Ep. #745: Michael Douglas, Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC), Sara Eisen

Welcome to an HBO podcast from the HBO late night series Real Time with Bill Maugh. Thank you so much for coming, oh, thank you so much, appreciate it, thank you very much, I think I know why you're happy today, I know I always say that but because you're getting money it's that you know it's three weeks to the midterms, it's that time when we give out money just go into the Trump is sending out $90 checks to people on Medicare to like 20 million okay and then people on Obamacare people on Obamacare they're getting a $500 check because he says Biden overcharged you never heard that okay amazing timing and of course every adult is going to get $5,000 if the Republicans went I think this is what the kids call being thirsty oh yeah no I mean this is looking bad for the Republicans this bitch or Trump is campaigning in red states that no Republican usually has to campaign in at its getting nasty South Carolina this is a Democrat running any Andrews he's been calling her any tranny she's not transgender but she's a Democrat close enough so but you know any trade well you know Trump he loves any nickname that rhymes shifty shoes and any tranny we're just lucky her name wasn't any month was not even that was not even the most controversial thing the president said this week we know here in Los Angeles what that was you know let's be fair he wasn't trying to say he said let them let them come in a rent let them take out Los Angeles he was saying you know gas prices are too high the small price that it wasn't saying that we were encouraging a rent but still you don't want to say that the people in this city we live here let them take out Los Angeles Karen Bass our mayor was very upset she immediately got on the phone with her travel agent all I get us here at Los Angeles New York also they have problems too you know it was the third anniversary of the horrible attack in Israel on October 7th three years ago and mayor mandami not all that sympathetic to this stuff but he did make some nice remarks about it he's against it but then he pivoted right to but Israel made them do it you know he used to be a rapper his rap name was tone deaf but you know all this is not what's really big going on this week what's going on this week that's big executions that's what everybody's talking about lethal injections firing so you have lethal injection I sure that's how we mostly do it in this country it never works but we keep doing it and in Tennessee last week they tried it on a lady and it didn't work so they saved her life so that we could have another shot at killing her really so now she's conscious and talking or what Mitch McConnell calls showing off this is one tough lady when she woke up she went wow that is some good shit man they are Tennessee that's a hard estate they are cold in Tennessee another charging with her with resisting cardiac arrest anyway doesn't matter people problem solves because we're not doing the injections anymore we're going to the firing squad back to the firings what do you hear about this there's a there was a terrible jihadist terrorism attack absolutely in 2009 at Fort Hood's called the Fort Hood shooter he's been you know in bars since then now we're going to kill him by a firings what Pete Higgseth wants to do this he wants it live streamed so that people are able to watch so be sure to smash that like and subscribe button man this administration especially Pete they always want you to know that we do not show any mercy to people like this in fact before they shoot him they're gonna have Will Smith come out and slap him and you can tell I think this is you can tell this is a Trump production because they told the sergeant in charge of the firing squad when he gives the command it's ready aim you're fired all right we've got a great show senator Tom Felis is here I'm Sarah Eisen front first up my first guest it's what I would call a working legend he's got awards he's got stories he's got a new mammarop this week called one hell of a ride and man was it Michael Douglas are you all right all right well you you look more and more like your father I noticed that it's it's weird it wasn't the case when you were 35 so much not so much what remind me of my father remember it was your dad one day was you know son I was watching one of my movies on television the other day and I couldn't remember the movie I spoke that you know I mean that happens you know I'm not a son you know I said no dad you look so much like no I kept looking at it then I realized that's not me it was you well I got to say your book literally I picked it up I couldn't put it down I was fighting sleep two nights in a row because it only I only got a couple days you know the embargo oh man you're right oh it's amazing I couldn't but it's it's absolutely your voice and you know the whole book is great but as some books have great first lines like it was the best of times it was the worst of the famous first line the first line of your book when I was a kid I watched my father lead a slave revolt against the Roman Empire it's amazing it's and and you know I guess everybody else is going to go and we only have 12 minutes here so I can't go into every story there's so many the people the drugs the women I just want to the small time I have I want to about the beginning because that to me is the most interesting the port I know knew less the least about how the child becomes the man and you know you somebody maybe it's you but somebody think describes your father as being near a beautiful garden that also had a volcano his wife because he had a terrible temper and it's so moving the way you talk about as a kid you had to be on egg shells and I remember as a kid my father wasn't that guy but I knew fathers who were I didn't uncle like that and I saw I was egg shells around him and he wouldn't even my father right when he was over the house and it was like mad about nothing and it seems like that was such an important part of your childhood well I yeah because it was a question when to start and ultimately with our genes