we both agree standup is like that last pure art form where people want that authenticity, where so much else in their life is not authentic.

[Nate Bargatze]

If I can invest, I mean, if you can invest in an art form, Stand up, I think is. I look at stand up Stand up still a pretty new art form in the way that we see it today. You know, where like a lot of the company, like Carlin could be alive. Like it's not like he'd be 150, he would be alive right now. So it's like where you see it as now it's developing so much. It's going so much faster. And then with comics, I mean, yeah, it's me talking to this audience. And it's the only thing you get a lot of other entertainment or stuff like that. You can be like, well, I don't know what's going on. Music, you can be like, well, what's really happening. And with Stand up is just it's me to you in its most pure form. And I think it's only going to grow.

[Bill Maher]

But not everybody who gets up there and the audience is exposed to that person. Catches on like you did. It's so funny that your reputation in a lot of these projects, the theme park, the movie, the game show, it's about the average American. You're just the average guy.

[Nate Bargatze]

Oh, yeah.

[Bill Maher]

Well, plainly not the average guy with a theme park, a movie.

[Nate Bargatze]

But I'm the greatest at it.

[Bill Maher]

That's what I say.

[Nate Bargatze]

The name of the show is the Greatest Avenue.

[Bill Maher]

So it's like you just try to say that's the idea of the game show.

[Nate Bargatze]

No, the idea. I have a special called the Greatest Average American. I would always joke that I'm that. And so then when I called that special, that was a great title, which led into me thinking of the game show and creating that game show. I just want to create this stuff. I was, as I came up through this system. It's like with. I've done all the gigs, I've done the shows in front of one person in front of a big arena. Like, you've kind of hit all the spots I look at. Like doing a game show when I hosted Emmys is to do a movie. I want to kind of do everything, so I know how to do everything. And then I also want to try to help. You know, I don't think younger artists are not getting developed properly. And so they don't. They get kind of pushed out too quick. And a lot of them really need some developing. Developing helped me a lot because I was able to kind of sit and learn how to get better. And you're sending a lot of younger people. It's like all about social media. It's all about getting the watches and the views. And you're not developing anybody, which is going to make your system crumble because you have no one underneath it that can keep and carry it. And so hopefully you can build safe places so they can go do whatever they want. Then that would be clean. I'm not saying be like me or whatever, but just be an artist that can have an act that can work and work for a very long time.

[Bill Maher]

Okay. So. Now there's one more thing we have to get to.

[Nate Bargatze]

Okay.

[Bill Maher]

It may not be that easy for you, reading, because first time I saw you, you were on Saturday Night Live. You did this routine. I. I mean, it was riveting because you talked. It was all about how come on a book, you really expect me to get through a whole book? So many words.

[Nate Bargatze]

A lot of words.

[Bill Maher]

Yeah. I don't blame you. I blame the country and society and the educational system. But, you know, books are actually good.

[Nate Bargatze]

I mean, look, I look at them, I think about it every day and I look at books and I go, buddy, I want to get in there. Something holds me back.

[Bill Maher]

I brought you a. I'm going to challenge you to read. I think I could. A lot of reason why people don't read the book doesn't interest. I wrote a novel.

[Nate Bargatze]

Yes.

[Bill Maher]

All right. It's about. It's really funny.

[Nate Bargatze]

Yeah.

[Bill Maher]

Funny on every page. It's about my early years in stand up. So it's a subject that I bet would interest you very well.

[Nate Bargatze]

Very much interests me.

[Bill Maher]

I'm going to challenge you. I think you can read this book.

[Nate Bargatze]

Yeah.

[Bill Maher]

Thank you. Will you take the challenge?

[Nate Bargatze]

Yes. And then I'll come back on and tell you what.

[Bill Maher]

Absolutely. Or tell me private. Or tell me publicly. But I think you can do it.

[Nate Bargatze]

Is it like.

[Bill Maher]

Yeah, it's not that long.

[Nate Bargatze]

The words look okay. I don't feel like anything looks too.

[Bill Maher]

Big when you put them.

[Nate Bargatze]

Picasso. You talk about Picasso. At some point that's going to go over my head. But I bet I'll. I'll look stuff up.

[Bill Maher]

But you're right. Yeah. Just start it. I bet you if you're not. I get it.

[Nate Bargatze]

You're going to get me rolling, dude. I'll be a book guy.

[Bill Maher]

Let's not get too.

