Don Lemon | Club Random

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Speaker 1 That guy cannot cannot be intimidated. But is that something that's admirable? No.

Speaker 1 Should we celebrate that? I'm not celebrating it.

Speaker 1 Don,

Speaker 1 it's time for our cooking segment. I don't know if you know this, but

Speaker 1 I make a mean omelet.

Speaker 1 Don here?

Speaker 1 I'm here. Roll close.
Keep them waiting. Lemon, keep them waiting.
Try to intimidate them. Come in.

Speaker 1 What time is it? It's 5.30.

Speaker 1 this show is scheduled for exactly 5 30.

Speaker 1 it's good to see you how you doing i am never late and never have are you never late you hate being late i and i find it rude when people are yeah and i really don't like it when people go

Speaker 1 they're late all the time they go you know i'm not a rude person well my thing is you are what you do

Speaker 1 If you're late all the time, you are a rude person.

Speaker 1 But

Speaker 1 no, 5:30, you were here early. I appreciate that.

Speaker 1 It's a workday for me.

Speaker 1 I know.

Speaker 1 This is

Speaker 1 my pleasure time.

Speaker 1 It's busy. It's got to be crazy for you.
Yeah. You know, it's like, hey, I've been doing it forever.

Speaker 1 I'm a person of

Speaker 1 habit. I like a ritual.
I like that Monday I do this, Tuesday I do this, Wednesday we do this part of the show. Thursday, Friday, it was game day, you know.
I like that.

Speaker 1 So it doesn't bother me, but you know,

Speaker 1 whenever there's a change in administration, people always say, you know,

Speaker 1 what are you going to do? Bush is gone. Is there?

Speaker 1 Yeah, I think there'll be comedy even when the Democrat's in office. There's always a lot of comedy.
There's always, I've never, I never get the newspaper and there's nothing in it.

Speaker 1 Like it's blank that day. There are slow news days, but there's always something.
Nothing. Not these days.
But then

Speaker 1 that's a good challenge, though. Whenever there's a slow news day, I find that sometimes I do my best.

Speaker 1 But have you seen one since January 20th? I have not. No, I have not.

Speaker 1 There's always too much. I can't get it all in in that way.
Just the things that would be

Speaker 1 headline kind of making news are just, that's like the fifth or sixth story, you know, with

Speaker 1 the vibe change.

Speaker 1 It's a lot. I thought it was a lot in 2016 and then in 2020 during the election, but this is a lot.
I mean, the first 40 days is like the first 40 years.

Speaker 1 And the odd thing is, it's actually, you know, in many ways

Speaker 1 worse. I mean, there are things that I like even less than the first time.
And there are some things that I'm not going to judge yet and maybe even be positive.

Speaker 1 But mostly I'm not thrilled with a lot of things like switching sides in the Cold War, you know, little things like that.

Speaker 1 And yet, My mood is so much better.

Speaker 1 Because I've been through it once. Yeah.

Speaker 1 And I think I, you know, I said that in the lead up to, you know, F41. I was like, you know, he got the White House.
He's not going to get my mind this time. And I think everybody kind of,

Speaker 1 at least everybody I talk to kind of feels the same way. I always say you can be informed without being inundated.

Speaker 1 And it's good for me that, you know, I'm not on cable news anymore because I would just, I'd have to absorb all of it.

Speaker 1 24-7 because, you know, what do you, they're always in touch as you know, you have a show. What do you want to do with this? This guest is on, this cancel, blah, blah, blah.

Speaker 1 So, you were sort of in it. Um,

Speaker 1 but now

Speaker 1 I find that I can go in and out of it whenever I want, and I figure I read the headlines, I read the papers, you do your YouTube, and I do my show.

Speaker 1 So, what I need the same kind of premise,

Speaker 1 yes, and no.

Speaker 1 So, with the YouTube show, with my show, the Don Levin show on YouTube, I don't have to, um, yes, I don't have to pretend

Speaker 1 and I don't have to um john we know you're gay what what you don't have to pretend not here we love it whoa oh you know are you bill you're outing me um i don't have to pretend that i don't have to give false equivalents i don't have to invite someone on to lie i don't have to have an election denier on i don't have to if i want to i do it's and it's all my decision um so i've chosen not to

Speaker 1 in many ways insult the viewer's intelligence by just having someone on purposely who's going to lie or or just to fight.

Speaker 1 I get that. It's also a very dangerous thing, I feel, to think you always know what's a lie and what isn't.

Speaker 1 And to kind of like summarily think that only one side is lying. One side is lying more than the other.
That's true.

Speaker 1 But

Speaker 1 it is a slippery slope.

Speaker 1 I don't believe that's just one side lies, but I mean, I think you should have people on who can tell the story on the other side. But

Speaker 1 I don't have to book people just to fight. I hate that.
I do too. Yeah.
Yeah, I stopped doing that. I mean,

Speaker 1 that was the old show, politically incorrect.

Speaker 1 It was much more of a, well, people like fighting. Well, it wasn't just because I actually got, I thought, excuse me, I got more out of that show than most news shows on television back then.
Yeah.

Speaker 1 But there were fights, but I thought they were organic.

Speaker 1 Cable news is not booking organic fights anymore, organic guests. They're booking people to come on and yell at each other because they're desperate for ratings.

Speaker 1 Do you think your old network does that?

Speaker 1 I think they all, I don't know what to specifically, I think they all do. I think not they all do.
I think it's... I guess NBC doesn't because you don't see people on there who disagree.

Speaker 1 I see many of them do. Some of them do.
Fox does it, I believe. They invite a Democrat on or someone left-leaning just to yell at them.
And I do see that.

Speaker 1 I do see some cable shows doing that, which is for me, at the end of the fight or the argument, I wonder, like, what did I get out of this? I usually don't get anything out of it.

Speaker 1 And I think people need to be informed more than ever now.

Speaker 1 I know you think like broadcast TV is dead. I think I heard you say that.
No, I don't think broadcast TV is dead. I think it's on the decline.
I don't think it has as much influence as it.

Speaker 1 Did you say that when you used to be on it? Yeah.

Speaker 1 Yeah. No,

Speaker 1 I was on broadcast TV for a while, but do you mean cable? You mean just in general? Well, I mean broadcast cable. I mean,

Speaker 1 most people have basic, I mean, most people have CNN in their house. I mean,

Speaker 1 it's a

Speaker 1 pretty

Speaker 1 pretty primitive TV setup you have, if you don't have CNN.

Speaker 1 But

Speaker 1 like, let's say legacy media.

Speaker 1 I mean,

Speaker 1 legacy media,

Speaker 1 the polling from people has it in the toilet. You know, it's down there with Congress.
They don't trust it.

Speaker 1 I've been really surprised by,

Speaker 1 yes, you're right about that. They don't trust it because they don't trust the corporate influence.
You know, and look, in order to stay afloat, they need corporations to own them, right?

Speaker 1 But they just don't like it.

Speaker 1 I think people believe, and rightfully so, that the corporation is influencing. That's part of it.
But that's

Speaker 1 well, it is. But also, they're not holding people to account, and also that they are, they're just not doing a very good job at

Speaker 1 some things. You know why I don't trust it? Why? Because

Speaker 1 I never feel like I'm hearing the full story. I'm hearing narrative.
I'm hearing what

Speaker 1 the

Speaker 1 whatever outlet I'm listening to, they are asking themselves first, not what's true. They're asking themselves, what does this audience want to hear?

Speaker 1 How does this audience want me to interpret this story? And I'm going to give them that. So to get like a full story, I can never get it just from one source.

Speaker 1 And what I always try to do on real time is be that source, be that place where if you watch the full show, you get the full story.

Speaker 1 Now, of course, what people do in this media atmosphere that we're in is

Speaker 1 many people don't watch the full show. They see clips.
So

Speaker 1 you could carve up any one of my hour-long shows and just feed, and a lot of people only see it this way, just feed them the part that either will make them love me or hate me.

Speaker 1 Yeah, they can feed you.

Speaker 1 Something that they think is right, they just feed it, and then something they think is left. Yeah, but that's always been the case, don't you think? Not this bad.
No, no, no, I don't.

Speaker 1 You think this is worse now? Oh, way worse. I think the New York Times, just to take the most prime example, because it is the paper of record, blah, blah, blah.
Not to me anymore.

Speaker 1 I mean, it used to be, I feel

Speaker 1 the editorial page was opinion, yes,

Speaker 1 but not the front page. And now every page.
That's just a change they made. Now, part of that is because of Trump.
It's very hard to be honest and true and not say he lied.

Speaker 1 Basically, newspapers never used to say the president lied, even though presidents have always lied. But they just basically just went out and said, because you can't not, because

Speaker 1 he took it to such a different degree of lying that you just have to say. So that is true.
He did lie. But

Speaker 1 it does lie about many things. We saw it, I mean, there was lots of crazy stats in the speech he made last night.
The fake State of the Union?

Speaker 1 It was the joint address to Congress. Yeah, you know.
Luckily, I had a joint when I was watching it.

Speaker 1 Is it better to watch high?

Speaker 1 Everything's better. High, Don.
Don't you get high? But can we get back to the New York Times?

Speaker 1 I don't disagree with you on some things about the New York Times, but I do believe it's still the paper of record.

Speaker 1 I used to compare, I used to read the New York Times and then the Washington Post, and the Washington Post I found was much more straightforward than the New York Times.

Speaker 1 I thought that the writing in the New York Times was much more interesting and flowery, and perhaps that may have sort of influenced people. But then I read it and I said, you know what?

Speaker 1 After a while, I said, this is

Speaker 1 a left, a more left-leaning message than the Washington Post. But the Washington Post now, I don't know what the fuck is going on with them and Jeff Bezos.
Well, they just had a big shift.

Speaker 1 I mean, they went super woke, too, like the New York Times. It's a generational thing, you know, a certain cadre of...
You think the Washington Post went super woke? Oh,

Speaker 1 I got to give you my book that came out last year.

Speaker 1 I have it. I was on your show, remember? You gave me a copy of it.
Okay. Well,

Speaker 1 there's a really funny one in there about the story in the Washington Post. There was

Speaker 1 Dave Weigel, I think is his name. He's one of the star reporters.
I think he's somewhere else now. Very respected guy.
And he tweeted something that was so benign. I think it was,

Speaker 1 all women are polar. You just have to find out whether it's bi or sexual.

Speaker 1 Oh, no.

Speaker 1 No.

Speaker 1 All women are

Speaker 1 bi. You just have to figure out if it's polar or sexual.
Is that what I'm saying?

Speaker 1 That makes more sense. I'm making

Speaker 1 fucky. I'm high.

Speaker 1 Anyway, it was benign, I thought. It was just somebody.
It was just, it's just, choke, for Christ's sakes, get over it. The

Speaker 1 insanity that went went through the newsroom, and we did the thing on it, it's in the book. It's just hysterical.

Speaker 1 I mean, I hardly had to embellish it, but of course, who could resist at least making jokes about it. But like, there was a reporter who was just, what shall we say, a lot.

Speaker 1 And she went ape shit about this. And of course, nothing can be done behind closed doors.
Everything had to be done on Twitter. And so, you know, he was let go.

Speaker 1 And then somebody else joined the Twitter fight on his behalf.

Speaker 1 And that he was the person who had to be like, it was like the fact that this fucking kindergarten went apeshit over this silly little joke on Twitter so please the question do you think they've changed yes they have well two things I wouldn't know about what you're talking about joking is kind of my story and but the read the read the piece yeah but I get it but I mean I'm talking about the content in the post I understand I agree with you on the fallout I think it's ridiculous but on the contents at least the people who are writing for the New York on the Washington Post,

Speaker 1 I think that they are really good journalists and they tend not to be as biased or as left.

Speaker 1 And there are some for the New York Times too. Yeah, but what you're talking about is ridiculous.

Speaker 1 And I think, look, that's the reason I think that Democrats are in the place that they're in now is because of shit like that. Of course.

Speaker 1 And because they get rid of their strongest allies for some stupid thing that no one is perfect. Look at Al Franken.

Speaker 1 It was the dumbest thing that I've ever seen. I had a really tough time.
I'm in New York.

Speaker 1 I had a really tough time, like, you know, filling in the dot for Kristen Gillibrand because she did that and she was such, you know, virtue signaling.

Speaker 1 Don, I'm sure if you had a nickel for every time someone's hand drifted down

Speaker 1 your waist when you were taking a picture with them, you'd be a very rich man. I'm just guessing.
I would. I've been harassed by women and men in the work.
And some things are not even...