and so I had this combination of the Russian Jew immigrant my grandfather I always thought came over from Belarus in 1914 the time of Russian Revolution and then I was on that with that Howard Gates show on television really do your roots finding out your roots that I found out no my grandfather came over from Russian 2000 in 1902 and he came over because he had two other brothers that were bank robbers in Russia and he was part of it and he got out in 19 so the whole story about the revolution and coming up he came over here he changed his name and everything else and illiterate illiterate miss my father was one of six he was the only boy He had six girls in the House of Father who. didn't give a shit about anything that had a horse in the wagon. And so as he used to tell me to Michael, my story was, you know, the full arc, you know, of course yours is a little explained. But he had this rage, you know, this incredible kind of rage and stamina and endurance and passion. And then when he started getting work, his career just took over. Those were the days when you were making five, six movies in your television and wasn't there. And then I was complimented by the fact that our opposites attract that in acting school, he fell in love with this lovely remuting in British lady Diana, well educated, and all of that. And she's a diplomat, and the two of them kind of came together. And it brought those, I think, balanced me out. And then in their divorce, when I was only five, I had Kirkton Hollywood growing up. And on the other side, I was living with my mother. And then my stepfather in a middle-class life and then Connecticut. Yeah, I mean, it seems like the book is liberating. I mean, why write it? You're 82, you've lived it. But, you know, we all keep secrets our whole life. And then I feel like this is a guy going, why anymore? You know, yeah, I fuck Kathleen Turner. What are you going to do with that? You know what, there you go. So I started out, and when I was being a producer, the biggest influence on the, in terms of learning about producing was a book called Memo by David O. Selznick, who did go on with it. And the book of all his memos, which shows you what a producer does. And so, okay, so I'm going to say 10 chapters. I'm going to write about 10 of my movies and tell a whole background and everything. And then I said, look at that, man. I said, sex drugs and rock and roll. So I have to think, you know, I have those chapters at all of that. But of course, you got to mix it up with a little of your, of your earlier life. Oh, it's, I love the early part. And I think you and I share something in common about getting through college together. Oh, yeah. We, we, what, what it is that we discovered that if you buy pot in one place and sell it in a different place, you, the difference in those two amounts can be very good for living your life. Especially between each close to the west. Yeah, yeah. In my case, I had a great pot dealer, you know, who, you, if you buy two pounds and then you, you divide, you know, a pound is 16 ounces. So I would faithfully divide it into 17 ounces. Right. That was called the head tax, man. Yeah, that was, but you took actual suitcases. Yeah. It's entire suitcases on a plane. What happened was, you know, what happened when I turned 21? When I turned 21, dad wrote me a check. He said, $10,000. This is great, son. You're on your own, okay? I said, well, dad, this is, this is wonderful. But I, you know, I, I got a couple of years of tuition left at school. Yeah. Then he starts, so he goes, look dad, no, I'm happy about it. So, you know, it's okay, he can find it. Yeah. So, and so, and then for years afterwards, I have three brothers that have to listen to the stories about, look, you're older brother, he never asked me for anything, anything after that 21 years old, you know, nothing. And then, so the kids just have to listen to these stories. And one time I said, dad, you remember what Christmas, you bought me two beautiful Italian leather, soft leather suitcases. And he says, yeah, I said, well, I found out that each one of those cases could hold 22 kilos. I remember one. So, so, I remember, I'll go back, I'll go back these to see my mom with a close my back and two suitcases, you know. I mean, this is called BC, or BD before dogs. Well, this also, at a time when NEPO babies, maybe NEPO, but not spoiled. No. Like $10,000, that's what they get a week now from mom and dad. Are you kidding? I mean, I was surprised to learn you worked at the mobile gas station. Mobile man of the month. I won, I won, I won. Oh, I won, I won. Really? Yeah, yeah. But, but, but, tonight is in this NEPO baby thing. Doesn't every single business, doesn't a father or mother what their son or daughter do into the business? Though they have everything, I look at science, they're so and so in the sun, is it? So, why, why, why pick on show business? No, I'm not picking on it. I know you're not, but the logo is. Yeah, the only place where it doesn't exist is sports, except for Brownie. Right. That's why I think people love sports. Yeah. Because you do not get a job on the team no matter who your father was. There are sons of players, or Rayla Ali in boxing. But it's not because they're, the, the, the, the, the, Sion. No. You can do the job. And there's no replace. But it's a performance. Yeah. But your, your path was not easy at all. Again, you, you had to audition, you got, I mean, that whole chapter about you living with Danny DeVito in New York. Right. And, you know, basically run where I live near Hell's Kitchen. I mean, you know, that these were not easy times. No, no. You said, at least you had casting agents for one. I mean, now, you know, he used to go to a casting agent office and meet the real person. Now that the casting offices are closed and you have to just send your, your, your, your, your film into it. Are you still auditioning, Michael? Yeah, yeah. That's, I think that's so wrong. Okay. I said good time here. Woo! I think that's ridiculous, but it is funny because like, you didn't really want to go into it. You didn't think you would follow your father's path. The last thing