[Nate Bargatze]

Do you have any blank pages in here? Because that's what I think books are supposed to have, right?

[Bill Maher]

I think like the beginning of a chapter.

[Nate Bargatze]

Yeah.

[Bill Maher]

I think is maybe half is blank.

[Nate Bargatze]

Yeah.

[Bill Maher]

So we start with baby steps.

[Nate Bargatze]

Okay.

[Bill Maher]

Okay, Neil.

[Nate Bargatze]

All right, let's start here.

[Bill Maher]

All right.

[Nate Bargatze]

Thank you.

[Bill Maher]

Thank you very much. Good luck with all your projects. So great to meet you, man.

[Nate Bargatze]

So great to meet you.

[Bill Maher]

I'm a fan. They're very funny. All right. Nate Borg. Etsy. Let's meet our panel. Hey, guys. All right. He is co host of Ms. Now's morning show and author of its daily newsletter, the Tea Spilled by Morning Joe. Joe Scarborough. How are you? Good to See you. And teaser. A former Republican congresswoman from Georgia and author of the book MTG Marjorie Taylor Greene is back with us so quickly. I know we made you a star on this show. Now they love you.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

I owe it all to you.

[Bill Maher]

You do. And America's changing because of that. I take all the credit. All right, so I think the big story this week is, as I said in the monologue, I think the Republican base, and you're a former Republican, you're still a Republican, but obviously have issues with the administration, finally found something that they don't like. I mean, they certainly threw under the bus a lot of Republican principles in the last five, 10 years. Am I wrong about that? I mean, small government and debt and not attacking police.

[Joe Scarborough]

I mean, $39 trillion debt. Yeah.

[Bill Maher]

Rioting, largest deficits ever. Attacking the Capitol used to be something Republicans were against.

[Joe Scarborough]

You know, beating up cops, conceding election.

[Bill Maher]

All that was okay. They finally found something with the second shooting. And the guy had a gun, right? And cash. Patel said, you cannot bring a firearm loaded with multiple magazines to any sort of protest that you want. And they said, the fuck we can't. They guns. I think that is the ultimate third rail for them. I mean, I remember when they wanted. And maybe they still do, they take them into Starbucks. You know, you'd see people, oh, yeah, there's a picture of it. You know, that was. That's America. And protests. They did that a lot. So I don't know, I mean, the.

[Joe Scarborough]

Purpose, when I was a Republican, it was small government. It was balanced budgets.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

It was, I co sponsored that every Congress, balanced budget amendment, term limits.

[Joe Scarborough]

They didn't listen to you Second Amendment. But it was also just the size of government. We were, you know, we would have these meetings, these caucus meetings, and we would show up and the most conservative people would show up. Small government conservatives would show up and then sort of civil libertarian Democrats would show up and would show up at the speaker, look at each other going, wait, what are you doing here? It's one of these things where we sort of met in the middle, where neither one of us wanted a police state. We didn't want big government. We didn't want, you know, the FBI to be able to have, you know, warrantless wiretaps. We didn't want to see the sort of things that we've seen in Minneapolis over the past week. I'm just shocked that it's taken as long for the Republican Party, the rank and file, to be concerned about what they've been seeing. I mean, yeah, Whether you're talking about guns or whether you're talking about kicking in doors of American citizens without a judicial warrant, that stuff that Republicans in my day would have never put up with.

[Bill Maher]

And, Marjorie, you look like the person who had more integrity than the rest of them. It's amazing, the transformation. You went kind of the. What? I mean, it's sort of the, you know, Liz Cheney 2.0.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

You know, I wouldn't say that. No, no, no. Definitely not.

[Bill Maher]

No. Neither would Liz.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

Neither would Liz. No. Not a good comparison. But the Second Amendment, I do want to go on that because I defended Kyle Rittenhouse, defended him, helped raise money for his legal defense. And I spoke out publicly on the situation in Minnesota, that people have the right to bear arms and it shall not be infringed. And we need to see people on both sides really agree that that's the right thing to do.

[Bill Maher]

Well, there is somebody who's running for Republican governor or Republican in Minnesota, dropped out of the race. His name is Chris Medellin. I know he's local, but he said the national Republicans have made it nearly impossible for a Republican to win a statewide election in Minnesota. I feel like this is the kind of thing that gets through the politicians, cuts through. We're going to lose. I mean, I find a silver lining in this a little this week that it does seem like Trump does sometimes listen to the politics. I mean, he's.