Speaker 1 It's ridiculous. Now, look.
Tell us. I'm very interested in this.
There are some things that... No, no, no.
I'm interested in this. There are some things that are really egregious, right? And that,

Speaker 1 but not everything is Harvey Weinstein level. And so,

Speaker 1 right. That's a whole different story.
I'm not talking about that. And I'm not saying it makes it right.
But I remember when I was in Atlanta and was in the cafeteria, commissary, whatever it was.

Speaker 1 At CNN. CNN.

Speaker 1 And this woman.

Speaker 1 young lady

Speaker 1 tweaked my nipples and said, oh, it's cold in here.

Speaker 1 And I said, Okay, you realize if I did that, they'd be walking me out the door right now. But I didn't, I didn't care to go to HR.

Speaker 1 I didn't say anything because I was just like, it's a double standard. Good for you.

Speaker 1 And also, but I've never told this story as well. Someone who I worked with also

Speaker 1 harassed me at CNN. And I didn't, I never went to management.
First of all, I was

Speaker 1 a woman.

Speaker 1 And she knew I was gay.

Speaker 1 And it was just bizarre. She was going through a divorce.
It was just weird.

Speaker 1 And I never went to management. First of all, I thought, like, okay, they may find a way to get rid of me because if I tell this story, I don't know if they're going to believe me or not.

Speaker 1 But then she's so mean to me after that. I was like, I should have told the story.
But yeah, I've been harassed by men and women. But when, like, what constituted this harassment?

Speaker 1 Like, like, would it physically, like in the office, like come in and twirl for me, Don? It wasn't a twirl for me, but it was not, it was not in the office. But, yeah, it's all

Speaker 1 that far.

Speaker 1 So, you had to be with her in certain business occasions, but outside the office,

Speaker 1 like at a cocktail party,

Speaker 1 places like that. No, I know, because like in our business and media, there's a lot of cocktail parties, there's a lot of assholes with a lot of cocktail parties.

Speaker 1 And remember, this was a while ago, and there was not Uber or anything like that. And if you are in Atlanta, there are taxis aren't available.
And so, you know, you say, Hey, you know, I'm going to,

Speaker 1 we've had a couple of drinks. And do you mind if I like, you know, or whatever? No, no, no, don't go home.
Stay in the guest room, that sort of thing. So do you know? The guest room? Yeah.

Speaker 1 Oh, you were at somebody staying at somebody's house.

Speaker 1 Right. Well, I mean, look,

Speaker 1 let me go back to the cocktail party because there's something very important about those kind of cocktail parties. Yeah.
They serve these garlicky hors d'oeuvres. Yeah.

Speaker 1 And people have the worst sort of breath. Yes.
Usually unattractive, pudgy, doughy male reporters. and they pin you to the wall and they're talking to you and their breath stinks.

Speaker 1 If someone was sexually harassing me with that breath, I would definitely go to HR. But if they did not have the garlicky breath, I would let the nipple tweaking go.
That's just where I draw the line.

Speaker 1 That just shows that we're all individuals. We're all individuals and I'm an adult.
And look, maybe it's, I think it is different for men and women.

Speaker 1 you know, depending on the power structure and that sort of thing. I wish I had been harassed this much, quite honestly.
I think it's flattering

Speaker 1 as long as you can offend them off easily. Yes.

Speaker 1 As a man, I could say, no, I'm not interested, or just

Speaker 1 but also as someone, as a look, as someone who was

Speaker 1 molested as a child from you were? Yeah. Oh.
So for me, it is a whole different thing.

Speaker 1 Of course. I know how to say it.
Sure. Must be very triggering.
Well,

Speaker 1 yes and no.

Speaker 1 Because you know how to deal with it and you know what's really important or not and you know like who has the power. I figure as a man, I have the power to say, I don't want to do this.

Speaker 1 And you're bigger and stronger. Yes.
I don't need to go to HR and ruin your career. I just tell you, I'm not interested in this.
You were drunk. We had a couple of drinks or whatever.
Let's let it go.

Speaker 1 But some people, they've made a business out of it.

Speaker 1 Quite frankly. Yeah.
Whether it's, you know, who, whoever it is, but some people have. But in many ways, and many times, most times it's legitimate, but there are times that it's not.

Speaker 1 I think it's a little bit different.

Speaker 1 Look, I can't relate to that. I'm almost the opposite.
I remember the first time I was lucky enough to say to my friend, what does it mean when a girl grabs your dick?

Speaker 1 You know, that to me was like, oh,

Speaker 1 I've really arrived. That's right.
Because

Speaker 1 that's a very, I feel that's a very strong signal. Someone did that to me recently.
A man or a woman? A man. Whose name is? I can't believe I'll tell you.
I thought I would. But I was right into that.

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Speaker 1 We were at a restaurant and they were drinking. They're like, oh my God, look at you.
You've lost weight. You look so hot.

Speaker 1 And then they, and I was like, whoa, and there were people around me like, what the fuck just happened? Yeah. The guy was drunk.
And I just said, okay, he's drunk or whatever.

Speaker 1 Perhaps I should have said something. But I don't.
I mean, it happens a lot to men, more often to men, I think, than people realize. Yeah.

Speaker 1 Oh, from your lips to God's ears.

Speaker 1 But, you know, again, I pray for this to get to work. But look, I'm going to say this because in this world of cancellation, I don't know.

Speaker 1 I'm not a woman, so I don't know how it feels to be a woman, and that

Speaker 1 happens to a woman. I'm not a woman, and I do know how it feels.
Awful, of course. How could it not? I know that.
Especially, I'm not going to speak for women in this situation.

Speaker 1 I can only speak to you. Oh, I will terrible.
I will speak totally for women, and it's just terrible. It's not hard to imagine because they are.

Speaker 1 I know because we have to pretend differently with gender stuff these days that we're all kind of the same. We're not.
They're smaller generally, weaker generally. I agree with you.

Speaker 1 This is not a criticism, it's just science, it's just biology. And so, you just feel the same way I would say

Speaker 1 if a six, if reacher was trying to reach around to me, I would be like, oh, I'm powerless against this. That might be a different story for me.
But

Speaker 1 no, I think we're saying, no, we're saying the same thing. I'm just saying I don't want to speak for women.
I can't imagine how awful it is for a woman. I'm not, so I'm not donating that.

Speaker 1 It's terrible for a man, too. I mean, look, look, they say that because of prison,

Speaker 1 oh,

Speaker 1 I don't want to mess up the statistics, but if you asked the person in the street, you know, who do you think gets raped the most, men or women, they would, and maybe it is women, and maybe it's by 10 to 1.

Speaker 1 I don't know. No, women get raped the most.

Speaker 1 Okay, but like because of prison. I believe in facts.
I think. Yes, I do too.
That's why I said I don't have them.

Speaker 1 But because of prison.

Speaker 1 Like it's not as one-sided as you think.

Speaker 1 Yeah.

Speaker 1 Right. Yeah.
So it's not like men don't get raped. It's just

Speaker 1 that's where it happens. And why we allow that.
I, I mean, you think we could control prison. You know, why, why is something like that such a,

Speaker 1 they just accept it, you know, like, well, if you go in there, you're going to, you know.

Speaker 1 I think it probably happens.

Speaker 1 I think that's sort of a

Speaker 1 I think that's sort of a myth that people have. I'm not saying it doesn't happen in prison, but as often as it, you you know, people would like to believe that it happened in prison.

Speaker 1 But also, on the other end, it's men. Men are dogs.
They're horny. Right.
Yes. Some prison sex is certainly consensual.
Yeah.

Speaker 1 But I'm sure all of that happens. But I mean.

Speaker 1 It's a weird conversation we're having.

Speaker 1 I never thought I'd be talking to Bill Maher about this is

Speaker 1 Tom. This is, I play the long game.
This is just my way of tweaking your nipples, but I'm just not.

Speaker 1 I just do it verbally. No.
We've seen Oz. You've You've seen Oz, right? Yeah.

Speaker 1 Oh, Oz scared the shit out of me. Why? You were afraid someone was going to prison rape you? You're not in prison.
It was just a,

Speaker 1 no, I'm not. But it was just a scary show.
It was. I mean, it was, people don't remember.
This is HBO like 20 years ago

Speaker 1 before streaming and all. His name is on J.K.
Simmons. No, J.K.
Simmons. Was the Nazi in prison?

Speaker 1 And the guy who's... Why can't I think of his name on Law and Order? Yes, absolutely.

Speaker 1 Yes, absolutely.

Speaker 1 him and uh that guy yeah that guy he was the he was the hobby and he also does the commercial where his face is always the bottom of a car getting beat up no that's the other guy oh that's the other guy that's the other guy who does the the mayhem guy on the commercial yes i'm talking about chris whatever his name is from oh yes chris from uh right i know maloney chris maloney yes chris maloney was the character and dean character right dean the other guy yeah yeah there it was a show that like so many hbo shows spawned you know a lot of big talent.

Speaker 1 Yeah, it was a good show. But Chris Maloney was already on Law and Order SBU and was very famous.
I think this was sort of a side gig for him. But I'll tell you why it was scary, Don.
Why?

Speaker 1 Because, of course, they have to have a character through whom we can see ourselves as the regular person. So do you remember?

Speaker 1 Who were we all? We were Beecher. He was this guy who went to prison because he had a few too many drinks one night and hit a little girl with his car.

Speaker 1 Okay. So you can go to prison for that.
That's manslaughter. Okay.

Speaker 1 But he's just like a regular normal guy. Never thought he was suffering.
So that's who we all,

Speaker 1 that's us. And so in the first episode, the Nazi J.K.
Simmons, who I still can't get past that when I see him,

Speaker 1 he

Speaker 1 pretends to befriend.

Speaker 1 Beecher and he says, you know, it's okay. Come in my cell.
I'll protect you. And then, of course, cut to

Speaker 1 tattooing a swastika into his ass, into Beecher's ass.

Speaker 1 So not good.

Speaker 1 You paid more attention to that than I did, but go on. I did.
What? You paid more attention to that than I watched. I don't remember all those things.

Speaker 1 I just remember that there was a lot of sour swing. You've seen more men's asses than I have, but when I see a- I'm not sure about that, Bill, right now.

Speaker 1 I've seen none except mine. When I see a guy who's like, he burnt something with a match and he, so it was, he could, yes, he tattooed a swastika into his ass cheek.

Speaker 1 So yes, that did stay with me.

Speaker 1 Yeah, but it stayed with you, but you weren't worried someone was going to do that to you, right? No, it's not rational, but you know, but I get it. We all worry about that.

Speaker 1 Look, do I think the comet that's going to hit us in 2032? They say there's a 1 or 2% chance. I'm not worried about it, but it could happen.

Speaker 1 I mean, the comet could happen and somebody could frame me and I'm there with the swastika on my ass. It's not even the end.
Maybe I should light up a joint. Come here, Bill.
Really?

Speaker 1 Joking. I'm talking about Jerk burning a swastika.

Speaker 1 It's a little slow.

Speaker 1 Yeah, that's right. Yeah.
But anyway.

Speaker 1 Oh, there was something so important that I wanted to. You wanted to talk about.
You were talking about the possibility of that happening and men and women. But that was way off the.

Speaker 1 beaten path. This is crazy.
I never thought I'd be having this conversation. Well, you know, that's the joy of it.
At all, but along with you. That's the joy of this podcast.

Speaker 1 It is all conversations you never thought you'd be having. Because in real life, do you plan your conversations? No.

Speaker 1 So, like, there's a... Come on.

Speaker 1 We're high-fiving. No, I agree with that because that's that.

Speaker 1 You're saying my philosophy that happens.

Speaker 1 And people, you know, often when you're just having a real conversation you say things that are brilliant sometimes and you say things that are stupid and that's the whole point of a conversation but somehow we or in people in general just people in general right right right but somehow we have forgotten that that I feel that that's what television should be like that you should television can never be that way because I wouldn't even try to do it on my show because I couldn't it's boring for the audience to go through all that it's just it just isn't believe me if anyone knows I think it's me I try to make real time uh as real as you can in that setting.

Speaker 1 It's just not this. First of all, I'm not high.

Speaker 1 Believe me, I've talked to you about this. Do you have not been high on real time ever? No.
That would be a disaster. I mean, I have, you know, Senator Tester on Friday night.

Speaker 1 I'm not going to get high with him. A couple cocktails?

Speaker 1 No.