I hated, the last thing I was, of course, I resented it because the businesses took him away so much. You know, the last thing I wanted. But when I grew up in the East Coast, I was an all-boys or private prep schools and this and that. And then the best, first decision I made in my life was to go to college in California in 1963. And it's exciting time in one year and from a prep year to a hippie. One year. And that's a change, everything. But it's also funny, I have one more young, we, we think we know everything. And when you look back, you realize, oh my God, it was so obvious what my destiny was going to be. No. You know, I mean, your first job you said was gopher on Spartacus. Right. Getting coffee on the movie. You were in the editing room when they did Psycho because you were on the lot. But it just, just Psycho, it was the, it was the outtakes of Janet Lee in the shower. Right. (laughter and applause) Right. Yeah. But you know, it just tells you, you were learning it, you were absorbing it. It was always meant to be the, you were not just going to be a great actor and a great movie star. But also a great producer. I mean, that's a triple factor that most people don't hit. Yeah. There's also, it's hard to have known now because of streaming. But the track of television acting versus film acting was so separate. It was so interesting that when I left the streets of San Francisco, out of my, early to produce Cuckoo's Dess, then Cuckoo's Dess was the hit that made Romance in the Stone China Syndrome. So the producer, I had three or four hits, but I couldn't get a job in the movies. It was really hard. So I produced a picture called Star Chamber with Jeff Bridges. I wanted to play the part, but I was not approved by the studio. I said film actor because I was a television actor. Well, you're a film actor now. Thank you. I'll see you later. Thank you. Michael Douglas, the book is amazing. I recommended Haley. There's Christmas season. Thank you, Michael. Appreciate it. Let's leave our panel. Hello. Hey, people. All right. He is a Republican senator from North Carolina, but retiring, right? Author of how to lose friends and antagonize presidents of trouble with sick offense, courage outsourcing, and partisan group things. Senator Tom Tillis. Wow. And he's calling her at CNBC's "Squawk on the Street." Sarah Eisen, Sarah, how you doing? Okay. Now, I mentioned that you're a retiring senator. Thank you. Five days. How many hours? How many hours? Not that you're counting. Okay. I mentioned that because I love it when people are retiring politicians. Because you just get a lot more honest answers. And you've been quite a maverick lately. Certainly since you knew you were retiring. It's just the best thing a politician can do is quit. Because the honesty comes out. So let's be honest about what's going on. Let's talk about this execution that they're planning. Because I heard you comment on it today. I'm sure you have thoughts. It's December 3rd. We're going to -- and this is the Fort Hood shooter. No one would ever defend anything close to what he did. It was one of the most egregious attacks ever. He did Yale, Alahoe, Abqab, Akbar. So I think we don't have to worry about what the -- You know, wonder what the motivation was. Okay. Pete Hegseth wants to and are going to shoot him on TV. I guess I got to get Hulu. Because it's on streaming. It's on December 3rd. Right before Christmas you can watch it and go to the mall and see Santa. You say yes for the execution itself. You just don't like that it's public. No, there's no, we've got to stop that. This is bullshit. There's no way we should be doing that. (Applause) You know, look, can we really not do that? Sort of shoot them, but in private, you're saying. Yeah. I mean, look, he murdered a number of people. Right. And you can argue back and forth about the death penalty. But this is not who we are. And I'm shocked that Hegseth has an S to be one of the people with the rightful. I mean, this is performative at the worst level and it has to be reversed. I hope the president level will be there. (Applause) Not even close. It's also what our enemies do. When I saw quote from you, Senator, talking about how, you know, you see this in Iran or you see this in Afghanistan. I went to grad school for journalism school with a man named James Foley. He was a journalist, too. I don't know if you remember the story. Of course. He was a terrible story. He was taken hostage by ISIS in Syria. And they beheaded him. And they sent the video out to everyone. A message to America. And I never want to watch another execution again. It was traumatizing. Obviously, this is completely different, but it's totally different world story here as you noted. This is someone who is convicted of killing U.S. troops. But I think no one should have to watch these. It's not even close. (Applause) So, there are. Their argument would be if I could play devil that, forget it, is that, you know, if you want to impress these kind of people, you have to be as brutal as they are. You know, fool around and fuck around and you're going to find out what happens. Well, you know what, I wish that Pete Hagceth would remember back when he was forward deployed, one of the few management positions he had that I think him for, that you are putting our special operators at risk. You are putting Americans at risk and you are building a recruiting video for more people doing what they did at Ford Hood. Yes. It's stupid on stilts and he's good at that. (Applause) That really makes me happy. This is not who we are. This is not the warrior ethos that the American people expect. And it's certainly not what a lot of people I've talked to. No, I could see it burning a caran. Like, it could inflame the Muslim world. It will. The Muslim world. Or make him a martyr, you know, propaganda video, even worse. No, we got to work on ending it. Look, it's a bad decision and it cannot happen on December 30th. Even the Vice President is fine. Even Vice President Bans was sort of like, I don't know if this is actually going to happen. I'm not going to be watching it. Okay. And a lot of the world is inflamed to