[Joe Scarborough]

Oh, yeah, he does. He has the feel for it. He understands when he's gone too far. He also understands when it's time to distract, when it's time to sort of wag the dog. But here, he understood they had gone too far. And it was one of these issues. And there are very few issues that actually cut through to popular culture, because we're obsessed with this stuff, because we talk about it every day. We live it every day. But, you know, when you see Charles Barclay talking, you know, at halftime at a basketball game, going off about what happened in Minnesota, when you see other people doing that, they don't usually like talking about politics that want to see, stay away from politics. You understand, it's cutting through to popular culture. And that scares any president when they're on the wrong side of the issue. And in this case, taking Donald Trump's strongest issue, immigration, and turn it into one of his weakest issues, because he couldn't just celebrate securing the southern border, which I think most Americans support, as we were talking about before, most American support deporting the really bad people there. They do not support street by street, house by house.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

And I think it's really interesting.

[Joe Scarborough]

You.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

Know, I think that's the first time.

[Joe Scarborough]

Anybody has ever cheered for me here. That's how unpopular this is.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

I think we have to give the administration a lot of people. The secure border is fantastic. I'm friends with Lake and Riley's mother, and we didn't see a lot of protest happening on the left saying that, you know, Americans shouldn't be killed by illegal aliens. And I didn't see Democrats protesting the Obama administration. And under President Obama, there were more deportations than President Trump and. And President Biden and President Bush. And so we didn't see protests back then.

[Bill Maher]

They didn't do it this way. They didn't do it well.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

Yeah, we didn't see it.

[Bill Maher]

They weren't gentle.

[Joe Scarborough]

Well, I mean, but we didn't see.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

It on television, though. And I watched Cops. Was on TV recently. Have you watched Cops, the show from the 90s? Oh, my goodness. That looked like police brutality. And nobody said anything about that back then.

[Bill Maher]

You know, the thing is with.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

You should watch it.

[Bill Maher]

The thing with Barack Obama's not catching up on cheaters.

[Joe Scarborough]

Barack Obama actually was attacked by Democratic groups, but for being the deporter in chief. They thought he deported too many people. But what he was able to do is he was able to get states to get people who were here illegally that were in jail and get them deported. I mean, so many of those deportations came from people in jail. I think right now, that's what every state needs to agree to do. If there's somebody who's here illegally, if they're in jail, then cooperate and also send them back home.

[Bill Maher]

Attitude comes from the top down. People understand what the attitude of the top guy in office always is, or giving you honesty.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

I don't think he has a good attitude, Bill.

[Bill Maher]

Who? The talk guy? No. And I mean, if you saw the quotes from this Bongino, whatever guy is the one that they just fired.

[Joe Scarborough]

The guy in the coat.

[Bill Maher]

Yeah. These are our streets. This is why you have this. This is why you have this bullying that didn't come from Obama, that kind of attitude. That's why I showed this picture last week. We can show it again. Executions in the streets. This reminded me of the one from Vietnam in 1960. That changed hearts and minds. This week there's another one. We had a second shooting. It looks just like this. That's what people are seeing, pictures worth a thousand words. That didn't happen under Obama. That's why you've lost. Including Random file. And that's not the only really chilling thing. A viral video in Maine. Ice Guy's taking this woman's picture of her license plate, and she says, why are you taking my information down? This is caught on tape, I guess because they have the quote, because we have a nice little database. And now you're considered a domestic terrorist. That is exactly what they do in fascist governments. Whenever you're a protester, you're actually an enemy of the state, and we arrest you. That's what's going on in Iran right now. They arrested Don Lemon. Somebody went, yes, like, good. I don't know.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

I didn't hear him.

[Bill Maher]

It's not good to arrest him. I don't. You know.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

Well, I'm going to say he violated the Faiths Act. He went into a church, disrupted their worship, and then later in an interview, compared them to white supremacists. That's not journalism. That's activism. I had an experience with Donald Trump, but does warrant getting arrested, disrupting a worship service, stopping people's rights to worship God? That is violation of the Face Act. And under the Biden administration, pro lifers were sent to prison up to 11 years for praying in front of an abortion clinic, and they were convicted under the Face Act. So I don't think that's journalism. That's not First Amendment going in and harassing people in the middle of church. And, you know, Don Lemon came to my office with the Tesla takedown guy that organized it, and we had to call Capitol Police.