Speaker 1 No. I mean, Don, I'm almost 70.
You can't, like, drink. I mean, I'm drinking tonight.
Okay. So already I'm bullish shit.
No, you just can't drink a lot. I save it like for this.

Speaker 1 I really enjoy, I do enjoy drinking, but you know, you just can't.

Speaker 1 Every once in a while, I would go out when I was in CNN and I'd go out to dinner and have like a glass of wine or maybe like one cocktail. And then two hours later, I would do a show.

Speaker 1 I didn't feel like I was drunk, but the conversations were really good. Yes, oh, absolutely.
I mean,

Speaker 1 look,

Speaker 1 the history of drugs of all kinds, improving art. Yeah.
That's why they do it. That's what LSD was for, it was a mind-expanding drug.
I mean, if I had

Speaker 1 been lucky enough to get a message that resonated with me when I was 20 and starting to smoke, it would have been, hey, kid, cigarettes, they don't get you anything. They don't make you smarter.

Speaker 1 But, you know, I pot, yes. I mean, LSD, my record collection would be very different without it.
Even heroin, I wouldn't do it. I wouldn't recommend it.
But, you know, it...

Speaker 1 There would be Miles Davis not without it. Yeah.
Music is, why is music so good when you're high?

Speaker 1 Because it was made when they were high.

Speaker 1 No, no, it's just, it works both. It works both ways.
You know, it's just, we like drugs for a reason. They work, okay? It's just that there's a downside.

Speaker 1 And it's very hard to convince people when you're in your 20s when your body is so strong that you can come back from anything. It's just hard to convince you.
that, oh, you know what?

Speaker 1 Think about when you're,

Speaker 1 yeah, I'll never be that. And now I am that.
And I wish wish I had thought about it then. But, you know, that's youth versus age.
But I think, Bill, you know, I'm going to disagree with you on.

Speaker 1 I think that we can have conversations like that on television. I think it's...
Not like we're having now. Never.

Speaker 1 Well,

Speaker 1 I think that's the reason that

Speaker 1 linear television is on the decline is because people are craving that realness and they're not giving the people what they want. It just moved to a different place, bit.
It's a different.

Speaker 1 Your show's on YouTube. It's a different mechanism.
It's the same thing, though. it's a story

Speaker 1 watch you on youtube than watched you on cnn i think now i i think they do well you don't know the answer to that question no no i do know the answer to that question i think um you know in my early days on cnn i would say more people watched me on cnn um and then also when i was there it was different time i think more people watched me on cnn

Speaker 1 no i don't know I think more people watch me now. But I think the highest point of CNN was during COVID, and we had COVID and George Floyd at the same time and Donald Trump.

Speaker 1 And that was the height, that was the highest ratings, the most profitable of CNN. And so it was amazing to be there.
People watched every night

Speaker 1 and they sort of relied on us because you were stuck in your home and you had nothing else to do. I bet you more people see you now.

Speaker 1 You're right. And more people see me now and more people will recognize me.
And there's lots of stories.

Speaker 1 I can't think of any specifically right now, but about like, for example, streaming versus the theater and directors, maybe Martin Scorsese said this, I don't know, but somebody liked that.

Speaker 1 And one of their movies, maybe it was The Irishman, maybe this is just, I'm making that up.

Speaker 1 But I've heard this story about movies from directors before who said, you know, this movie I made and I fought it to go to streaming and it went to streaming and 20 times more people saw it than would have in the theater.

Speaker 1 You know, it's just, I'm that person. Like, I see all the movies in my bed.
Why wouldn't I?

Speaker 1 Unless I have to see something like the next day,

Speaker 1 which only rarely happens, or there's like a reason maybe for my

Speaker 1 we want to comment on it on the show. I would go to a theater, but I think the last movie I saw in the theater was Barbie.

Speaker 1 I didn't even see that. I can't remember the last time, unless I go to an opening, like a friend or someone, some group invites me to come to an opening.

Speaker 1 I mean, I just watched

Speaker 1 the Dylan movie. What's that? No direction.
Oh, no, a complete unknown. Yeah.
I just watched that. With Chalamay in my bed.
Yeah. Which is why

Speaker 1 I agree with you it's yeah so I now I look I don't pay attention as much because I'm used to people going oh Don Lemon hey CNN guy whatever my husband says Don

Speaker 1 more people recognize you now than when you're on CNN and I'm like really yes yes I'm gonna go that's the crime because but also not just because of you know the podcast or whatever the streaming show but because of social media

Speaker 1 And

Speaker 1 my

Speaker 1 pledge to myself, someone asked me, like, you know, what is your purpose? And I said, my purpose as my professional purpose is to meet the audience where they are. And the audience is not on cable.

Speaker 1 The audience is on social media and it's on digital and on YouTube and those kinds of places, Twitch or whatever. And that's where I'm meeting the audience and having success with it.

Speaker 1 People think I'm nuts for some of the things I do on social media. Yeah, you're a little crazier than you used to be.
I'm not crazy. I don't think it's crazy.
No, you're not crazy. I said crazier.

Speaker 1 Like you do more wacky things. I do things that.

Speaker 1 Man in the street kind of stuff i do well i do man on the street every single journalist has done man on the streets and that's where the real that's where you you want to be where the people are you want to know what they're saying i love the people don't yeah no seriously you do

Speaker 1 and if you people who are sitting in studios you know you know on a nightly basis and talking to people with suits on and ties or cocktail dresses about they're not they're not getting to the heart of what's happening but I'm having fun.

Speaker 1 They're the kind of people who harass you later at the party. Yeah.
Tell me about it.

Speaker 1 Especially if it's a Republican event. Those are the titty twisters, though.
Especially if it's a Republican event. What? Oh my gosh.
The Republicans are so repressed to the guys.

Speaker 1 They're always, they're all,

Speaker 1 if there's a Republican event or a convention, I try to stay in my hotel room.

Speaker 1 Because they hit on you more? 150%.

Speaker 1 Yes. You measured it.

Speaker 1 I'm just

Speaker 1 fucking with you.

Speaker 1 So the Republicans hit on you more. This is so interesting.
I mean, I'm not surprised. You know, I used to do

Speaker 1 this gig every year in Hawaii, 12 years, New Year's Eve. It's the best.

Speaker 1 And

Speaker 1 the promoter of the event was a gay man.

Speaker 1 I mean, I love this guy. We worked together for 12 years.
I miss him. Does a lot of other shows.
But we stayed at the four seasons in Maui.

Speaker 1 Beautiful. I love that place.
And he said Grindr

Speaker 1 was very active with

Speaker 1 the bathroom in the lobby.

Speaker 1 And I'm like, who is that? And he said, married men whose wife had a massage that day and fell asleep in the room. And they go down and hook up with guys.
Wow.

Speaker 1 That never happened to me there, but I'm not surprised. Grinder, by the way, crashes during the Republican convention.

Speaker 1 Yo, where have you been? Are you kidding me? You don't know this? No.

Speaker 1 Are you serious? No, I'm not in that world. Why would I know this? This has been recorded.
Like people, like it's a thing. People know.

Speaker 1 I mean, I think it's because they're so repressed and they can't, because they can't be themselves because they, you know, they kind of have this whole thing about homosexuality or being gay.

Speaker 1 Oh, very much so. Yeah.
And do you know, you watch CNN, right? Do you know Bakari Sellers? Sure. So Bakari Sellers is a friend.
And on inauguration night 2017,

Speaker 1 Bakari says, let's go to the Trump Hotel. And I said, are you kidding me? No way.
I'm not going there. And he said, why? They're not going to, I'll protect you.

Speaker 1 I'm like, no, not against, like, I'm not afraid of anyone beating me up because I'll kick their ass. There's so much rage inside of this body.
I will kick their ass.

Speaker 1 And he said, why don't you want to go? I said, because I am seeing someone, number one, and I don't want to be hit on so much by God. And he goes.

Speaker 1 You gay guys, you want every straight guy to be gay? I'm like, no.

Speaker 1 And he said, come with me. I was like, okay.

Speaker 1 So I go. everyone's buying me drinks.
Don Lemon is here, blah, blah, blah. And then all of these guys are over

Speaker 1 talking to me and sort of rubbing up against me and whatever. And Bakari's like, oh my God,

Speaker 1 you're right. I have no idea.
He had no idea. And it's, I don't think they're doing it to just normal heterosexual men.
I think they're doing it to gay men who they know.

Speaker 1 because they know that they're gay. And so they're shooting their shot.
I hate to say that, but it's the truth. No, that really doesn't surprise me.

Speaker 1 But I do think that the idea that you would go over there, even if it was, this was a Trump

Speaker 1 on inauguration night. Yeah, it was a Trump crowd.
Okay. The idea that they would be hostile, I mean, I know a lot of MAGA people.
One person was hostile. Right.

Speaker 1 See, let me ask you your opinion on this. Saturday Night Live, 50th anniversary show.
They did one thing,

Speaker 1 they did a sketch where Tom Hanks puts on a MAGA hat, so he's a a Trumper.

Speaker 1 And then Keenan comes over to shake his hand, and he won't shake his hand.

Speaker 1 And I said this on Fareed Show the other day. I found that so old.

Speaker 1 I didn't vote for him.

Speaker 1 I get all the bad things about that administration. But if you think they don't shake black people's hands,

Speaker 1 it's just... You're wrong.
That's not who they are.

Speaker 1 Matt Gates shakes black people's hands. Kid Rock will shake your hand.

Speaker 1 It's just not helpful to think that half the country, that's where they are. That's your story.
Still, you're a comedian, you know, it's part of its comedy. I understand.
But let's be honest.

Speaker 1 There's a, there's a huge faction of the MAGA movement that's really fucking racist. I wouldn't say huge, no.
I'd say hard. I would say huge.
Yeah. Okay.
Well, we have different perspectives.

Speaker 1 I would say huge. And even if they're not,

Speaker 1 you have to overlook a lot of that in order to support Donald Trump, which I think is maybe even more egregious than just saying I'm a racist. So what do you think is the worst?

Speaker 1 I mean, to me,

Speaker 1 back in, was it 89 with the Central Park 5? Yeah.

Speaker 1 That was to me like the most egregious thing because it just seems so like.

Speaker 1 And then, of course, the Obama birth certificate, which

Speaker 1 is what's the most egregious thing. Yeah, I mean, he sued me.
Trump did. For the orangutan thing.
Yes, because I was making making fun of that because that was very racist.

Speaker 1 But also like he seemed to be

Speaker 1 just, I mean, there was something

Speaker 1 very animating about his

Speaker 1 like

Speaker 1 just laser-focused drive about the Central Park V thing.

Speaker 1 That seemed to,

Speaker 1 you could feel the race.

Speaker 1 ism in there. What was the payoff? Why was he there? He wasn't running for office.
It was just right. It just seemed like

Speaker 1 it just, there's something in him. And of course, we know his father was a virulent racist.
Yeah. You know,

Speaker 1 and he grew up in a different time, and he's almost 80. And yes, I understand that element to it.
But, you know,

Speaker 1 to ascribe to all the people who voted for him, which is a majority of the country. I didn't say all the people.
Yeah, I understand. It's not a majority.
It's plurality. Or whatever it is.
He won.

Speaker 1 Yeah. It's at least half the country.
I mean, to ascribe his worst traits to all of them. I don't think it's half the country, but go on.

Speaker 1 To describe his worst traits

Speaker 1 to whatever. How do you win an election? Well,

Speaker 1 first it's the electorate. Not everybody votes.
And

Speaker 1 I think most of the people in America don't vote. And I don't think it's half the country.
So what I'm saying is, I don't think half the country is racist. And I don't think all of MAGA is racist.

Speaker 1 But I do think that there is a huge element in the MAGA party that is racist,

Speaker 1 whether they are conscious of it or not.

Speaker 1 Some of them are not. And if they are not, they have had to overlook a lot of racism and a lot of bigotry.
And if you do that and you say, I'm okay with this,

Speaker 1 I think that makes you worse than someone who just says, hey, I'm a racist, and they tell you.

Speaker 1 But some of it is just a backlash to what they think was going too far, like all these corporations now that have dropped DEI.

Speaker 1 Now, in the government, they did it because the order... Backlash for what? For too much DEI.

Speaker 1 I don't think those people understand what DEI is. DEI is not the hiring of black people who are not qualified or

Speaker 1 people who are... No, no, no.
That's not what it's about. It can have that result.
Anything can be. Yes, of course it could have that result, but there's no evidence that it does have that result.