begin with. Have you seen France? Yeah. This week. I mean, this is kind of crazy to me and I just wanted to ask. This idea that every grievance that anybody seems to have anywhere in the world just always pulls in the people with the Palestinian flag. I mean, what is that all about? I mean, this is about started about schools. That's right. Partly the schools in France are in bad shape. I mean, same thing could happen here. The overcrowding, classrooms, the buildings are falling apart. The same stuff we hear about schools here. Teachers not showing up. What's with the flags? What's with the suddenly, it's also about this other thing. It's anti-West, right? Anti-West. Exactly. Go ahead. No, anti-West. I would say France, though, actually particularly has a number of problems right now. Like, I cover the markets on CNBC and the market is telling them that they have a major debt problem and it's getting worse. And what happens is these people are what started as protesting schools. They want more public spending. The problem is France is broke. They've done public spending for decades on a welfare state. So, what happens? And then they bring in these prime ministers who have to make budget cuts. And guess what? They get rid of them very soon after. So, it's kind of this debt spiral. And I think the lesson for America out of this, because we have a debt problem too, is you want to embrace growth. France doesn't have economic growth. They have high unemployment. We have growth in this country. We have capitalism in this country. Now, these are the things that are getting, I think, France in particular in trouble right now. And there's a lesson there. And that is all valid. That is the economic side of it. But what about this other side of it? That's what they would call the red-green alliance. Now, I think people are hijacked. This is fundamentally parents and people upset with their school. And they're trying to hijack it for whatever sort of a agenda they want. You know, I've even heard the administration say it's in reaction to mass migration. I don't buy it. And besides, you don't buy that. No. Look, I mean, we-- You're getting out of the party at the right time. Well, no. No, no. To be clear, if-- Because there is an element of that. If there's an element. I look over the course of history. I've always been untethered, but when I retired June 29th, I got to be unfiltered. I can talk more like you. But before then-- But before then, you know, if you're a politician, if you're a politician and you're running for re-election, we were talking about this before the show. You know, the way you perceive it, because you've $5, $10, $50 million in a state like mine to clean up the act. I don't have to do that anymore. Okay, but I think you're naive if you think there isn't an element going on here. And everywhere in the world of miscasting Islamism, as somehow natural allies of liberals. Oh, no. I agree with that. No, sorry. If that's what you tie, I agree with it. That is what I'm talking about. Well, you mentioned the third anniversary of October 7th this week. Yes. And that was, I think, a big wake-up call for a lot of people about the war that we are in for the West. And there were so many celebrations of it. Yeah. I mean, you know, could you just leave that one day for the victims? No. There was celebrations all over the world. And the Western world is not working for a lot of people. Or at least they perceive it's not working. And their answer seems to be socialism, communism, and fetishizing Islam. As some sort, I mean, Hamas is a liberation movement, not in my world. Not in my world. Not in my world. I mean, I think universities are to blame. I think bad education is to blame for this. It's just the occupation, sort of the idea of the world, the occupier. And look, they're in a fight. And I think this is what's been so frustrating and puzzling for Israelis. Is that they feel like they're on the forefront of the fight for the West. They are. And the U.S. and increasingly public opinion, the world in the West doesn't have their back. Especially the people who should be most with them, the liberals, who would not really be comfortable living anywhere else in the Middle East except Tel Aviv. Right. Right. But let me go back to your economic point. Because the New York Times wrote it, I thought, well, all goes back to a very simple, a very difficult reality for France, which is that this country can no longer afford its social welfare state. Very generous. 120 percent of the economy is debt now. Interest payments. We're facing the same thing. We're seeing interest payment on the debt is going to be very soon in this country, apparently already in France, the largest part of what we spend money on. Right. And yes, they do have a very generous welfare state. I remember Michael Moore doing that great movie about how great things are in socialism. And some of it is great. But, you know, the punchline of the whole movie was the people from France from the government doing your laundry. Remember that? Well, maybe a little too much doing your laundry. And this is what happens. Well, right. And then they protest when they want more spending. Right. Now it's a vicious cycle because the people don't want to give up their perks. So now you have to borrow more money. You have to borrow money to service the debt. That's what they call a debt spiral. And that's a problem. Luckily in the U.S., we still have the dollar, the world's reserve currency, so people want to buy our debt. But I think there's a lesson here. And if I could, part of the solution, and I mentioned this, is economic growth. And you know, in this country, and what Europe doesn't have, is we have an AI revolution. I know you're a little scared of it, Bill. And we can talk about it. Wait, it's like just me. No. I just want to make a point. Okay. It's legit, but it's also creating a lot of economic growth. And we have all these companies building all this infrastructure. And our ticket to not become Europe because they don't have that, because they have too much regulation, is that AI creates this massive productivity boom that helps our economy