[Bill Maher]

Okay, but could we just charge him with not cool, man.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

I completely support his work.

[Bill Maher]

So.

[Joe Scarborough]

If I can disagree here, I think the people that went into the church that were the protesters that went into the church, if under the Faith Act.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

Faith Act.

[Joe Scarborough]

If under the Faith Act.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

Faith Act.

[Bill Maher]

Faith.

[Joe Scarborough]

Right.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

Face.

[Joe Scarborough]

Oh, Face.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

It's a federal law.

[Joe Scarborough]

Oh, I thought it was. You've got to have faith, because it was about church.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

Well, the parishioners, the Christians have faith, and they were trying to have church. And Don Lemon and a bunch of activists came in and harassed them to the point children were crying.

[Joe Scarborough]

Right, right, right. But what I'm saying is, whatever that act is, if it is the Face act or the Faith act or the Fake act, whatever act it is, I think the people that went in and disturb that church, if they want to prosecute them, then that's certainly, you know, they're right to consider that. If you're Don Lemon and you're going up to the pastor and you're saying, I'm not Here with them. I'm curious, what are your thoughts? Was he aggressive? He was aggressive. Was Mike Wallace aggressive? Were other journalists aggressive in their days? Yes, they were. I think there has to be sort of a differentiation between if somebody's going in there and saying, I'm not with them, can I ask you some questions? Because you're going to have in beds in war, you're going to have in beds in protests. So, yeah, this is. There's no doubt this was meant to scare other reporters. To scare other journalists. And when you have the magistrate, when you have the magistrate in Minnesota see the charges and say, well, this is bullshit. When you had the chief justice, the chief federal judge in Minnesota look at it and go, well, this is bullshit, and say, you can't bring these charges. And so Pam Bondi goes, okay, I'll bring them myself. Obviously, that shows it's at the direction of the administration to intimidate journalists.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

I think it's bullshit to disrupt church. I don't think Christians should be harassed in church, especially by activists.

[Bill Maher]

Okay, well, let's talk about who we all agree.

[Joe Scarborough]

Right.

[Bill Maher]

Well, I shouldn't be harassed, which is politicians, because Ilhan Omar was attacked. I mean, she's probably.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

I don't think anybody should be. I'm totally against violence.

[Bill Maher]

But it's a great example because you're exactly the opposite politically as Ilhan Omar.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

Right.

[Bill Maher]

And I'm not a fan of. I'm not a fan of hers either. Exactly right. It shouldn't matter. And it happens way more than it ever did. I mean, I could go through the whole list, from Nancy Pelosi's husband to Trump's assassination. Absolutely. All this. It just. What do we do? I mean, are we like this guy with the syringe? I'm wondering, what is the penalty there? Yeah. By the way, she went after him. It's the only time I've ever liked her.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

Yeah, she did. You know, Bill, I really think that as a country, Americans need to recognize. Recognize that the people from my district that had elected me are going to disagree with the people from Ilhan Omar's district that elected her. But as Americans, we should respect each other. And of course, you're going to have politicians that you don't agree with. And as Americans, it's okay for us to disagree with each other, but it's not okay to celebrate violence or death threats or anything like that towards one another.

[Joe Scarborough]

I think that's why it's so important that from the top, I think politicians need to set the example a lot of people made fun of Donald Trump when he had New York's mayor in and they got along. I think that's a great thing to show Americans. I think it's a great thing when the President calls Tim Waltz and calls a Minneapolis mayor. They're going to fight tomorrow. That's not the issue. The issue is that today we can talk about a 37 year old American gunned down in the streets and we can say it's time to de escalate. You know, when I was in Congress, I was one of the most conservative members there. Maxine Waters was one of the most liberal members there. She would enrage me every time we were in the Judiciary Committee together. So what would I do on the House floor? I'd go over and hug her in front of the C Span camera. She'd go, get away, get away. You're going to destroy my reputation in my district. But we did that and we just sort of set the example. We disagree on just about everything, but we get along and we understand just what you said. People in her district are not asking her to do the same thing that people in my district in Northwest Florida were asking me to do. And even though we disagree, that's the greatness of America. We disagree, we come together, we compromise, and we figure out how to steer this ship estate forward.

[Bill Maher]

All right, well, speaking of, Speaking of come together, how many of you are on Tinder?

[Joe Scarborough]

Uh huh. I walked right in. I led you right into them.

