Real Time with Bill Maher - Overtime – Episode #651: Max Brooks and Tara Palmeri

Episode Date: March 12, 2024

Bill Maher and his guests answer viewer questions after the show. (Originally aired 3/8/24) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Lazang surgellied, Pucance-moid for 15 minutes. We're like it's the Dojo. Prere to enjoy? Vive the pleasure with the Ojoe.

The casino in line that proposes the most recent machine-as-a-sue and the game of Bacinanza. Without exigance of un-esteading.

Hey, I've gained. Woohoo! Scenture the pleasure Play-O-Jo! 18-10 and plus, 1-Depo SOUKD POS SOUKBINNs on NANZE,

depob Minimimimum of 10 $10. Veye to pay to fashion responsible. The conditions so applicable. Welcome to an HBO podcast from the HBO late-night series Real Time with Bill Maugh. Hi, CNN. It's us here at

Real Time. With my panel, a fellow at the modern warrant is here at West Point, Max Brooks, and she's a senior political correspondent at Puck, Tara Palmieri. Okay. Here are the questions. Any predictions for the Oscars on Sunday? Oh, I'm not the person to ask. What are you looking at me for? I ain't there.

I don't have a movie. Wait, wait, wait. I know. Bradley Cooper will win something because he seems so desperate for an Oscar. Right? Yes. Well, I can tell you,

I mean, my personal favorite as a novelist is American fiction. I think it's amazing. Everybody is amazing. So go down. Okay. What do you think of,

this is for you, but everybody can answer? What do you think of Trump? meeting with Victor Orban. He is the dictator. Is that just a strong a word of Hungary? I mean, he's a authoritarian figure. He's as close as it gets in the Western world.

I mean, he was elected, but so was Hitler. Right. And he seems to be elected over and over and over again. Yes. But I think, actually, most Americans know nothing about Victor Orban, so it probably has no impact on his electability. And that's true. You're right.

So I... That's true. Yeah. But can we educate them as a little? Oh, yes. We are on... We're on CNN now. Right.

Yeah. Come on. Who is Victor Orban? There is a country. It's called Hungary. You may have heard of it. It's part of my heritage. Yeah.

It's Hungarian. It's amazing. And it is on Eastern Europe. And it became a part of the European Union. But it is definitely the most difficult member of the European Union. Yeah, it used to be part of the Soviet bloc. It was part of the group with East Germany and Poland and Czechoslovakia. And allies with Hitler in World War II.

Well, many were. Right. And they were one of the countries that basically were like, don't worry Hungarian Jews. We're not going to turn you over. We're not going to turn you over. You're not going to turn. Yeah, we are. And then by the very end, bam, all at once.

Right. And they have a very strong anti-immigration stance, especially with the migrants that are coming through Europe. They have been the most resistant to taking any migrants that have come through, actually, the borders of Eastern Europe as they came through Syria. And, yeah, it's an interesting thing to see this country try to have the benefits of the West,

but also be resistant as well. You know who else didn't take any Syrian refugees? Saudi Arabia, where they might have fit in a little better. Right. I'm just saying. You know, it's, I know, I think that it. Fair enough. Yeah, okay.

Do you think a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine is possible? Yeah, we got 80 seconds. Let's fit. 100%. And this is what so many people don't understand about Biden. You do you think a two-state? I think it's 100% possible. Biden's the guy to do it because he's established his bona fides.

These things do not happen overnight, and the first step of making peace is establishing your cred. There's an old saying, it's either U.S. diplomatcore or Star Trek 6. Only Nixon could go to China, right? He was the only guy with the bona fides to do it. And Biden was so smart in Israel's darkest moment. Right after October 7th, he came to Israel and said, I am your friend, I am your protector. So now he is in a position to say, as your friend and your protector, can tell you, the only long-term solution for Israel is a creation of Palestine.

But you're only talking about this from one side. You do realize that Hamas doesn't not want a two-state solution. No, no. They want the whole thing. From the river to the sea. Right. But Hamas needs to be isolated and we need to talk. The fourth player in this quartet is the Arab world. Right. These are the, and the good news here is that the world has changed in 20 years. And it's not your father's Middle East anymore. Right? This is not dictators in the system. In some ways. In some ways, but it's not like in this... Some ways it is.

Yeah, but now there is a new coming war with Iran. And there are real... Yes. This is huge. And the Gulf Arabs especially... The war between Israel and Iran or us in Iran. No, between the Iranians and the Gulf Arabs. That's the war.

That's the big conflict. And the Gulf Arabs are scared to death. Yeah. Which is why they tried to do a peace treaty with Israel for getting the Palestinians. Right. Because their attitude is we need... Well, and again, for those people who we imagine don't know this stuff,

but I think they probably do because they're watching CNN. The Iranians are Shiites. Right. And the Gulf Arabs, most of the Arab world is Sunni. Yeah. Okay, that's, I think, 85%. But the Shiites are very strong. And the Iranians have proxies in almost every country that is surrounding Israel.