grow and that we can grow out of it. And they don't have that. Or maybe it's Pets.com. You know, it could be a bubble too. You know, I mean, we've had tech bubbles before. We don't know that. It could end the world and be a bubble. Well, you're talking to somebody who's got pre-robots at my house. Wait. I'm sorry. You have what at your house? I said, you're talking to somebody who has three robots at my house. A vacuum cleaner, a pool vacuum, and Lorenzo, my backyard lawnmower. He's wonderful. He's my friend. I think that's wrong, but I'm not sure. I'm not sure. It doesn't matter to me. I like humor. Okay. So you mentioned Pete Hegseth before we did. You voted for him. Yeah. I mean, it's interesting because I said, you're kind of a maverick, but, you know, I don't know, maverick and rhetoric, but not necessarily I see in some of the votes. You also voted for Tulsi and Christie and Bobby. They don't even sound like serious people. (audience laughing) Tulsi Gabbard, Robert Kennedy and Christie Nome. You had reservations about all of them, but you still voted for them. How do you justify that discrepancy between rhetoric of the Maverick and your vote? If you take a look at it, I also pushed them people out, even before I voted on them. Matt Gaetz is one that came to mind that I worked with him to make him recognize he couldn't do it. That was one of the first nominees in four. You know, at the end of the day, I voted for a lot of, I got criticized by Republicans for voting for Obama nominees back in the last two years that I was there with Obama. I got criticized for voting for Biden nominees at the end of the day presidents have to form a government. And I was given them a benefit of the doubt, but I was talking to somebody earlier this week. They're saying, well, you voted to confirm them. I said, I vote it with unanimous vote out of the Senate Armed Services Committee. Now, I'm telling you how fucked up and he needs to go. What else do we need to talk about? - Okay. (audience laughing) - Well, I'll tell you what else, maybe. (audience applauding) One other thing, and by the way, - You could have voted to impeach Trump after in January 6th. - Yeah, I wish the Democrats had taken that whole process seriously. If they laid out the facts and they did it the way, well, look, they didn't even have a trial. If you go back and take a look at impeachment, you let the defense-- - Very detailed to me. - Yeah, I'm a process nerd. I'll admit that. But I also think, I think cherishing these institutions and cherishing the Senate's pretty in part of why this country's list lived and prospered for 250 years. (audience applauding) I'm excited to turn the senators credit. I mean, something that doesn't get talked about a lot that he did do, you know, you mentioned, he voted for all these people. He stood up for Fed Chairman Jay Powell. - Yes. - And you held him, he held him, he did not pass the current Fed Chairman, Kevin Worsh, President Trump's nominee, he did not get him through until they dropped that DOJ criminal investigation, and that was a huge deal in our world. - Yeah, and to be honest with you, the things that most proud of, y'all never know about. It's using leverage quietly with Republicans disagreeing with Republicans and getting things done. In the old days, that's how you do it. In the new days, if you do that, then you get a tweet or an ex or whatever they call it from Trump, and I just don't operate that way. Yeah, that's true, that's what I was looking for. - Join the club. Anyway. (audience laughing) So, it is a big anniversary this week. Fox News turned 30, and we have done a bit on this show for many years. 24 things you don't know about me. We've never done it about an institution, but we're gonna do it tonight. Fox News. Would you like to hear it on my new award? For example, our original business plan was simple. What if we took AM radio and added tit? (audience laughing) And most of our unqualified journalists go on to become unqualified cabinet members. (audience laughing) Our original slogan was fair and balanced. The runner-up was white and frightened. (audience laughing) Most of our programming originates from New York, but shown Hannity occasionally broadcast from Trump's ass. (audience laughing) (audience applauding) We don't like to brag, but we've gone 22 days without a sexual harassment lawsuit. (audience laughing) 10% of our viewership is young people trying to make sense of what their grandparents said at Thanksgiving. (audience laughing) In 2019, we had to explain to Trump that while we talked directly to him through the TV, we can't hear him talk back. (audience laughing) If the connection between us and the Trump administration was any more a direct pipeline, the Houthis would bomb it. (audience laughing) And our typical Fox News viewer watches a six hours a day, seven if Hollywood casts a black mermaid. (audience laughing) Well, it's good to see you can laugh at that. (audience applauding) I want to talk about something going on in your state, to make it a little lighter with all the bad news going on. Okay, alienation of affection, 'cause I've been following this story. It's been fascinating to me. I don't know if people know what this is, but in your state and North Carolina, and for others, they have this. It allows someone to sue if they're, your spouse is banging someone else, I guess, better than you are. (audience laughing) Kristen cinema is the person who brought this to the forefront, you must have served with her. Yeah. She's a good friend. Oh, you see any action? No, I'm kidding. (audience laughing) Oh no, you've got to ask her why. (audience applauding) But she is a, she's a goer. Come on, she was a, like, memory, wasn't she bisexual and then, and then she's, okay, she was banging the security guy. And who isn't these days? I mean, come on. It's just a very common thing out there. Okay. Anyway, somehow this is in the, this, I don't get it. Oh, it's awesome. And the, so you could get it. This isn't the same. And by the way, they did not have sex in North Carolina, but because there are texts. The nexus, yeah. While he was in North Carolina, this can