Speaker 1 Oh, I don't know about that. Okay, so

Speaker 1 then what is your evidence? There's no evidence that there is that result. If you can show me the evidence, then okay, then I will agree with you.
Well, I'm not going to name any names.

Speaker 1 Okay, but diversity, equity, inclusion, first of all, is not, maybe they're talking about affirmative action, which is a whole different thing, which is about making sure you hired a certain number of people that are this, that, and that.

Speaker 1 But diversity, equity, and inclusion is about making sure that the pool of candidates is larger. So if you are fishing, rather than fishing in a swimming pool, maybe you're in a pond.

Speaker 1 Rather than fishing in a pond, you're in a lake, or maybe you're in a lake instead of a river, or in a river, you're in the ocean. So you're just trying to find different people

Speaker 1 and you're trying to increase the number of of options of qualified people that you can hire. It's not about hiring people who are not qualified and who are just black.

Speaker 1 The biggest recipient of DEI is white women and also veterans because of veterans, and also people who are

Speaker 1 disabled people. It's just about making sure that disabled people have a ramp somewhere at work so that they get to work and they can put up.
Equity is the word, not equality.

Speaker 1 That was a change that people noticed.

Speaker 1 equality was everybody gets an equal shot equity is like no it's it's basically quotas equity is we're going quotas i don't think that everybody america has never been about everybody getting an equal shot no it certainly hasn't been no one's contesting that no but that's what the the idea the old school liberal idea was we need to strive for equality.

Speaker 1 That changed to equity. This is what some people are against.
And reasonable people can disagree on it without being racist. Having said that, there are other, or of course, racists in this country.

Speaker 1 There always will be, just like there will always be criminals. I agree.
But I think the people who are disagreeing about it, they need to understand exactly what it is.

Speaker 1 I think people who disagree may not understand what it is.

Speaker 1 Now, I have an issue with DEI because I think when you make it a religion, it is, it's not, then you end up with the Al Frankens of the world of people who get canceled and they use the DEI stuff to get rid of people.

Speaker 1 But I think you have to understand what the real definition is and that people have sort of co-opted it.

Speaker 1 And I think if you believe as in the definition that the MAGA Trump administration, that they're saying what DEI is, that is a racist definition of diversity, equity, and inclusion. What is it?

Speaker 1 What is it? They're saying that this is because they're hiring people, women,

Speaker 1 people of color, minorities who are not qualified. And that's not what is happening.
So you're saying no person of color or woman was ever, who was not called, was ever hired for any job. I'm sorry.

Speaker 1 No, no, I'm not saying that. Oh, but

Speaker 1 that would have to be the logical conclusion. But that would be saying that no white people were ever qualified.
And we know lots of them have. Yeah.

Speaker 1 And so, but so when you're, most of the people who are,

Speaker 1 they talk about the airplanes and the airplane industry. Most of the pilots and the people who are white.
Most of the doctors in the country, where they say DEI, we don't want it.

Speaker 1 Most of the doctors are white. And so all of those malpractice suits are against mostly white doctors.
Most of the planes that fall out of the sky are

Speaker 1 piloted by white pilots. And And so then what is your issue then with diversity, equity, and

Speaker 1 inclusion? I don't have one.

Speaker 1 No, I'm not saying you. I'm talking about.
I've understood you. What is your issue then if there is no evidence

Speaker 1 that

Speaker 1 by... By hiring a bigger pool of people.
No, I think they think they, I mean, I think there is evidence. There are places.
Okay, I will give you an example because we had fires here recently.

Speaker 1 I mentioned it on my show, so something new I'm saying. But our fire chief was a lesbian, and I said on my show,

Speaker 1 do I think a lesbian can do that job? Of course I do.

Speaker 1 But I think what they did was said, okay, we want to hire a lesbian first. So we're going to hire the best person among lesbians

Speaker 1 as opposed to we're going to hire the best person.

Speaker 1 That kind of thing. Now, I'm just, I'm not saying that's exactly what happened, but to pretend that that kind of thing hasn't been happening in this country.

Speaker 1 Okay, I understand what you're saying. I shouldn't say I don't disagree with you.
I understand what you're saying.

Speaker 1 But that one example, as opposed to the, hang on, as opposed to the millions of examples of people who are not diverse, as they say, who have been hired and unqualified, I think that that is, that's Apple's, that's like this and that.

Speaker 1 But again, I'm answering to you why people vote for Trump who because if it's you, by the way. No, you're right.
I understand.

Speaker 1 If it's you, if you think you lost out on something, you're going to be bitter about it. Like I did a thing once about how political parties are really like you're a lawyer.
That's how people think.

Speaker 1 Are you going to represent me? So you might think philosophically one way about something, but for example, in San Francisco, they had a pretty

Speaker 1 woke board there for a while that they got rid of, that they got voted out because

Speaker 1 they were discriminating against Asians, and there's a lot of Asians in San Francisco. And they got rid of the

Speaker 1 like the merit test or the whatever, the genius test, something,

Speaker 1 because it was too many Asians were getting in, and they wanted to be, and again, this is equity. They wanted the racial quota of it to be, let me finish.
No,

Speaker 1 okay, okay. I'm about to agree with you.
They wanted, oh, okay. They wanted to be more equal.
Yeah.

Speaker 1 So the Asians were basically like, well, we think it's a noble goal to advance the cause of Latinos and black Americans and lots of other people, but my kid would have benefited from having this advanced program that you got rid of.

Speaker 1 So you know what? You're not my lawyer. You're not representing me in the court of America.
And therefore, I'm going to vote for the other guy. That's what happens a lot.

Speaker 1 No, so I understand, but you, so a couple things here. You're saying

Speaker 1 I'm talking to you about what diversity, equity, and inclusion actually is.

Speaker 1 Nothing that we do ever is perfect, right?

Speaker 1 Your show is not perfect.

Speaker 1 So, okay, so they're issues. So you're talking,

Speaker 1 let's put that aside, but you're talking about reasons that people vote for Donald Trump.

Speaker 1 I don't disagree with you, but some of those reasons are not based in reality and they're irrational and some of them are very rational.

Speaker 1 So to vote for someone who you think is looking out for you is very rational, but it doesn't mean that you're voting for that person on the basis of something that is actually factual.

Speaker 1 I mean, people are not rational at all about anything. Yeah, so I don't disagree with you about why people are voting for Donald Trump.
I mean do you think your life is rational? No. You don't?

Speaker 1 I don't think my life is rational.

Speaker 1 I'm curious about this.

Speaker 1 I don't think that life is in general, if you're just talking about life, I don't think that's right. I don't think that it's rational.
I just think sometimes it's very random.

Speaker 1 Yeah, I couldn't agree with you. And you just sort of deal with the random nature of life the best way that you can and you have a good attitude about it.

Speaker 1 You walk around all day as if you're in control and you're not. You're not in control.
Isn't that right? You walk around all day as if you are, but the reality is you're really not.

Speaker 1 You're more of a jellyfish with the tide and you go and you handle the tide as best you can. And it's best to like either sometimes it's best to just go with the tide.
Yes.

Speaker 1 To take your hands off the wheel. Right.
Or if someone steps on you, sting them. That's what I do.
And hope you don't get washed up on shore.

Speaker 1 I agree 100%. And that's a time that we're in right now.
What do you mean? When you said said someone steps on you, sting them. Well, I'm a jellyfish.

Speaker 1 Yeah, if you're a jellyfish, but I think there are too many people just sort of laying back and not stinging. Like the Democrats are not stinging.
No, they are definitely not. They're pathetic.

Speaker 1 That display last night at the speech. I don't know when we're dropping this, probably very soon.
So it was probably last week.

Speaker 1 Where.

Speaker 1 I mean,

Speaker 1 I look like auction fattels with like signs like Musk lies. Oh, my God.
I did that on my show today. So I said, this is what what the Democrats were doing at the convention.

Speaker 1 And I wrote on a piece of, on a tablet, and I said, Trump bad. I was like, Trump bad.
And they were like, and I'm like, yes, Trump is bad.

Speaker 1 Musk mean. Musk is so mean.
So it's like,

Speaker 1 if you're going to fight back, shouldn't you be stronger about fighting back? Oh, my God.

Speaker 1 They're showing the country who are not savvy about issues why

Speaker 1 they voted for them. Because people are instinctive about politics.
No, Donald Trump is not literally true with almost anything he says. We've litigated that.
They don't care. He's a liar.

Speaker 1 He lies a lot. Exactly.
They don't care.

Speaker 1 They don't take him literally. They take him seriously.
The media takes him seriously, but not literally, but not seriously. That's somebody's great line about it.
I forgot her name.

Speaker 1 It was during the 2016. When they see this, what they see is, oh, one side, I don't really understand Ukraine and lots of stuff, but one side looks so weak and disorganized and feeble.

Speaker 1 And this guy looks strong. Yeah, I think he's kind of an asshole.

Speaker 1 I'm not sure he's right about a lot of things, but he's strong and they're in charge and they're willing to look at things differently. That's what a lot of people are seeing right now.

Speaker 1 So the Democrats

Speaker 1 have got to, I mean, I've been, last week I proposed Fetterman. I think he's the best one they have because he's got a pair of balls on him.
He will not kowtow to the far left of his own party.

Speaker 1 He acts like a guy who's got nothing to lose because he's had a stroke. You know, he's been through the fucking mill.
And he wears shorts. He does whatever the fuck he wants.

Speaker 1 And that's what people react to, authenticity and balls. Trump has that.
This guy has that. The rest of the Democrats, they just,

Speaker 1 I mean, they're embarrassing and they're not helping themselves. Well, we need two parties in this country.
There's a lot there, Bill. I think that Trump is

Speaker 1 fortunately or unfortunately able to live an existence where he doesn't have to rely on facts.

Speaker 1 Correct. That's his superpower.
That's his superpower. Is that he lies so much and gets so much so off

Speaker 1 that it's so baked in the cake that he's not held to those standards. Like I said, they take him seriously, but not literally.
Literally, but not seriously. They just assume that that's who he is.

Speaker 1 If he says Zelensky's approval rating is 4%,

Speaker 1 it's 57.

Speaker 1 And you just go with it.

Speaker 1 It is amazing. Because again, he doesn't have a lot of folks who are, especially in the streaming thing that we're in, you don't have to deal with facts.
You don't have to deal with reality.

Speaker 1 And Trump sort of, Trump is a shapeshifter. He shapes reality into whatever he wants it to be.
Genius. But he doesn't have to live in that.

Speaker 1 And I think Democrats demand of their people that one thing to be factual and one side

Speaker 1 has to hit the ball over the net. Right.
And the other side, there's no net. There's no net.
And they don't buy it. But you know what? He created that and people

Speaker 1 and stuck with it. I think the idea until people just bowed down and said, okay, fine, that's it.
You stuck with that. And we're going to just, I mean, it's an amazing Tea Party

Speaker 1 of sorts. I think the Tea Party created that.

Speaker 1 And then Donald Trump. No.
I think Donald Trump the Tea Party

Speaker 1 did not say something was 4% if it was 57%.

Speaker 1 They all have their spin and their bullshit, including some people on the left, obviously, but not to this degree.

Speaker 1 Bill, that's what's starting at me.

Speaker 1 He's making a number up in your head that you think it should be. Well, he amplified that.
I think he is a recipient of that. You know what? I find this so boring.

Speaker 1 This is why I said I don't want him to win because uh well there were other reasons but because i've been through this administration i've been through this thing it's so boring to just constantly hear people talking about what an asshole trump is i know i was the first one to say it i'm over it it's just

Speaker 1 boring we get it he's bad blah blah blah blah blah it's like you know i i just i don't i don't want to i just i'm i'm done i think you were the first to say that he wouldn't leave.

Speaker 1 He was, wouldn't leave. But I was the first to actually call him a liar on TV.
And I was the first to actually call him racist on TV. And maybe that's why I'm not on TV anymore.

Speaker 1 I don't know. But I do think that he was the recipient of what the Tea Party started.
But he,

Speaker 1 on steroids, he was, he was the recipient of that. But on steroids, Donald Trump says, I don't give a fuck.
Don't give a fuck. And he does whatever.
Everyone. He's so appealing.
Yeah. And

Speaker 1 amen. I think it's appealing

Speaker 1 to a degree.

Speaker 1 But I think at some point you have to give a fuck because you have to care about people.