[Bill Maher]

Just. I led you right into it. I'm just asking because we like to keep people up on the latest. This is a big trend. Apparently you're all on Grindr, but on Tinder. I'm joking, I'm joking. On Tinder. Now there's a new. I read about this hot take dating. I love this. I think this is a great idea. And what the idea is, as opposed to what we usually do on a first date, which is be on our best behavior, be on your worst. In other words, get it all out on the table right away because it's going to come out anyway. Get to the hotel topics, get to the stuff that's going to be the deal breakers right away and save yourselves time.

[Joe Scarborough]

There you go.

[Bill Maher]

I think it's a great idea. Problem is, when it gets to worse behavior, the guys are always worse than the women. I mean, we got to hold this. Would you like to hear some of these exchanges that, for example, the woman says that we. These are all real. I used to be an exotic dancer. Okay, so you come clean right away. That's a good thing to know. And then he said my nickname on Epstein island was the Freak. Okay? It's just hard for the guy not to be worse. She comes clean. I used to be fat, but I just lost 28 pounds on ozempic. Great admission. And he says, I just lost 28 pounds, pounds on methamphetamine. In order to start my car. She says, I have to blow into a Breathalyzer. And he says, in order to pay for my car, I have to blow a guy named Hector. I'm telling you.

[Joe Scarborough]

These are real guys.

[Bill Maher]

Yeah.

[Joe Scarborough]

Yeah, these are real. Yeah, these are real.

[Bill Maher]

Very real. The women are trying. Like she said, I have a tough time with authority. Great admission. He said, I took a shit on Nancy Pelosi's desk. She said, I'm a Swifty. I saved my money to go to all her concerts. He said, I'm a big fan of Kanye, but only for his political views, not his music. She said, I have a prison record. Great admission. He said, I have a Kevin Federline record. She said, I'm between jobs and can't seem to find a job that I like. He said, I was fired as a mall Santa for getting boners. She said, my dream is to get on America's Cocktail. And he said, my dream is to get on to Catch a Predator. So, okay, just a little fun with Tinder. Since this is the issue that sort of like, split you with the Republican Party. I'm talking about the Epstein files, and they released today 3 million. I don't get this Epstein file thing. It's like the McRib every few months. I thought we were done with it a year ago, and then every couple of months.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

I personally thought it was one of the main tenets of MAGA to release the Epstein files.

[Bill Maher]

Yes, and you were right. The MAGA people were with you on that. I mean. And okay, so this came out today, a Friday news dump. So we don't have all the information. There's millions of them and apparently millions more to go. I mean, Jesus Christ, why didn't they arrest this guy years ago if they had all this information? But. So I'm not gonna.

[Joe Scarborough]

Can I. Can I just say that that's part of the problem? I remember in 2015, 2016, we kept asking on the show, why is this guy not in jail? People are like, what are you talking about? I mean, he got a sweetheart deal in Florida. I mean, he was able to. He still had the elites around him. Question is, why do people in authority keep protecting you? Know all the rich and powerful men.

[Bill Maher]

That were around him and they keep doing it. I'm just going to. I'm just going to give you what I think we know. Now. There's a lot of stuff scuttlebutton here, but some of it says source, not really reputable. This is apparently just from actual emails. These are. This is just people caught in lies. Right. Which is very indicative. Howard Lutnick, he's the Commerce Secretary, he had said that he cut ties with Epstein around 2005, planned a visit to Epstein's island in 2012. So that suggests to me he was caught in a lie. Elon Musk had said in 2019, Epstein tried repeatedly to get me to visit his island. I declined. According to the emails from 2012, he's asked, are you coming by heli helicopter, that is to the island, probably just to Lula and me. That's his wife at the time. What day night will be the wildless party on your island.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

Oh my gosh.

[Bill Maher]

I mean that's, you know, I, I've asked when the wildest party is. It doesn't mean you're going to do. But I'm just saying I don't want to know about. But again, we're not saying anything more here than just caught in a lie right now.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

Are these the files that were released?

[Bill Maher]

I think this is deleted today.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

But they, they were. Weren't there some files released today and then deleted off the.

[Joe Scarborough]

There were some based on reporting that involved the President and. Yeah, and they put those up and then they deleted it.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

Deleted.

[Bill Maher]

Okay.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

I think I voted on a bill not too long ago that said to release it all and then it got signed into law. Yeah. And that should matter.