go to a court. Why is this a thing to begin with? Why is this in the government's purview? Oh, you know, I had somebody ask me that several years ago after she was on a jury trial for four weeks, and she said, you have got to get this repealed. That happens to be my wife. I think it's some of the dumbest policy that's still on the books in North Carolina. There's only, there are four states that are similar to ours, six states in total. But it's, it's time to modernize our, our laws. But do you know where it comes from? I mean, I look this up. It's an 18th century common law in Britain. Yeah. And it just somehow survived in a few of these states. Yeah, but it's, it's silly. I mean, in the case of my wife, this had on the jury trial, they got awarded a dollar. We just need to take it off. Look, if this is not, if we want good, solid, driving relationships like that, one I've had with my wife for 40 years, don't. [APPLAUSE] You don't force this by law. It either works or it doesn't. Yeah, I mean, I feel bad for it, but. Yeah, I couldn't agree more. Yeah, it's crazy. I mean, because you're asking a judge to rule on whether a marriage had loved left in it. Do you have to, really, the judge has to decide this. Because then it's about whether this other person stole that your husband, like, it's not a bicycle that you can lock up. You can't steal another one. That's right. That's nothing to do with Kristen Cinemite. And I'll tell you why. Yeah, Kirsten is a wonderful person. She ran some great bills there. And it's a shame the Democrats for psyched her and ran a primary against her. Because she was reasonable. You know what the lesson is. Bill, some people have to pay attention, which states they're in, like, for tax purposes. How much you spent. Now you have to pay attention. Who you're texting, if you go to certain states. I didn't realize we got to get off the bus for tourism, if nothing helps. [LAUGHTER] I didn't thought of that. Yeah, it's amazing. That it's based-- not on where the fucking took place, to where your phone is, it's your age. I mean, OK, I mean, ask about it. The midterms, three weeks away, I get very excited about this time here before an election. Trump said this week, if the Democrats win, you will have an economic depression much like 1929. And I take it seriously, because it's not like him to make something up. [LAUGHTER] Just exaggerate. But for you, I want to ask. People think that economy is terrible. They thought the same thing when Trump was running against Biden. He was able to prosecute the same case. And the Democrats were like, it's really not that terrible. And I think the Republicans, there are problems with it, it's not. And the proof is that consumer confidence in the toilet, but they keep spending. Yes. What's going on? So here's what I always say. Watch what they do, not what they say. They say they're miserable. They say they're lousy. But you're right. I mean, we look at credit card data. You can look at bank deposit data. Unemployment is historically low. It's 4.2%. People have jobs, and they do continue to spend. Why do they feel so lousy? Well, the price of gas is high, you know? It's all gas, right? Well, people see that. You fill up your tank every single week. You watch the numbers tick higher. And so that affects your mood and the psychology. And prices are still high, even though inflation has come down. So you do have this scenario where people are worried, and they don't feel good, but ultimately a lot of the fundamentals are good, and it's not just Wall Street, and it's not just AI. And by the way, AI is a part of it. We have this massive construction boom going on. That's helping jobs, in manufacturing, in construction. And it is a major investment in our economy. It's not popular. It's not popular. The building the data centers is really one of the few things that Unites read and blue America, people don't like it. They don't want it. But I think that's it. They didn't ask for it. They don't think they need it. And I think they're getting tired of what I was saying originally, I do not like what an ass kisser that fucking thing is. I don't want to talk into me. I tried to program it, so you have to sound like a robot, 'cause you are a fucking robot. Don't talk to me like a human cause you're not. But here's the thing though. We've, throughout history, there have always been fears around major technological changes, the internet, the automobile, the nuclear weapon. I know this is different, I know this is different. But we do not want to not be on the side of progress, and we do not want to let China get ahead of us on this dangerous technology. We want to own it, and we want our best people doing it. And so I do think it's a little dangerous that it's become so unpopular, and now there are lots of moratorium on data centers. We have to build data centers in this country, 'cause you know what, they're not slowing down in China. Yeah. (audience applauds) In order for Republicans not to suffer a serious setback on election day, we do have to recognize there is always an affordability problem in this country. The question is, how many are experiencing it at any one time? And I've had this discussion with people in the administration. I've visited that trailer park I grew up in last Friday, and those folks are struggling. So now it's, those folks vote too. And so we need to understand that right now, a lot of people have the financial wherewithal to invest. If they're smart, they should be making a lot of money. But the last time I checked, I didn't see a lot of Bloomberg terminals on Waikiki Boulevard, which is one of the towns I lived in, or one of the trailers I lived in in that trailer park. So we're toned up if we pretend like there's not an affordability problem. And we're also toned up if we think the cost of energy is not hurting a lot of people and making people that are otherwise secure, feeling a little bit nervous. But we're also toned up if we don't realize that we're $40 trillion in debt. And sooner or later, we even have to pay our bills. And we've got to be conscious of that. Grow the economy, reduce regulations. Try and retire