Speaker 1 If you are a public servant, then you have to care about the people and actually working for you. I will name the person who

Speaker 1 most exemplifies. I've been using the thing you're using.
Can you mind if I use my hand? No. All right, go ahead.
Unless you're going to grab my tits, but you know, it's not.

Speaker 1 It's too cold for that.

Speaker 1 Kanye,

Speaker 1 who is more of a, I mean, you can't get more,

Speaker 1 I don't give a fuck, than I like Hitler. I love Hitler, whatever, all his Hitler things.
You can't get more of a,

Speaker 1 and that's why he will always have a fan base somewhat similar to Trump's, because there are people who are like,

Speaker 1 damn, that guy cannot be intimidated. But is that something that's admirable? No.

Speaker 1 So you want to celebrate that? I'm not celebrating it. Yeah.
I'm saying

Speaker 1 if the subject is what you were just talking about, people who don't give a fuck, I said, you know, Fetterman is kind of that guy.

Speaker 1 Trump is kind of that guy. Fetterman is more of a libertarian to me than a.
Well, whatever it is, he says what he thinks. Yeah.
And he doesn't care if you don't like it.

Speaker 1 Kanye, I mean, that is, to me, that's his performance art. He is at the very edge of that.
Like,

Speaker 1 I dare you to completely destroy me. I'm just going to say, I don't know if he even believes that shit about Hitler, but

Speaker 1 I think it's more the fact that I will say it than what he's saying. If there was something else that was more egregious, I think he would say that.

Speaker 1 But he found that thing, and that's his litmus test. And

Speaker 1 he will always have fans. Okay.
So

Speaker 1 you're right if he will always have fans, but my question is why? Why be

Speaker 1 an anti-semite? Well, I just explained why. Not because I don't think he really cares that much about it,

Speaker 1 but because it's a way to demonstrate you cannot intimidate me into not saying anything.

Speaker 1 I think it is. I don't think it's that.

Speaker 1 I think when people do that, it's the shortest line to the front of either promotion in whatever sense it is. It could be promoting a product.
It could be promoting themselves.

Speaker 1 And you are doing something that is out of the box to get attention just for the sake of getting attention or just for the sake of for the sake of pure ambition.

Speaker 1 Where if the same thing that I, when I see

Speaker 1 not all black Republicans, but I see a black MAGA person who is carrying Donald Trump's water and they know that he's lying, it is the shortest line to the front.

Speaker 1 Because if you're black and you're whatever,

Speaker 1 you're just in line with a bunch of other Democrats that are doing the same thing that you're doing.

Speaker 1 But if you become a black MAGA person, it's like, whoa, let's book this person, let's put them on television. So you don't think you can be a sincere black MAGA person?

Speaker 1 No, no, I just said, I don't think that, I just said I think there can be sincere Republicans. But you can't be a sincere black Republican?

Speaker 1 I don't think that you can be a rational MAGA,

Speaker 1 be black and be a rational MAGA person. I think you can be black and be a Republican.
I think they would find that very insulting. Well, I mean, the truth is often insulting.

Speaker 1 That's true, too. Yeah.
But I don't,

Speaker 1 yeah, I wouldn't say that because

Speaker 1 there are cases to be made that they're making. I don't, I never would go all the way to Donald Trump because he does not concede elections.
That's my biggest issue with him.

Speaker 1 So, like the Republican types who think, oh, someday Bill Maher is going to, no, no, no, Bill Maher's always going to be where Bill Maher has always been.

Speaker 1 i if if you change enough like yeah you like you're going in the wrong direction um

Speaker 1 but you know i think 20 of black men voted for trump well i think that so they're that's okay that 20 of black men voted for trumpet they just think differently can't people just be honest have different

Speaker 1 it's not it's not just like you're informed about everything like you don't think anything no but i don't think you're hearing i don't think you're hearing me i said that i believe that black people can be republicans remember there were lots of Republicans, Frederick Douglass.

Speaker 1 It was different in those era. It was different.
I was a Republican, by the way. But I started as a Republican.

Speaker 1 Yes. But so I think that a lot of what MAGA does is irrational and it's often based in lies and it's not factual.

Speaker 1 It's people that you said you don't like people who are who deny elections, who deny insurrections or whatever. So that's the MAGA party.
That is the MAGA party. I'm not saying that's all Republican.

Speaker 1 No, look. So for a person of color, a black person

Speaker 1 to

Speaker 1 lend their, to believe, you know, in that when it is based in irrationality and a lot of it is based in racism, for me, I have lots of questions about that. I don't question black Republicans.

Speaker 1 I'm going to let,

Speaker 1 I mean, do you talk to people like that? Like, I had Byron Donalds on my show

Speaker 1 maybe two weeks ago. Yeah.
I got to my office today, and there was a lovely pin that he had sent me.

Speaker 1 It had his name name on it, an American Eagle. And, you know,

Speaker 1 I like Byron.

Speaker 1 I'm just, you know,

Speaker 1 I just can't live in this country where I hate half the people

Speaker 1 who, yes, think fundamentally differently about a lot of things. I've said this here before.

Speaker 1 We have to be able to get to this point where you can say to somebody who you agree with A, B, C, D, but E, whoa.

Speaker 1 How could they believe in E if we both believe in A, B, C, and D? And it is a conundrum, but it does happen in human nature.

Speaker 1 And you just have to be able to go, okay, we just, we have different upbringings, different influences in our life, different, I don't know, metabolism, different, just, we're just different and we come to different conclusions.

Speaker 1 I understand that, Bill. And it can't be so.
But it doesn't mean because I am, because I can see what is happening and I live in reality, it doesn't mean that I hate anyone. I don't hate anyone.

Speaker 1 I don't hate Donald Trump. I don't hate MAGA.
Right. Right.
But I understand that MAGA is based on

Speaker 1 that you were not born in this country. MAGA is based on Mexicans are rapists.
MAGA is based on

Speaker 1 that Donald Trump did not inspire an election. MAGA is based on Donald Trump didn't try to overturn an election.
MAGA is based on Donald Trump, they don't believe that

Speaker 1 he was found guilty in a court of law. So they're it's built on lies.
So

Speaker 1 that's why I question that. To understand and to be able to see through that, it doesn't mean that you hate people.
It just means that you're being rational and logical.

Speaker 1 As I said, I think they're Black Republicans. I was one.
I think that's all fine. But I think that MAGA is,

Speaker 1 I think it's, you know, it's problematic and it's based on lies and racism.

Speaker 1 And that doesn't mean I hate those people. I just kind of feel sorry for them.
Yeah. I mean,

Speaker 1 it's not untrue. There is racism in it, and there's certainly a lot of lies.
So what do you do in the morning, John?

Speaker 1 Are you an early riser?

Speaker 1 John, it's time for our cooking segment. I don't know if you know this, but

Speaker 1 I make a mean omelette that I think is. Moving on.

Speaker 1 No,

Speaker 1 tell me about your day. I'm not a morning person.
Me neither. I hate the morning.
I hate waking up in the morning. I like to wake up in the afternoon.
I'm like, I like to wake up.

Speaker 1 All the way into the afternoon. I like to rise at the crack of noon.

Speaker 1 My father used to say that. Usually I like to rise at about 11, maybe 10, but 11.
Because I'm a night owl. That's exactly what I'm like.

Speaker 1 Right. But now, because I want people to be informed about what's happening, I think we have to have an informed electorate.
I wake up at like 8, 8:30.

Speaker 1 So I do a live 10 o'clock show on YouTube, the Don Lemon show. Every day I do a live show, live stream.
Why is it going to be so early? 10 a.m.

Speaker 1 Because most people

Speaker 1 are starting their day and and are going about their day, and I think they need to be informed. And I think that there is

Speaker 1 a need for content there and for people to understand what was happening.

Speaker 1 And

Speaker 1 I don't think anyone was fulfilling that.

Speaker 1 So lucky I only have to show up in makeup once a week at four o'clock on Friday afternoon.

Speaker 1 Well, I used to have to show up in makeup at nine o'clock and Eastern every night, and that's it, and then go on at 10. But that, I mean, that's fulfilling for you.

Speaker 1 That was fulfilling to me at the moment, but this is what's fulfilling to me now. And I do

Speaker 1 a live stream or live show every day at 5 Eastern as well. I do two live shows a day.

Speaker 1 Working for it.

Speaker 1 I'm glad it all came out in the wash for you. No, because for a while there, like CNN, there was just lots of,

Speaker 1 it's amazing how much they cover what goes on at CNN and MSNBC, considering that their ratings are not exactly through the roof. But, I mean, good point.
But, you know, it's the media.

Speaker 1 The media loves the media.

Speaker 1 But we heard everything about you and Chris Cuomo. And, you know, it was just always this Stern drunk, and it's being taken over by this guy and this guy, and he was fired.
We got to get CNN.

Speaker 1 I mean, CNN is such, and I'm on CNN now. They re-show my show on Saturday night.
I'm thrilled about it. But that's one thing that's also, when people do that, that's a sign of your relevance.
It does.

Speaker 1 Where you are in the culture. Right.
And so you don't hear that much anymore, do you? No. Well, yeah.
I mean, they definitely have to find their footing again.

Speaker 1 I think the guy they got there now is heading in the right direction.

Speaker 1 And

Speaker 1 I mean, Don,

Speaker 1 when they said to me, we want to put your show on CNN, I said, what about all the fucks? And they said, they don't care. And I'm like, they don't care.
CNN? I'm like, wow. Do they beep me?

Speaker 1 No.

Speaker 1 I'm like, this world has changed. When I first went on the tonight show, you couldn't say ass.

Speaker 1 And now you can say fuck on CNN. I mean, I try to keep the cunts to the minimum.
I mean,

Speaker 1 I'm not an unreasonable man. You know, it's a word that I would never even think about saying.
It's a great word. And people say that I love that word.
It's a great word.

Speaker 1 It's a word that I would never even think about saying. It's a great word.

Speaker 1 I think the gays should take it over. It's hard for us to do that because the gays love women.
I know.

Speaker 1 The British use it in a way that isn't demeaning.

Speaker 1 Yeah, but it's different. The British press, they have a different

Speaker 1 cunt or something, and it would be kind of of fun

Speaker 1 such a munt

Speaker 1 or

Speaker 1 i want to get in that munt tonight you know i mean it could also be sexy that's what that's what i'm saying i mean well i think no that's gross i don't think that would appeal to any wow you're turning red and you're a black man

Speaker 1 rust rust it's unbelievable we have a word for that the gays have a word for that do you want to hear it i want to know everything about it it's called bussy.

Speaker 1 Bussy. That's better.
Yeah. What's the B for?

Speaker 1 Boys?

Speaker 1 Wait, what am I getting wrong? Pussy, I get that part. B,

Speaker 1 I don't know. I really don't know.
Am I stone?

Speaker 1 How do men have sex? What do they do if they do

Speaker 1 usually? They do it in the naughty place. What is a naughty place called?

Speaker 1 The ass, the

Speaker 1 booty?

Speaker 1 Or the. The booty.
Or the but. The butt.
But. Okay.
Okay. All right.
Well, there's lots of words for it. You can't hate me that much.

Speaker 1 I get it.

Speaker 1 What do you, what, what, like, like

Speaker 1 anthropomologically.

Speaker 1 What do you make of anthropologically? Thank you, son.

Speaker 1 Thank you, John.

Speaker 1 I need a real anchor here to help me with that. We can do a show together.

Speaker 1 I could harass you when the cameras went off. Anyway,

Speaker 1 they're like anthropologists always,

Speaker 1 why is there a homosexual element in nature? I'm not, please, it's a wonderful thing. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with it.
It's just different. It's just a problem.

Speaker 1 Just ask me a question.

Speaker 1 It's just counterintuitive. Like, why would you have a certain segment of the population that isn't for repopulating?

Speaker 1 And, you know, if you had to start from scratch, would you have sex where the shit comes out? You know, that kind of thing. Well, I mean, if you look in nature, that homosexuality is in a...

Speaker 1 Even in animals. Even in animals.
And there are sometimes there are two members of the same sex who can actually repopulate or whatever. But sex is not necessarily for

Speaker 1 sex is not necessarily for repopulation because, I mean, how many kids do you have?

Speaker 1 I've never been married. Okay.

Speaker 1 I'm way behind on that. How often have you had sex?

Speaker 1 Today? Yeah.

Speaker 1 Zero. Okay.
And have you helped to repopulate the earth? No, I'm really actively against it. I rest my case.
Yeah. No, but I'm just saying about it.
It feels good.