[Bill Maher]

All right, I just got to read Richard Branson. This is, this is an email on September 11, 2013. Obviously the anniversary wasn't on his mind. It was really. He says this too. Epstein, it was really nice seeing you yesterday. Anytime you're in the area, we'd love to see you. As long as you bring your harem. Oh, my gosh. And then he also says, I think if Bill Gates was willing to say you've been a brilliant advisor to him, that you slipped up many years ago by sleeping with a 17 and a half year old woman and were punished for it, that you've more than learned your lesson and have done nothing that's against the law since. And yes, as a single man, you seem to have a penchant for women, but there's nothing wrong with that.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

There's a lot Wrong with that?

[Bill Maher]

I mean, at best, it's worst. It just is.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

These women I met, well, there's over 1200, there's over 1,200 survivors. And I met with just a small portion of them and they told their stories and shaking, physically shaking, crying, and there's so much there. I can't comprehend why it took such a big fight to get this to come out just as the same way. I don't understand why didn't they release it all under the Biden administration? Why wasn't it released under Trump 1.0? Why wasn't it released under President Obama?

[Bill Maher]

And you still don't think you have an answer. You still just.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

It is literally to me one of the most repulsive things. And I think for most Americans, they can't, they cannot understand why this has to be constantly covered up. And it's just what you said, it protects the rich, powerful elites. And that seems to be what it's all about.

[Joe Scarborough]

Well, and it feeds into the belief in my old district in your district, I think in most districts across America that there's one rule for middle class Americans and there's another rule for the rich and the powerful. And that's whether you're, you know, caught with Epstein, involved with Epstein, or whether you're cheating on your taxes or whether, you know, you break other laws, whether you have enough accountants, whether you have enough lawyers, whether you have enough. And in this case, what's so disturbing is you talk about the bill you guys passed. Everybody in Congress voted for it except for one member. Nearly unanimous. We're about six weeks past the deadline where they were required by law. They've been breaking the law every day, not releasing these. And we're still, we still have so many redactions. We have no idea what's in these files.

[Bill Maher]

So I want to ask you too, because you're two Republicans about or a former Republican, but Republican adjacent. This, it does seem like this is not the only issue that is cracking apart the Republicans because it does seem that as opposed to a year ago when they were very united, they had the united government. I mean, they had everything winded their back in every way. I mean, all I read about is this infighting. I mean, there's Tucker Carlson, who's Nazi curious, shall we say. No, no, no. Well, that's certainly how I, I would say that. I mean, he gave a very favorable interview to somebody who is, I mean, I think Nick Fuente's guy. I mean, he's more than Nazi curious, he's Nazi sympathetic This is why, to me, it's true.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

But that doesn't make Tucker the same as him. Just to be.

[Bill Maher]

Well, to give a softball interview.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

I mean, I don't agree with the guy at all, but I don't think that makes Tucker that way. I love Tucker Carlson.

[Bill Maher]

Okay, interesting point.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

But I will say so. MAGA to me. MAGA to me meant secure the border. No more foreign wars, no more regime change. We should care about grocery prices. We should care about housing prices. We should care about the next generation. We should care about the national debt, which I think you totally agree on. And we should release the Epstein files. We should have government transparency. That's what we campaigned on. And I don't know how in one year's time, MAGA all of a sudden becomes okay with bombing foreign countries, okay with regime change, against releasing the Epstein files. So I. That's the split is there's a lot of people that voted for what we thought MAGA was, and then it evolved into something else. And I'm. I don't know what happened.

[Joe Scarborough]

I agree with all of those things that the Republican Party's come up short on. They've also, though, on the issue that you're talking about on anti Semitism after Charlie Kirk's tragedy death, Charlie could kind of hold a lot of these groups together because he knew how to synthesize the groups after his tragic assassination. You know, you look at Turning Point, you have Ben Shapiro going up saying maybe we shouldn't be so kind to anti Semites. You know, a Jew stands up and says that. The rest of the conference, everybody's attacking the Jew, Ben Shapiro, for saying maybe we shouldn't be, you know, basically putting our arms around people who are anti Semitic. Yeah.

[Bill Maher]

They're all over the map.

[Joe Scarborough]

There's a massive split there. So if you look at that, that's a danger. You look what's happened with Hispanics. Donald Trump did much better with Hispanics than any Republican candidate in a long time. They're upside down Republicans with Hispanics, upside down with Asian Americans, which Republicans were doing great with. Yeah. They've lost so young voters. They've lost so many of the advantages they had just a year ago.