They have the Houthis. That's in Yemen. That's to the south. They took over Iraq because we stupidly went and undid the balance of power there. Syria, and Lebanon, Hezbollah. So that is a Shiite-Iranian-led arc that goes all around the Middle East. And, yes, it is very frightening. And that was causing Saudi Arabia and Israel to make peace with each other

because the friend of my friend or the friend of my enemy or whatever that's saying is. My cousin's cousin is my friend. I don't know. But you know what I'm trying to say. But we're in a better position than we've ever been in, between alternate energy tech and alternate energy business practices and infrastructure, we're not their crackhors anymore. Right.

We're in a position now where if we walked away, we'd be in much less pain than we were 20 years ago, and 20 years from now, we can just walk away. And they know that. So now is the time to really pressure them and say, listen, if you want our support against Iran, you need to back a Palestinian state and use your money to build it, and then use your sons in the same.

their uniforms to be a peacekeeping force. Right. But again, you're going to have to convince the Palestinians themselves that they don't get the whole thing. Because they don't even really want to give up on that idea. The whole river to the sea, we get it all. Well, that's Hamas. Are we talking?

That are regular Palestinians. Most Palestinians are just regular people who want a life. And remember, it was Arafat who walked away from that. Right. It was their leadership. He was what you would call a regular Palestinian. I don't know what that means. but you're talking about the West Bank as opposed to Gaza.

I'm talking about the West Bank versus Gaza. Those are two different ecosystems. Right. Okay. What do you think of Katie Porter's claim, okay, for people who don't live here in California, Katie Porter, a congressperson I've had on the show, not successfully. Did she come with a whiteboard? I can't remember, no. No, but we don't like each other.

No, it's true. I mean, she would say the same thing. You can't love everyone, yeah. I mean, she's not very, I feel quite vindicated by this because everyone's saying she's a nod and she's a sore loser. She claimed that the California primary, she ran against Adam Schiff. She's a congressperson running for the Senate, and now she claims the California primary was rigged.

Yeah, everyone's, yeah. What do you think about that? I just feel like you can't use the rigged word, especially when you're trying to, it's just like, that's Trump's word. You can't, like, cry wolf, right? You just can't do that. Adam Schiff elevated his Republican opponent so that he could be in an election

where he was up against a Republican rather than another Democrat and in a way he saved the Democrats a ton of money. Now all this money isn't going into the California race for a Senate seat that will be filled by a Democrat two Democrats fighting against each other. It's Republican and Democrat. A Democrat will win and everyone can put their money into other races. And it's just, you lost, it's politics, it's dirty.

People do this kind of stuff. It's what I'm always saying to the Trump people. You think he's so macho and you're the big tough guys. But the basic tough thing that a tough guy would do is be able to say, I lost and not pout. And not be a whiny little bitch. What do you think of George Santos attending the state of the unions? Oh, well, you know, you have floor privileges for the rest of your life.

So he might come every year. Is that right? Yes. Wait a second. will help his cameo and his future only fans. He has to be famous. If he's not famous, I'm what is he? And, Bill, I don't know if you saw the latest news.

He plans to primary the Republican who, from New York, who worked so hard to try to evict him from the House. But I will say, like, privately, you're not going to believe this, but some Republican members say to me, we shouldn't have got rid of George Sandus until he was actually convicted because we needed that vote. Seriously. Oh, I'm sure.

They say that all the time. They're like, we shouldn't have done it. We've waited before for other people to be convicted. And that's what they're, that's what they privately say. Well, isn't Menendez still a Democratic senator? I mean, because they need the vote. Yeah, this is the guy who is embarrassing, but. Right.

But when you need the vote, you know, hey, he was stuffing gold bricks in his pajamas. Well, we're not all perfect, you know. But I'm very curious about this. So George Santos. He was in Congress. He got kicked out, right? Which is very rare. I don't think it's happened in hundreds of years.

150 years or something. They kicked him out. I mean, even the Republicans couldn't take it anymore. Okay. So he's not in Congress. No. But you're saying, even if you're expelled, you have floor privileges? Like a gym?

Yes. Really? Is it floor privilege any time? Can he just show up on any day? I'm pretty sure that you have floor privileges for the rest of your life. No matter what you do. do even when you get expelled. Okay. Can we change that?

I mean, if he's in prison, you can't go to the floor, right? So it'll be difficult. I'm going to run as a one-issue candidate on this. I have to say good night for now. Thank you, CNN. Thank you, you, you guys, and we'll see you next week. Catch all new episodes of Real Time with Bill Maher every Friday night at 10 or watch them anytime on HBO on demand.

For more information, log on to HBO.com.