Speaker 1 No, No, but I'm talking about nature. Like nature usually, I mean, you believe in evolution and all that.
Of course. Okay.
So like everything in nature seems to be driven toward just this, like

Speaker 1 very often cruel how animals kill each other and the way they die off. And if you lose a step in nature, you know, I mean, if you lose a step on the jets, you get cut.

Speaker 1 But if you lose a step in nature, you die. You know, nature is cruel like that.
You know what I mean?

Speaker 1 So like everything has a purpose and everything seems to be to just to keep the fucking species going.

Speaker 1 It's just, what is the anthropomological

Speaker 1 explanation for that? It's just, it's, it's interesting, right? Like the anthropological explanation of homosexuality. Yeah.
I'd like to know what's going on. Like, why does nature want this?

Speaker 1 Nature obviously wants this element. I don't know if nature wants it.
I think it's

Speaker 1 population control. Maybe it's population control.
Is that what you're going to say? Yeah. Maybe it's population control.
And maybe it is not such an egregious thing, except for religion.

Speaker 1 Correct. It's not egregious at all.
Okay, so then that's what I'm saying. So, why does nature want it? Maybe nature wants it because it actually feels good and because it's actually normal and

Speaker 1 because of people's religious beliefs in this

Speaker 1 original thing.

Speaker 1 Religion is totally the villain in this world. And some people, like you, we remember we had this conversation the other week at a party.
It's a couple things. We did? At a party?

Speaker 1 Wait a second. We were at a party, and I think that you were...
Oh, I know. The Grammys.
Yeah, we're at the Grammys. Oh, remember I was torturing the poor Ari Melber? Yeah.

Speaker 1 Because you look so fly, and I look good. And then somebody else came in.

Speaker 1 And Ari wore the wrong jacket. And I love Ari.
Not a slub, but he did. It was a slubby jacket.
I love Ari. Don't get me wrong.
It was. It was a slubby jacket.
I just said, this is Hollywood.

Speaker 1 You know, we know this shit.

Speaker 1 And I told him, I said, Ari, you need a gay friend. Remember?

Speaker 1 You need some gay best friends. You need a gay friend.

Speaker 1 Anyway, so we were at at this party and we were talking about like um you know i think we were talking about attraction and who we were dating or something right and i don't know if it was you maybe it was you i don't know but you like you you are a heterosexual

Speaker 1 guy some you are a heterosexual guy you're not attracted to men and that's okay but there are some men who may choose to spend their life married to a woman and being in relationship with a woman but they may find gay sex appealing in the bathroom at the four seasons in maui but if we didn't have such a thing about it they wouldn't have to do that.

Speaker 1 Of course. No, I know.
And the same thing. I mean, maybe there are some gay men.
Maybe once in a while I might like to hang out with a woman. Oh, they all do.
Yeah, once in a while. I do.

Speaker 1 I mean, I like boobs.

Speaker 1 Really? Yeah, I like boobs. I think they're beautiful.
I like the way they look. Yeah, they're okay.

Speaker 1 I mean, you're an ass man.

Speaker 1 No, I mean, like. I'm talking about this conversation.
It's getting weird, Mrs. Robinson, but no, I like the mid-section.

Speaker 1 like if I had to pick yes

Speaker 1 you like the cha-cha

Speaker 1 or that the midsection of the body yeah like like like from the like I'm not against any of it I love women like like trust me I'm like the last guy who's gonna like experiment with your side of the street that was our conversation I told you right it's just I'm just and that's just that's okay there's a spectrum there truly is a spectrum you know I mean I'm totally on that page.

Speaker 1 But you know how I know that you are a 100% homosexual? I mean, heterosexual, excuse me, not a 100% heterosexual is because you're okay with it and you get it. Totally.

Speaker 1 Like if I, you cannot say, you cannot make yourself be with someone that you're not attracted to. No.
Yeah. No.

Speaker 1 I mean,

Speaker 1 do you think it's wrong if a person asking for a friend

Speaker 1 doesn't even really like to watch gay sex in like, say, a movie?

Speaker 1 No. I mean, it makes, I think it makes a lot of people uncomfortable.
PDA makes me uncomfortable.

Speaker 1 You know, seeing a man and a woman kiss on television or movie doesn't make me uncomfortable. But sometimes in public, I'm like, okay, guys, I don't really need to.
Right, I agree. And

Speaker 1 maybe it's my internalized homophobia, but sometimes it makes me uncomfortable to see like two men kissing or whatever. And I'm like, why don't I feel that about women?

Speaker 1 Because it's much more accepted in culture and society. And guys are like, oh my gosh, this is hot.
And so I think maybe it's just sort of environment and training.

Speaker 1 You know, I was watching breakfast at Tiffany's the other day. Have you ever seen it? Wait, are you sure you're not gay now?

Speaker 1 You're watching breakfast at Tiffany's? In the kitchen.

Speaker 1 I take things in the kitchen. You know, I watch it like at 15 minutes at a time when I'm making food.
Have you ever seen it? Yeah, of course. So awesome.
I had never seen it. That's how not gay I am.

Speaker 1 I've never seen it. I just watched it.
Yeah, because it always looked kind of gay. No, I'm kidding.

Speaker 1 It's actually not. I forget who's so great.
Who's the guy in it? What's his name?

Speaker 1 George Papard. Papard.
Went on to be the head in the lead in the A team in the 80s. And Audrey.
This was 1961. Audrey Hepern, Truman Capote, a gay author, his book.

Speaker 1 And I always knew it was about, she's like a hooker. It's so interesting, like a hooker in 1961.
She's a gal about town. Well, you know what it was?

Speaker 1 This is 1960. Maybe the book she was a hooker, but not in the movie.
She was a gal about town. It was true to the book.
Here's what it is. In 1961,

Speaker 1 gentlemen give her $50 to go when she goes to the powder room, which, you know, maybe you tip a dollar. Now, $50 in 1961 was like 500.
Yeah.

Speaker 1 So that's as close as they could get to say that she was a hooker. And then, I mean, there's no sex in it.

Speaker 1 And he, that's why I never knew, I knew that about the movie because it's so famous he's a fucking whore too

Speaker 1 he's a whore too he's a hooker not a hooker but there's this older woman who like writes him checks

Speaker 1 so they're both fucking whores i mean sex workers because they're the new group that sends the oscars now oh man the oscars had a good night for whores am i wrong i mean

Speaker 1 what happens when you have to pee on club random oh you just hold it no no no Go ahead, I can't hold it any longer. No, no, I'll wait.
Hold that thought. It's right here, right? Yeah, yeah.
Oh shit.

Speaker 1 Okay,

Speaker 1 yeah, yeah, right there.

Speaker 1 I'm sorry, Don. No, no, no.

Speaker 1 I've done it myself. I mean, peed, not like peed on camera.

Speaker 1 No, no, there's no cameras in there

Speaker 1 that I know of.

Speaker 1 That's so good of you, Don.

Speaker 1 I love that we're having the interview continue while you're in the bathroom because this is a first for Club Random. But I don't dislike it.

Speaker 1 And you're such a pro.

Speaker 1 Such a pro.

Speaker 1 A lot of people will not continue the interview while they're being.

Speaker 1 You can put it on TV if you want. I don't give a shit.
Well, I didn't like, you know, it wasn't wasn't or anything like that honestly don they're not watching this for the guests

Speaker 1 okay

Speaker 1 well it's all good that was amazing thank you very much for that

Speaker 1 is anyone i'm i'm so happy you is my mic still working

Speaker 1 I'm so happy you came here. I appreciate you.

Speaker 1 No, I'm just telling you, I'm happy you came here. I appreciate you made the effort.

Speaker 1 I'm glad I'm getting to know you. Yeah.
First, you do such a progressive. I'd like to hang out with you.
There we go. But like, that's how it happens.

Speaker 1 People sometimes see me out with so many, like, how do you guys know each other? I'm always like, you know what? I don't remember. And here's how happy.
First, you do real-time. Okay, great.

Speaker 1 You know, that's on the air. We talked a little after the show.
Fine. But you know, you don't want to bum rush people.
Hey, let's be friends right away.

Speaker 1 Then you see them at a party, you talk a little more. Then you come here, you talk a little more.
Friendships have to happen organically.

Speaker 1 I mean, how'd you meet your husband? I agree.

Speaker 1 I met my husband at a restaurant/slash bar.

Speaker 1 So, no, it's weird. Well, most restaurants have a bar.
It's kind of a bougie story. Do you want to hear it? Yeah, I really do.

Speaker 1 So

Speaker 1 I was renting with friends in the Hamptons one summer.

Speaker 1 And

Speaker 1 we were renting in Bridgehampton. And on Friday night, there's this restaurant called Almond in Bridgehampton.
What year is this? This is 20-2015. 2015.
14 to 2015 um

Speaker 1 2015

Speaker 1 and um so i was renting and then on friday night this restaurant called almond on friday night it's gay night and so you go everybody's there all the gays that you would know famous gays not famous gays everybody on the other nights it's it's hetero heterosexual boy i feel bad for the guy who gets his days wrong they do that happens and they walk in yes it happens and they're like holy shit what's going on it's okay really yeah

Speaker 1 So I'd rented the year before that, but I didn't go to the bar or whatever because I was just kind of like getting used to whatever. So we rented in 2015.
I'm like, I was single.

Speaker 1 You know, I was just starting CNN. I was like, you know, in prime time.
It was great. It was in life.
And then, so I was there one night and I met this guy. He had a boyfriend.

Speaker 1 He talked to me or whatever. So I met my, when I met my now husband, he had a boyfriend.
I'm not a homewrecker. And so we became friends.
And I had this, is this going on too long? No.

Speaker 1 I had this inflatable paddleboard that I would take with me to the beach. And I couldn't get it back.
This sounds so bougie. Because

Speaker 1 I would go to the Hamptons in a helicopter because I bought these things in a helicopter. And I couldn't, it was too heavy for the helicopter.
And he drove back because he was from,

Speaker 1 he actually grew up in the Hamptons. Damn that DEI.
Yeah, I know.

Speaker 1 So he grew up in the Hamptons and he took my paddleboard in the car back to the city and it sat in his apartment for a year.

Speaker 1 Wait, why did he take it? Because he was in a car. The weight was too heavy for the helicopter.
Okay. And so he had a car.
He drove it back. It sat in his apartment for a year.

Speaker 1 And I would see him at events and he'd go, you got to get your paddleboard. I'm like, yeah, I'm so sorry.
You can bring it. He goes, no big deal.
And so then the next summer, I bought a house there.

Speaker 1 And so because his family is from there, he would start to come over to the house. And

Speaker 1 we became friends. And one day in the summer, he came over in the morning.
We went for a

Speaker 1 And I said, you know, you're going to be my husband one day, right?

Speaker 1 And he's like, wait, what? And I just had this sort of premonition thing. And so he came over at like nine in the morning and we went for a run.
And then at nine at night, he was still there.

Speaker 1 We had spent the day together. And he was still seeing someone.
And I said,

Speaker 1 I'm not a homewrecker. Whatever you're seeing somebody.
I can't see you anymore because I'm starting to have feelings and this is weird. I didn't realize it.
And so he's like, okay.

Speaker 1 And then like a month later, he broke up with his boyfriend. We went out on our first date.

Speaker 1 Sounds like you are a homewrecker. On election night.

Speaker 1 Sounds exactly.

Speaker 1 I told him not to.

Speaker 1 It was his decision to break up with his boyfriend. We went on our first date, Election Night 2016.
Well, okay. When Trump was elected.
That's exactly what a home record does.

Speaker 1 They say,

Speaker 1 I'm not a home recorder. I have feelings for you.
And they plant that seat. And the guy's like, okay, I've been with this person for a while.
It's kind of tired because we've been there for a while.

Speaker 1 And I'd really be trading up and it's hot and I know it's going to be hot. So yes.
And you should not feel guilty about that.

Speaker 1 That is human nature. I'm going to forgive you that.
Maybe you're right. That's human nature.
We're all in the jungle. Okay.

Speaker 1 And we all know that there's no, you know, there's no morality in love and war. We just are out there.
And so good. So, and it's lasted 10 years, obviously.

Speaker 1 Well, it was election night 2016, almost 10 years. And we got, we went on a date.

Speaker 1 It was funny because we were at this huge party. Can I tell you about this party? Yeah.
You know who had, who was holding the party? P. Diddy.
No, close.

Speaker 1 Kanye. No.
Think about it. One more

Speaker 1 movies. R.
Kelly. No.