[Bill Maher]

Well, that I understand. That's easy to say. Why? Because they go into Home Depot and harass people who have been here for 10 years and are working here and are necessary to be here. Okay, but the Jew thing is totally different. Yes. I mean, you have, you know, you'll understand this as someone who was accused of being a conspiracy theorist for A long time. I mean, Candace Owens is a conspiracy theorist. I mean, she has crazy ideas, and a lot of them involve how terrible the Jews are. And some people defend that and some people don't. This is why I always thought it was so stupid to compare Trump with Hitler. Trump is not Hitler. This Nick Fuente's prick. He's Hitler. Trump is Von Hindenburg. Okay, if we want to get use that analogy, Trump is the one who said, and I give him credit for this, he said, we don't want you. He adjudicated this recently. He said, we don't want the Knick. We don't need them. And he's right about that. That's where the trouble is in this party, is the Candace Owens Bannon. Sometimes Megyn Kelly is on the wrong side of this, I think. I don't get why you're not more upset about it.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

I don't agree with putting any type of hate or label on any people group. But I think what you're, what you're talking about is it is OK to criticize a foreign government the same way we can criticize our government.

[Bill Maher]

Yes.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

Because I introduced.

[Bill Maher]

No one's arguing that.

[Commercial Narrator]

Of course.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

Yeah. And I think. But like, for me, it's, I don't want to see American tax dollars go to any foreign government or foreign war. And that, and that includes Israel. It's okay to say that. And I think it's important to be able to say that.

[Joe Scarborough]

Well, you can say that, though. I mean, I've been pro Israeli forever. I mean, when I was in Congress, people said, anytime you want, like a key to the, you know, city of Tel Aviv, you can have that. It's okay, though, for me to say that Netanyahu, I think, has been a disaster. He's been a disaster not only for the region, he's been a disaster for the Israelis. He's been a disaster. So you can say that. There's nothing, nothing anti Semitic about saying that. But what we're talking about, when you're talking about Nick Fuentes, when you're talking about Candace Owen, when you're talking about a lot of these fellow travelers in this area, that needs to be called out. That's what Ronald Reagan did. That's what William F. Buckley did. That's how they grew the Republican Party at a time when people liked to sideline Republicans. They need to do that again.

[Bill Maher]

All right, we'll leave it there. Thank you, you two. Lot of fun. Time for new rules, everybody. New rules. Okay. All right, new rule, please. No one tell the federal government's National Weather Service that their winter storm temperature map looks a lot like the gay pride flag. It's embarrassing enough they keep having to say watch out for ice. Someone has asked the makers of Pampers Prestige, the new high end baby diaper with the silk lining. You do know they're just going to shit in it, right? Does everything in America have to have a high end version? If you feel your baby needs to have the same underwear experience as the royal family of Lichtenstein, you've lost the right to bitch about the price of eggs. That's all that matters.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

New world.

[Bill Maher]

The media has to stop asking the client, Alex Honnold, who just climbed a hundred story building with no ropes or nets, why he still risks death now that he's married with a wife and kids at home. Haven't you answered your own question? What should I do this weekend? Free solo a skyscraper in Taiwan or make small talk with the other dads at Dylan's fourth birthday party? Yeah, I'm gonna take my chances with the building. If I fall, at least I won't die on the inside. Neural, quit trying to sex up my virtual assistant. Hi, I'm Velma, your virtual assistant. How can I help you? Well, hello Velma, I'm Bill. Can you help me? I don't know, can you? I see you've changed your hair color, Velma. I like it. See? Two minutes in, I don't even remember why I was pissed at Comcast. Now that Kanye west has taken out a full page ad in the Wall Street Journal apologizing for his whole. Well, just all of it. He has to tell us why the Wall Street Journal. And if his answer is that's the one Jews read right. Well, we're right back where we started, aren't we? And, And finally, new rule. As we're now right in the middle of awards season here in Hollywood. How about everybody drop the politics for a couple hours and just enjoy these happy dopey celebrations of show business. You know, I was up for a Golden Globe this month and. Put a with the 33 Emmys I lost. That's a real number. And walking in, some reporter asked me why I wasn't wearing a lapel pin for the first Minneapolis shooting a couple of weeks ago. And I said, well, it was a terrible thing that happened and it shouldn't have happened. And if they didn't act like such thugs, it wouldn't have had to happen. But I don't need to wear a pin about it now. Please understand I had no Idea this question was coming. And so tonight I'd like to say that if I had the chance to think about it, my answer would be exactly the same. Yes, the same. Ice, Thugs, Pins. Stupid. I'm with me on this one, so no need to keep. No need to keep sending supporting texts. Yeah, you know how I hear about whatever my latest scandal is? I open my phone and there's a dozen texts. I support you. Great. I assumed you did.