a lot of that. But we've got to be fiscally restrained. And we're going to ace in a debt driven financial crisis. I think over the next six or seven years. It's avoidable. We've got one more question for you. [APPLAUSE] Since you're retiring and we're keeping it super real. Right? OK. I want to ask you about Alito. No, he says he's making noises like he might retire. This is very, very relevant because we've had a lot of Supreme Court history. So interesting, the history. Scalia, when he died, there was 422 days left in the Obama administration. And yet, your great mentor, Mitch McConnell, kept that domination till the next president was elected. And then Ruth Bader Ginsburg dies right before the 2016 election. And you rushed it right through. Now, if Alito quit tomorrow, you would have only until January for the new Senate takes place. So you'd be tempted, wouldn't you? To like rush that through, just in case the Democrats won the Senate. So I'm just asking, it was OK when it was benefiting your party at 422 days, but then 46 days, that was for the other side. You see what I'm saying about that? In full disclosure, you're looking at the person who first signed the letter from Judiciary, saying we're going to keep the seat open. I'm not talking about the president's cabinet official and holding something open. I'm talking about a third branch. And we have advise and consent role. And we advise the president. We weren't going to consent with his nominee. So I think it's different. I think we're talking about the composition of a co-equal branch. And if the Congress that has the Gattles now decides that they don't want to fill it, and they don't think that Obama's best candidate has got to fit the bill, I wouldn't begrudge the Democrats for doing the same thing. If we were talking about something-- Is that how the system is supposed to work, though? And it never worked that way before. We can go back. Like if you were president and a guy died, you got the pick. Now, I will tell you that if you go to the book, I'm saying we're experiencing political physics. I can build an argument saying, I feel OK with doing that, because Harry Reid, after he swore, he would never note the executive counter-filibuster, nook did. He's the one that fast-tracked. So my old book is about the political physics. I won't begrudge the Democrats doing the same thing if they're similarly situated. But I absolutely believe in the 85 days we have left, we should fill that seat. Both parties do this. They maximize power. I don't think the Democrats ever did that to a Supreme Court number. They never had the timing to do it. But Kamala Harris is already talking about adding-- she wants 13 maybe-- She wants to fill us her ass, so to see. She just says, I mean, and Harry Reid-- She said he got rid of for judicial nominees. He got rid of the-- That would take a constitutional amendment it would never happen. No, it does it. That's the freaky thing about it. You knew the filibuster. You could admit DC as a state, Puerto Rico as a state, and extend the Supreme Court. It's not bounded by the Constitution. We have just governed ourselves with the current composition. Hell, we'll have 400 Supreme Court justices before we're done if we do that. Oh, well. You know what? I think it-- I stand corrected. I think if you don't like it. I should. I'm wearing orthopedic shoes. [LAUGHTER] I'm sorry. I was going to say, like, this is within the realm of what the Senate can do. And if you don't like it, then you should vote. OK. All right. Thank you, panel. I'm for Nero. [APPLAUSE] All right. All right. Nero, Trump must order the TSA to open a store, just past security, where they take everything they've seized, the bottled water, the shampoo, the sunscreen, the corkscrews, the snow globes, the jars of peanut butter, and sell it back to it. [LAUGHTER] We can call it "Trump Season Safe." [LAUGHTER] [APPLAUSE] Oh, look. There's my Fiji water on sale now for $12.99. Do I feel ripped off? Of course I do. But hey, still cheaper than Hudson News. [LAUGHTER] Hey, Hudson. [APPLAUSE] Nero, men must admit that when we're so proud of ourselves for taking off our T-shirt and landing it successfully in the hamper from across the room, it really is nothing compared to when women do that thing where you take your bra off and pull it out your sleeve without removing your shirt. How did they pull that off? I still don't know. [APPLAUSE] You know, now that execution, by way, of lethal injection, has been botched 11 times in the last five years. We really do need a rule that if you survive lethal injection, you get to go free. It's only fair. [APPLAUSE] It's only fair. The state had it shot literally, and they fucked it up. You don't get to keep trying until you finally get it. It's not word-o. [APPLAUSE] Nero, someone has to break it to the mom and parent diaries who laments that birthday parties are disappearing. And kids just don't seem to be having them anymore. Oh, they're having them. Your kids just not invited. [APPLAUSE] It's kind of like how you are also not invited to your husband's boys night out. But that doesn't mean no women are. [APPLAUSE] Nero, the man who works as Brazil's testicular cancer, they have it. Testicular cancer awareness mascot, Sanior Testicular, and the guy who works as Brazil's coloproctology mascot, Anus. [LAUGHTER] They couldn't come up with a better mascot named the Anus. OK. They must meet up for drinks after work. Come on, you two are practically neighbors. You've probably bumped into each other before and didn't even know. [APPLAUSE] And I know a great bar that's close to both of you. It's called The Taint. OK. [APPLAUSE] Finally, Nero, now that everyone is talking about Cornell, stop asking me about it just because I went there. First of all, I graduated almost 10 years ago. How would I know? [LAUGHTER] What I do know is this alleged gang rape at the Cornell Chi Five Frat House is deeply disturbing. But since it's my alma mater, where I walk those hallowed halls for four years with so many memories, I don't want to let my personal feelings get in the way. Because they're all bad. Cornell sucks, and I fucking hated