Speaker 1 Okay. I'm hoping the.
Harvey Weinstein.

Speaker 1 You're

Speaker 1 doing worse than those three. Seriously.
So

Speaker 1 Harvey Weinstein invited me to a party, an election night watch party at Cipriani in New York City.

Speaker 1 And

Speaker 1 I wasn't on that night because that's when the political folks are all on. And so I said, sure, I'll go.
And then I asked my now husband, Tim, if he wanted to go. And he said, sure.

Speaker 1 And so we walked in a little bit early. We met like downtown and we walked in.

Speaker 1 And he was not used to going out with me. He had, you know, didn't know.
And

Speaker 1 you know how they expand the tables? They put like a board on top of the table. Of course.
And he sat down and kicked it over.

Speaker 1 That was our first night. And so then, you know,

Speaker 1 didn't that give you the ick? No, I mean, it was, I was just like, oh, he was embarrassed. But then, you know, who was there?

Speaker 1 Governor Cuomo was there.

Speaker 1 Miles Teller was there. Martha Stewart was there.
Like just all the folks. And they were all like, many of the people there were like, oh, she's got, she's got Florida.

Speaker 1 No, no, no, she's got Pissa Place. She's got that.
And I'm looking at the ceiling thing going.

Speaker 1 So Tim and I looked at each other and said, let's get the fuck out of here. So then we went to the polo bar to meet my agent.

Speaker 1 And then that was our first date. And that's where our reception was at the polo bar.
Well, I must say, I find this story very interesting. Boring.
No, no, no. Not boring at all.

Speaker 1 Inspiring because I'd always thought of gay men having sex or something that happens immediately. That this whole thing.
Oh, like hook up the first night.

Speaker 1 We don't have to leave the bar.

Speaker 1 That's lesbians. Lesbians, they hook up the first night and then the U-Haul happens the next day.

Speaker 1 There were people even at the height of the AIDS crisis who said, bathhouses, I'm sorry, that's the whole point of this lifestyle.

Speaker 1 And I don't want to give that up, even though AIDS was like a sort of Damocles over their heads. Okay, can I tell you something that I think may surprise you?

Speaker 1 But I know I'm being facetious. No, no, no.
Not really. You're not wrong about that.

Speaker 1 No, there is that element in the gay world, but it is not the vast majority of gay people who, when they finally did pass gay marriage, and we saw them showing up at courthouses and sweatshirts and looking schlubby like the rest of us, that's when America went, oh, okay,

Speaker 1 it is just as everyone else. I think people should be having fun.
And I've certainly, look, I have gone to heterosexual swingers clubs.

Speaker 1 So the heterosexuals are just as kinky as the gay people, maybe even more.

Speaker 1 But I think that that was a part of gay culture. And I actually liked it when gay people were kind of, you know, a little bit different, a little bit of, you know what I mean?

Speaker 1 We were kind of dangerous or whatever. And now we have become so heteronormative.

Speaker 1 it's boring sometimes.

Speaker 1 Most of my friends have kids. And so I understand that.
And if you're two men and you're just having fun, I don't put a judgment on sex and what people do.

Speaker 1 As long as it's two consenting adults, I don't really give a shit. But there still is something about, to me, the look

Speaker 1 mostly of a gay man.

Speaker 1 One of my first jokes was about, why are they,

Speaker 1 I would love to be mistaken for a gay man. Why are they better looking? And the joke was,

Speaker 1 you know, do you become gay and then get good looking or do great looking guys just look in the mirror and go oh i'm not wasting this on chicks

Speaker 1 i think it's both now look at the competition as you said so you got to like take care of your body you gotta you know you gotta look good if you're a gay man there's lots of competition there's a certain look that's certain like agents have a certain look don't you think right they really do they do spot them a mile of fucking way with the they have the suit coat on and just leisure pants and the sneakers and the I can't even put it in words, but it's just something.

Speaker 1 It's a good haircut. I don't know.
Yeah. And then, yeah.

Speaker 1 You think gay men have a certain look? Better looking, yes. They're clean, like clean and like better skin.
And

Speaker 1 I just think there's something maybe that is connected with whatever makes someone gay with the skin. I do.
I do. And it's not a dermatology.
As someone who struggled with skin problems.

Speaker 1 Seriously. But, you know.

Speaker 1 i understand what you're saying that's some people are gonna say my knees being very you know sort of stereotypical of whatever but because we come they're generally better looking

Speaker 1 the out ones are generally better looking right

Speaker 1 good point because there are a lot of them that are not out and they're not generally that's i'm sure that's true too yeah so i don't i can't disagree with you on that that's probably something from a bygone era that i you know i'm always trying to

Speaker 1 yell at people for zombie lies and it may be a zombie lie you're right but now when i wrote that joke people weren't out. No, yeah,

Speaker 1 now people are out. Now, absolutely.
And no one, I don't think anyone gives a shit. I mean, nobody does.

Speaker 1 Well, there are certain people.

Speaker 1 The criticism of me, if you read the comments on my channel or whatever on social media, it's always something that's gay. He's a homo.
It's whatever. He's blowing people, whatever.

Speaker 1 Children use whatever they have to get you. If you're fat,

Speaker 1 again, I don't think they even Jew, whatever. whatever, they don't care that much about what it is.
It's just a cudgel to hit you with. So, if they can use that one, they will.

Speaker 1 It's,

Speaker 1 you know, I wouldn't trip on that. I mean, but do you read your social media a lot? No, but my, the guys send me like, oh my gosh, they'll say this one, this one was really good.

Speaker 1 This one wasn't so great. This one, like, oh my God, I can't believe the trolls on that.

Speaker 1 And then, but when I'm on, the difference between, pardon me, being on linear television and doing what I'm doing, I see, I can see the audience. The numbers are there.
It's in real time.

Speaker 1 It's not just minute to minute that you get the Nielsen ratings. It's in real time.
So I can see how people are engaged and I'm reading the comments from the people

Speaker 1 who are streaming with us at the same time. So you know it's much closer to the bone than television.
And it's much more real. When you do that, you follow it along like that.

Speaker 1 I follow it along, but I don't let the engagement determine what I'm talking about or what I think is important just because you're an audience. Absolutely 100%.

Speaker 1 You really think you trust yourself that much to see what they're liking and not go with the likes? Yeah, they didn't like what I said about Joe Biden during the election.

Speaker 1 They didn't like some of the things I said about Kamala Harris during the election. They didn't like that I was interviewing people as I was going around the country during the election.

Speaker 1 And there were a lot of people telling me. I heard a lot of Trump out there.
And so I knew before everyone else, like,

Speaker 1 I'm hearing a lot of Trump. I contacted the campaign.
I'm like, like, you guys have a problem, especially with black men. Never contacted me back.

Speaker 1 But I knew before that they were in trouble. And my subscribers didn't really like it.
And I said, you may not like it.

Speaker 1 I want you to stick with me, but I'm not going to tell you something just because I think you want to hear it. I'm always going to be honest with you.

Speaker 1 And a lot of the streamers and podcasters who are. more progressive or to the left or center or whatever, they lost a lot of subscribers after the election.
I didn't. It was the exact opposite.

Speaker 1 And I think that's because I was honest with my audience. So yes, I can be honest.
I mean, that's certainly my formula.

Speaker 1 It is your formula. But I don't, but I mean, I would not trust myself.
You wouldn't. You know, they had a billboard here.
Your ratings whore?

Speaker 1 I am the opposite.

Speaker 1 My billboard says he's not in it for the likes. That's the catchword.
Yeah.

Speaker 1 And, you know, I'm sure there are snarky people. on the left who was like, yeah, that's right, Bill.
That's, you know, that's why we hate you.

Speaker 1 No, I mean, it's a way of saying, you can't buy me. Yeah.
And that's, so if you're on that page, we need more of that. I am.

Speaker 1 Thank you. I appreciate that.
And I appreciate the platform that you have. When people ask me, what do you want to do? What's your ultimate goal?

Speaker 1 And I said, I would like to have a platform like Bill Maher. I don't want to be Bill Maher, but where there's...
honesty. You said earlier, you know, you can't do that in television.

Speaker 1 I think folks in television now should start serving people what they want instead of what they they think that they want. I mean, instead of what the bosses and the people in the C-suite want.

Speaker 1 Wait, no, you can be honest on television. I'm totally.

Speaker 1 I'm roofing you.

Speaker 1 Oh, you're no, you have no idea what's going to happen after this. No, ding, I drink it.
It's a way to make just regular sparkling water into tasty diet soda. Oh, God.
Okay.

Speaker 1 So you were saying about linear television and what?

Speaker 1 That works?

Speaker 1 Is that water?

Speaker 1 That's

Speaker 1 tequila. Tequila.
You're putting it in tequila? Yeah, well, it's like if you mix it with Diet Coke, it would have its flavor to it. This just puts a flavor to it.
You want some? Jing, I drink it.

Speaker 1 I'll try it. I usually just like, you know, my...
What are you drinking there? Nothing. Reposado, Casa Zul Raposado with some lime.
Jesus, you are gay. Yeah.
Raposado, what the fuck is that?

Speaker 1 It's a darker, smokier tequila than a Blanco.

Speaker 1 Oh. No, you can, what you can do on, you can be honest on television.
What you can't do is veer from a conversation like we're having right now to the one of, oh, really?

Speaker 1 It tastes like a freaking 7-up now. What did you do? Like a fanta.
People like 7-up. They're dilute it with this.
It's just too, it's just too.

Speaker 1 No, I would like this maybe if I'm drinking water during the day. I don't think I necessarily want it.

Speaker 1 I think you'll like it after that.

Speaker 1 No, I would prefer a sparkling. I'm going to do a spotlight.
Okay.

Speaker 1 What were you saying? I'm saying you can be honest on TV. What you can't do is have a conversation veer from the State of the Union address to what should we call a man's asshole about it.
No, no.

Speaker 1 Because that's life.

Speaker 1 It just flows where it flows, and then it comes back. And we talk.
It's like no agenda. I could have called this show no agenda, no notes, no, you know, I'm high, whatever it was.

Speaker 1 That's what you can't do. That's not what I'm saying.
I'm not saying it should go in that. What I'm saying is, is that people should be more honest in their conversations.
And

Speaker 1 because in conversations, people say dumb things. They make mistakes.
And I don't think people should be canceled for that.

Speaker 1 I think that I actually think in television they should be applauded for that because it makes better television.

Speaker 1 I think people should, but you know, if shoulds and buts were beer and nuts, we'd have a hell of a party.

Speaker 1 But I also think that linear television would not be quite in the position that it is now with people who are unsubscribing or people who are cutting the cord if they actually had more interesting people on more people like you and more people like me right that are that and they said we're not gonna cancel we're not gonna we're not gonna go for the woke left or the woke right you know there's a woke right right of course there's a woke right

Speaker 1 totally who are there always was they canceled colin kaepernick faster than anybody trump canceled ap the associated press because they wouldn't call it the stupid Gulf of America.

Speaker 1 Oh, well, well, they threw him out of the press room. He didn't can't.

Speaker 1 It's kind of canceling them.

Speaker 1 Mr. Free Speech? No.
I mean, who reads news? I mean, newspapers are kind of dead anyway. I mean, people read.
The Associated Press is not the newspaper. I get my stuff from the Associated Press.

Speaker 1 I have a respect for them. Oh, yeah, I do too.
I just don't know. I mean, all I ever read about is how newspapers are dying.
And, you know, I mean,

Speaker 1 again, the Times... is doing well because they went with that model that I was describing before.

Speaker 1 How do our readers want to interpret this story and then write the story that way? That's the difference between the New York Times of today and 20 years ago.

Speaker 1 Don't you think, I'm glad you mentioned that, except I forgot about this earlier. But don't you think that's kind of your show? You're the interpreter on the show.

Speaker 1 Yeah, but I'm not pretending to be a newspaper. It's an opinion show.
It's a debate show. That's not a newspaper.
If I was a newspaper, I would just try to keep it as much down the middle as I could.

Speaker 1 I give my opinion on everything. When the Democrats are,

Speaker 1 as they were under Obama, I thought, much more sane and not championing silly things, I was much more always on their side.

Speaker 1 Then they became crazy woke about a lot of bullshit, and I wasn't going to hold my tongue like a lot of people did, just because it, you know, oh, it's our team. There's no teams.

Speaker 1 I'm on team what's real. Yeah.
And I'm dealing with that right now. All the time when I'm out, like I was at the Vanity Fair Oscar party the other night.
Oh, my friend invited me. I didn't go.