[Joe Scarborough]

About what?

[Bill Maher]

What are we talking about? I'm sorry. I don't get my gossip from the Internet like most people. I get it old school from the girls at the Nail Sal. I. I'm not a social media crackhead. I use it strictly to watch dogs get confused by magic tricks and the occasional video of a cow getting his head stuck in a tree. That's it. But then I'll be out to dinner and the waiter will come over and say, big fan, Bill. Stay strong. About what? And then when I see what it is, I'm like, holy fuck. This is what you people are so worked up about? According to the Internet, what I did with my comments at the Globes was laugh, scoff, mock, take a dig at and refuse to join Golden Globes activism. Golden Globes activism? Oh, you mean the activism of fixing a fucking pin to my suit? I'm sorry, it clashed with my keffiyeh. I hope I didn't spoil the perfect record of pins and ribbons solving all the world's problems. I mean, you can't name a problem from guns to AIDS to bullying to breast cancer that still exists after people wore a ribbon for it. Except all of them, you fucking posers. Three years ago, everybody was all into Ukrainian flags. What happened to that? Another cause tossed into the junk drawer with yesterday's choke collar. Get out of here with your virtue signaling body ornaments. They're just crucifixes for liberals. Because every time I see one, I think, jesus Christ. But, you know, congratulations for raising awareness, the awareness you really care about, which is how wonderful you are. Ricky Gervais once told the award show crowd, don't use it as a platform to make a political speech. You're in no position to lecture the public about anything. You know nothing about the real world.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

And.

[Bill Maher]

And of course, this is where celebrities say, how dare you? We're citizens with just as much right to speak out. Agreed. You absolutely do. I'm just saying. Don't. It's having the opposite effect of what you want. Every big name in show business came out for Kamala Harris. From Oprah to Clooney to Beyonce, and she lost every swing state. A survey of Ohio voters found Taylor Swift's endorsement actually had a negative impact, with 24% saying it made them less enthusiastic about her as a candidate. Read the room. Democrats. Celebrities aren't helping. And why would they? In a country where the big issue now is affordability? Outside of, I don't know, Springsteen and a few others, celebrities don't strike people as relatable or in touch. And what their activism mostly activates is eye rolls. Because. Because stars, they're not just like us. They're just not. They fly private. They have five houses all over the world. They give their kids ridiculous names. They make candles that smell like their vagina. They. They wear crazy amounts of jewelry. They buy castles, they buy towns, they buy islands, they have shark tanks. They insure their tits. They show up three hours late for their own concerts, and people still go, please, it's okay. You're stars. We like you for who you are. Insulated diva whose talent allows you to pig out on the finer things in life because we all need something to aspire to. But. But being talented, which you are, isn't the same as knowing things or having the credibility to advise people on their politics. You rail against privilege, but you avail yourself of the greatest privilege of all to remain clueless. Dave Chappelle lashed out at me last month because I called him out for saying there was more free speech in Saudi Arabia than here. Well, I was right. What he said was stupid. America has many problems, including free speech issues on both left and right. But we're real different than Saudi Arabia. If you don't believe me, try opening a lesbian art gallery there. Or wearing a T shirt that says, Jesus is the one true God. Ricky's right. Celebrities don't know about the real world. So, Democrats, it's great you have all the big celebs, but people see them as an arm of the Democratic Party, which they already suspect for lacking common sense. I know the celebrities mean well, and we thank them for having their heart in the right place, but just. Do you do what you do so well? Use your extraordinary talents for the noble cause of bringing relief from the problems that ribbons and pins can't fix. I know it's very important to you that you feel that you're making a difference. So let me assure you, you are. You're making independents vote Republican. All right, that's our show. I want to thank Joe Scarborough, Marjorie Taylor Greene, and Nate Pragetzi. Club Random. Awesome. This year drops Every Monday on YouTube or listen wherever you get your podcasts. Now go watch Overtime on YouTube. Thank you very much, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you.

[Marjorie Taylor Greene]

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