it, and I'm glad to see them eating a shit sandwich. [LAUGHTER] That's true. Now, in fairness, Cornell did give me a very good education, the kind they don't do anymore. And also, this shit could have happened anywhere there are fraternities, because it happens everywhere there are fraternities. Any place that's all male, no girls allowed, just doesn't function without depravity. Ask the Catholic church. [LAUGHTER] (audience applauds) As the Taliban, human nature is bad, and the best we can do is create institutions that don't make it so easy to be worse, and a great place to start would be getting rid of Greek life, which despite the Togas is not a precious legacy handed down from ancient Greece, it started in 1825, 3,000 years after the invention of pants. (audience laughs) And the cradle of democracy is connectivity. There's no law that says we have to keep something alive just because it's 200 years old. I mean, besides Chuck Grassley. (audience laughs) Tell him I'm sorry. I know, I know he is. (audience applauds) And he made a close call. Okay, I'm glad you doubt it. Everything that's inherently bad about men gets worse if you put them in a fraternity. The drinking gets worse. The cruelty, the treatment of women, the tribalism, the peer pressure, one-upmanship, conformity, segregation, nepotism, bullying, elitism, and just general assholory. (audience laughs) (audience applauds) Gloucchus, for example. (audience laughs) And hypocrisy. Yeah, fraternity mission statements love to use the word gentlemen. Well, in this current Jane Doe case, a young woman made a bad decision as 20-year-olds do. When she went to a flat house drunk and did ketamine, and for that, she claims to have paid a price, no woman should have to pay. Now, no one was in there, no one was there, knows what happened. But I do know what a gentleman is. A gentleman, gentlemen, is someone who in that situation doesn't exploit the woman. He saves her. That's a gentleman. (audience applauds) Kai Fai says, "Our mission is to build better men." And you think we do that by hazing? Why are we still allowing that in 2026? In this century, so far, there have been 128 college hazing deaths. Deaths! Kids have died from being repeatedly punched in the chest from hypothermia, alcohol poisoning, traumatic brain injury, dehydration, drowning, inhaling nice roots, oxide, asphyxia. Can you imagine if a place of employment made the condition for a new job that you had to first, I don't know, eat mayonnaise out of a toilet, (audience laughs) reluctant a coffin, but put a bunch of guys together in matching sweatshirts and suddenly it's relaxed, it's a tradition. It's cool 'cause the older guys did it to us. You know what an elephant walk is? Well, there's no real hard evidence, but lots of rumors that this goes on at colleges when you're rushing a frat. It's where all the guys walk in line make it with their thumb up the ass of the guy in front of them. You know, for bonding. (audience laughs) You know how my friends and I bonded by making fun of frat guys? (audience laughs) It was. (audience applauds) It was always a great way to make friends. The type you can look in the eye later in life without thinking about the time they had their thumb up your ass. (audience laughs) (audience applauds) I'll tell you. (audience applauds) For places that are so woke, colleges foster a lot of shitty behavior. Speaking of which, as long as we're getting rid of fraternities, let's throw in the sororities, too. They're just. (audience applauds) They're just bitch factories producing. (audience laughs) Bitch factories producing the carons of tomorrow. (audience laughs) They also take the bad inclinations of human behavior, in this case female behavior, and make it worse. Clicks, popularity contests, meme girlism, social climbing, insecurity, backstabbing, body shaming. We took a vote and decided your thighs are just not cap-a-capitate a material. (audience laughs) Sorry. (audience applauds) Have you seen those sorority recruitment videos? 40 strippers. (audience laughs) I mean, 40 co-eds. Doing a synchronized dance in front of a mansion. What major is this? This were my daughter, I'd say, "You know, I'm glad you found friends "at Tik Tok University, honey, but give me back my 80 grand." (audience applauds) It's funny, in 2023, when the Supreme Court ruled that colleges can't use race-based admissions anymore, the counter-argument from universities was, "How can you? "Diversity is the most important thing we do here." Okay, then why all these segregated housing on campuses? Cornell has program houses for every identity group, black, Hispanic, Native American gay, which is really crazy 'cause as we've seen, we don't need a gay fraternity, fraternities are already gay. (audience laughs) (audience applauds) Harvard said, "Diversity and difference "are essential to academic excellence." Right, diversity and difference are essential. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll be joining a house with 40 people who look exactly like me. (audience laughs) No, college is supposed to be where you go to expose your mind to new ideas and to drugs that give you even newer ideas. (audience laughs) Don't. (audience applauds) Don't cobble the kids and put them where they're most comfortable with the same people they grew up with in their own hometowns. Your roommate should be someone whose food smells weird to you for the first three weeks and by Thanksgiving, you're at his house eating it. (audience laughs) (audience applauds) Make the atheist have a Mormon roommate, give the Republican a lesbian and give the rich kid somebody who has a job. All right, that's our show. Welcome next week and back on the 20th of June. I wanna thank Tom Taylor, sir. Hi, it's Ethan, Michael Douglas. But we're ending on Sunday on YouTube or listen wherever you get your podcast. Now go watch over Tom on the very same YouTube. Good night. Thank you very much. (audience cheers) Thank you, guys. (audience applauds) (upbeat music) Catch all new episodes of Real Time with Bill Maher every Friday night at 10. Or watch him anytime on HBO on demand. For more information, log on to HBO.com.