Overtime – Episode #732: Sen. Chris Murphy, Amb. Susan Rice

Welcome to an HBO podcast from the HBO late-night series, Real Time with Bill Maugh. All right, he's a Democratic senator from Connecticut, author of "Plicers of the Common Good" Senator Chris Murphy, and she served as U.S. Ambassador to the UN under President Obama, Ambassador Susan Rice, is here. Okay, I'm going to announce right up front. This is going to be a short one because the nickname starts in 20 minutes. I have waited since high school and never wavered on the nicks. High school. What is the panel think of the recent shake-up at 60 minutes? I'm for it, good night. No. I'll let you. What do you think of the shake-up at 60 minutes? Big controversy. Listen, you're watching a censorship state be created. Trump is using the powers that he has available as President of the United States to install only friendly ownership at the big media companies. He's using regulatory powers to punish people who oppose him. I guess it's fascinating to me that all our big institutions have let us down, right, from academia to the corporate world to big media. They've all folded in with him, and yet we're like five months away from an election, and we might pull off a free and fair election. It's kind of astounding that the people of this country, even as the corruption of our democracy happens in media, in the corporate world, even around Donald Trump's inner circle, the people just decided they're hanging on to this democracy. That's a big chart that you just made. That 60 minutes itself and CBS itself is now completely maggot. I don't see it that way. It's completely maggot. Well, that's kind of what you said. But he is clearly intense on installing people who will tell his story. Of course. And we'll keep his critics off the air. But let me answer this question. I watch 60 minutes every week. I had since I was a kid. If I didn't hear all the buzz in the media, if I didn't read about it all the time, would I ever notice that it was any different? I don't think I would. Yeah, but it's not. Would you? It's not just 60 minutes. And part of it is you don't know what they choose not. I agree. You don't know what they choose not to air. That's true, too. Part of what the allegation is is that they are killing stories that would be embarrassing for the president. So it's hard to know what you're missing in a censorship environment. But I've seen ones that are not very favorable to the president. Yeah. That's what I'm saying. I don't know if I would have noticed any different if I hadn't been reading about it. Also, I just don't think being a 60 minutes correspondent is that hard. I don't feel like Scott Pelley. I don't feel like Scott Pelley was a national treasure. Companies change hands all the time. I never liked them. Sorry, I just never did. Companies change hands. People bring in their own people, their new ownership. You know, just because something changes doesn't mean. I feel like we see everything through such a partisan lens. Oh my god, 60 minutes has a new cast. So does Saturday Night Live. It does not just, it's not just 60 minutes, right? And they literally. I am not a chief late-night critic. CBS News at 630 does sound and feel different. Trust me, I'm not just about 60 minutes. I feel it too. Yeah. Okay, okay. So I'm part of it. I get it. But we're just talking about 60 minutes now. But yes, I agree. He's a danger to media. He's a danger to freedom of speech. But just 60 minutes. I don't know. I mean, and I'm not going to make that decision until I see. until I see a smoking gun. Like something like, oh wow. You know, now we're, you know, tick, tick, tick. Candace Owens and Alex Jones on 60 minutes. I mean. Yeah, but they're always going to maintain a veneer of objectivity, right? The good ones who are trying to carefully transition a country from democracy to autocracy. Don't do it overnight, right? It is methodical that over time you feel like you don't have the space to criticize. And if you are going to put forth the administration's propaganda, you get an elevated seat at the table. So that doesn't just turn on a dime. That is a project that authoritarians or wouldn't authoritarians. When I see actual evidence of that, I'll be on your side. Imagine setting your makeup. Then forgetting it's even theirs. Meet new groupie setting mist from Mabelie, New York. Jelly mist technology locks in your look for up to 24 hours. With flexible all-day comfy grip. No tightness. No stickiness. No residue. Just plump, dewy, hydrated skin. That still feels like your skin. Try new groupie setting mist from Mabelie, New York. Maybe it's Mabelie. What is your reaction to Bernie Sanders' plan for the public to own 50% of the equity of top AI companies? Speaking of AI. Wait a second. Bernie Sanders has a plan. I'm just learning about this. For the public to own 50% of the top of the equity of top AI companies. Well, if AI is going to have all the money, I want a little piece. But this is an interesting issue. Apparently Sam Altman has proposed an idea to the administration that they take an equity share in the large AI companies. Strange. You had Vice President Pence on earlier talking about how it's the antithesis of conservatism for the government to be taking stakes in companies, which they are rare earths and chip companies, and the like. I mean, this is a brand new thing. And Bernie didn't actually, wasn't the first to get it done. Right. It was Donald Trump, who's now taking huge stakes in major companies. I think it's. Well, among major politicians, the biggest crossover is between Trump voters and Bernie voters. There is a big crossover there. They definitely had kind of the same issue, certainly when Trump ran the first time. And on that issue, there is enormous left-right crossover. Yes. Right. The belief that these AI companies have become too powerful. The belief that government has done nothing to protect people from AI and social media. There is absolutely a right-left alignment on taking on these companies and protecting jobs. What are your thoughts on the $1.5 trillion defense budget? Well, I'd throw them a new ass all about that one. To propose by the Trump administration, do we need a defense budget that big? No. I just said it about like it's buying fighter jets in the age of drones. I mean, it's just ridiculous. It's a crazy big proposal and we're not spending it the right way. We have a military that is not constructed for the world in which we're living. And that's the big thing that has to change. The whole nature of our war fighting enterprise has to catch up to the technology of the day. It's not free money. I mean, that's either borrowed money or that's money that could be going to building new schools or to helping people afford health care. It's just a choice you make. Do you support Trump's efforts to make daylight savings permanent? Isn't my thing about him? He is a genius at picking up these little issues where he picks up like 1% of the voting. And that adds up on election day. No taxes on tips. Oh, great. I'm going to make mills out of jail. It's just all these little things. This is the latest one. I had a special assistant when I was in the White House. Wonderful guy who is very much a Democrat. But he probably is a single issue voter on this one issue deal. And he is probably cheering as we speak. Is it OK if I don't care? It is absolutely OK. All right. I do care about the next. Thank you very much, everybody. Catch all new episodes of Real Time with Bill Marr every Friday night at 10. Or watch him anytime on HBO on demand. For more information, log on to HBO.com. 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