Speaker 1 That should have. I wasn't.
Why? I was in New York. Lee Daniels said, do you want to be my date to the Vanity Fair party? I've gone.
I just didn't. I was in New York.
What? What a dick.

Speaker 1 Should I have gone? Of course.

Speaker 1 Why? It's so why? Because it's like this town, people think it's such a party town show, but it's not. This is like the one weekend a year people party.
I flew in on Monday night. It was so boring.

Speaker 1 I'm always in me. It's like every year, somebody's always like, Coy, what happened to the Vanity Fair party? What happened to it? Everybody came to it.
That's what happened to it.

Speaker 1 Everybody comes to it. If you didn't see somebody there, it's because they didn't want to see you.
Wait till the magazine comes out in two months and they have pictures. Everybody was there.

Speaker 1 It's one of the few times here in the petting zoo we call the

Speaker 1 Hollywood Zoo. You see all the stars in the same room.
It's just fun.

Speaker 1 It just feels great. Everybody's like fucking dressed to the nines.
You know, all the tension from the show is over.

Speaker 1 The winners are there and they are beaming and the losers, okay, they lost, but that fucking shit is over. Timothy Chalame is like, he didn't look like he was suffering.

Speaker 1 You know, I mean, the chicks are dressed like crazy. They always turn up.
If you're a 10, you turn it up to 11 on Oscar night. Now you're making me feel bad that I didn't go.

Speaker 1 And you would have gone with Lee Daniels? That's cool. Lee's a friend.
He's good.

Speaker 1 he's a really good friend you know what people would be very surprised to know about me if i i once did one of those 25 things you don't know about me things

Speaker 1 uh

Speaker 1 i've seen all the tyler perry movies

Speaker 1 and i haven't

Speaker 1 i haven't i love i love tyler but i haven't seen all the movies But you were mentioning, you were talking about the, I'm getting it now from

Speaker 1 the left. I'm getting it now.
Well, they're like, Bill, what are we going to do?

Speaker 1 And my answer is, well, there's not much you can do. You lost, elections matter.
You lost all the branches of government. So what can you do?

Speaker 1 I mean, apropos of the speech the other night, show up, you know, with the paddles that you were very amusingly making fun of. And then some people...
Elon,

Speaker 1 some people wore pink. Yeah.
Like, and then some people wore like you white for Ukraine. It's like, they look so disorganized.
There's a way to do it.

Speaker 1 it weak weak but there's a way to do it that they're not doing it and i think they feel weak and i also think the people and look again i don't want to keep beating up on the democrats but i do think i'm not a democrat i'm an independent i do i don't want to keep beating up on i think that they are they should be the bulwark between us and of course democracy right and craziness and they're not very good at it i think that they have people in place who are not very good at leadership i look how came jeffries can hate me people are mad at me i don't think he's the person that should be leading the democratic party you know what Someone who I'm very close to, who is one of the savviest political people I know, said that exact thing.

Speaker 1 I just don't think behind the scenes, he's very good. He's very good at, I'm sure, negotiating and coming up with a plan.

Speaker 1 I feel the same way about, I love Nancy Pelosi, I think she's a very smart woman, but I think that era of the Nancy Pelosi type in the Democratic Party is over.

Speaker 1 I think that this is the era of whether, and I didn't like her policies at Peru's, and I'm not necessarily in love with her policies, but people love AOC. People love Jasmine Crockett.

Speaker 1 People love Eric Swalwell and the like. And I think that the Democratic Party should put the people out there who the people want.
They should put

Speaker 1 the politicians out there who the people want, who they're asking for, who are meeting the moment with the same energy that they're asking for. They're not asking for AOC.
Yes, they are.

Speaker 1 The people you party with. No, no, no.
The people I party with don't like AOC. Oh, please.
No, they don't at all. Well, most people don't.
But

Speaker 1 it's very far left. Let me tell you why I'm saying that.
Because AOC,

Speaker 1 because people will vote for AOC and Donald Trump on the same ticket. Because they're authentic.
No, because they're authentic. I don't think that,

Speaker 1 Don. I think you're wrong about that.
What people like about people like Trump and Federal Money is they're not because it's irrelevant to her life. But you don't realize.

Speaker 1 I know that being a gorgeous woman who I wouldn't even know was Hispanic in a city that has a million Hispanics and does not treat them badly. That doesn't mean she

Speaker 1 struggle. That doesn't mean that she was set down.

Speaker 1 It implies it. But that doesn't mean that she was set down in Hispanic ghetto in the Bronx and had to deal with that growing up and that she's

Speaker 1 a working class.

Speaker 1 It implies that in some way she's behind the eight ball because of that. And it's just not true.

Speaker 1 And so I don't know if she's behind the eight ball, but I don't think she's as privileged as many people who are in Congress right now.

Speaker 1 Is young privilege or not? She was a bartender. Yeah.
You know, so I was

Speaker 1 a delivery. I was in her policies.
But I'm saying sometimes, like, just Bill, like, you don't agree with

Speaker 1 Donald Trump's policies. No, but that's what the people want.
Some of them.

Speaker 1 Whether you like her or not, I don't like what she did with Amazon in New York, but I think AOC is an ice. She's a Democratic icon.
Well, she's the wrong.

Speaker 1 If you think that's the direction that the country should, the Democratic policy.

Speaker 1 I'm not saying the policies that she is following is that's the direction but I'm saying that you have to give the people who are the people who are out front speaking for the party not the people who are if you think she's evolving yeah she's evolving and she's as we all are and she is moving into right she understands the game a little bit more and if you notice she is sort of becoming a sort of normal kind of Democrat in many ways I think she's evolving a very smart tactic she's very smart let's get behind that another one who's doing that Gavin Newsom who I've always been a fan of and thought thought always could and should be president.

Speaker 1 And then I recently had a conversation with somebody and I said, gosh, I've always been hoping Gavin would move toward the center. It doesn't seem to be happening.

Speaker 1 And then as if I had just manifested it, I see this headline somebody sent me a few days ago. Gavin Newsom name-checked me

Speaker 1 in how much he wanted to,

Speaker 1 how he wanted to move to the center. He's starting a podcast.
Yes. Where he wants to talk to people.
Talk to everybody.

Speaker 1 So I'm like,

Speaker 1 thank you, Jesus. This is the direction we want to go.
So if you can get AOC there toward the middle, but

Speaker 1 again, for the people that come up to me, Bill, what are we going to do? Well, you can't do much because you lost all the levers of power.

Speaker 1 What you can do, the thing that you can do is get on your side. to not look crazier than him.
That's all you can do.

Speaker 1 Now go back to your $800 four-plate dinner while you're worrying about how the world is going to end. What are you saying? You don't want to look as crazy as he does?

Speaker 1 That's the only thing liberals can do. Just don't be, don't do shit that makes people go, oh, Trump, he's just crazy, but at least he doesn't.

Speaker 1 And then whatever the... crazy story of the day is from so you're making my point the other side should i don't i don't believe that they should not be as crazy why not

Speaker 1 crazy in what way like the guy who's shaking his cane you said the only thing that democrats should be is not be as crazy as donald trump but why not not have not not hold policy positions and beliefs and support silly things that are crazier uh

Speaker 1 not to give it away but i guess it'll air before this does friday night my thing that i was just working on is uh about the oscars i I saw it started with a

Speaker 1 land acknowledgement. That's the kind of thing that makes people roll their eyes.
The land acknowledgement. I guess that part of the list.

Speaker 1 It's like when you, whatever, you're at some place like the Oscars, and before you could even start, you have to acknowledge that this is the land that we are standing on, that really belongs to the proud Chumash people, you know, and it's like, as I said,

Speaker 1 either give it back or shut the fuck up. So like every day, there's some little thing like that that the left does.
And it may not be politicians.

Speaker 1 I mean, Democratic politicians weren't really for defund the police, but it got out there that that was what the liberal woke thing was. And so it just gets in people's heads.
Oh, defund the police.

Speaker 1 That's not really something that's going to help my life a lot. I mean, I know people who are very liberal who said to me, Soto Voce,

Speaker 1 when Trump won, I'm not unhappy that the police are going to get their morale back.

Speaker 1 Yeah.

Speaker 1 You know, where do you not live? It would be an interesting thing, though.

Speaker 1 Where do you live?

Speaker 1 I live in New York. Oh, you live in New York.
So we've had a really tough time out here with not just the fires, but the crime, even before the crime,

Speaker 1 like people who never, ever said,

Speaker 1 I don't really want to go to that restaurant.

Speaker 1 They demure now.

Speaker 1 when you ask them to a restaurant in a part of town they consider a little too dangerous. That has, I have not witnessed that in LA,

Speaker 1 or they don't wear watches when they go out. You know,

Speaker 1 they're too. You're in New York City.
No, here. Here.

Speaker 1 They don't want to live like that.

Speaker 1 I mean, there's been like robberies in broad daylight on Rodeo Drive.

Speaker 1 But you just get this creepy feeling that, wow. the whole order is broken down.
And we elected a very different DA here.

Speaker 1 You know, like, we're going to, we're going to,

Speaker 1 crime's going to be illegal again

Speaker 1 here in LA was basically what he ran on.

Speaker 1 So. I don't know if a lot of that, if I can disagree with you on it, because this is where the conservative side of me comes out.
Like, I think people should be tough on crime.

Speaker 1 As a someone who has witnessed one of those people running out of the CVS or the

Speaker 1 pharmacy in a big bag, it is very disconcerting. And that should not happen.

Speaker 1 I wish, I should say, I wish that would not happen and it shouldn't happen. And so, but there are things that go beyond that

Speaker 1 that I think about, like, how do we help this person not having to feel like they need to go to rob a place? And I think for me,

Speaker 1 there are folks who think about those things just further, you know, beyond just like, what is the problem? but what is the solution? And I think for me, you're not even going to like this.

Speaker 1 But I think the party that's looking out for that now, whether they are terrible or doing it the wrong way. I don't disagree.
It's a Democratic Party.

Speaker 1 I don't disagree that we should look at the reason why that crime happens in the first place. So I think that...
But it changes, I bet, when you have kids. But to get around, I'm glad that

Speaker 1 I think LA, you said a DA, a district attorney, right? Elected a district attorney that can go up against a liberal or whatever mayor and that they can somehow

Speaker 1 work it out, right?

Speaker 1 They'll have a consensus and it won't be an agree fest. And so I think that that's good, actually.
Do you have kids? I don't have kids that I know about.

Speaker 1 Because you see, it would be impossible with the whole penis in the... No, no, you act like I've never been with a woman.
What are you talking about? I don't. Well, I assume a gay man has it.

Speaker 1 No, there are different levels of gay. Oh.

Speaker 1 So like you were not gay for a while, like when you were young and figuring it out? So there's like a gay, I forget what the, but like the platinum is that you've never been with a woman.

Speaker 1 Like, and then there, you know, there's like a gold of platinum in something. I don't know these actual things, but there are certain levels of gay.
Wow. There's so many award shows in this town.

Speaker 1 But, um,

Speaker 1 but what, okay, so you're how old are you now?

Speaker 1 Should I tell my age? You look great, so it doesn't match a mood point. All right.
I'm 59 years old. Just turned on.
Awesome. You look amazing.
Thank you. I tell you, gay don't crack.
But

Speaker 1 do I have that right? Okay.

Speaker 1 No, you look amazing for that. But so when was the last year you had sex with a woman?

Speaker 1 No, that's been since the

Speaker 1 90s. Okay.

Speaker 1 Early 2000s. Okay.
No, late 90s. Let's put it that way.
It's been a while, but I've been with women.

Speaker 1 We'll say right around the Monica Lewinsky scandal.

Speaker 1 Just to give a

Speaker 1 late 90s. A Columbine or something like that.
I mean, blowjobs were in the news. Yeah.

Speaker 1 And you, and you were like... Hey, why not? Right.
So you weren't a kid when you completely swore off. In my 20s.
I didn't swear.

Speaker 1 The Punani. Fuck.

Speaker 1 I didn't swear it off. I was just like, hey,

Speaker 1 something else. I'd rather have, you know, the.
I honestly never understood bisexuality. I'm sure I know it exists and I know it's maybe it's more normal than me.

Speaker 1 I just never understood like, yeah, maybe a guy. That's, you know, again, because I'm there on the spectrum.
I'm way over here on the spectrum. Like, why did you understand?

Speaker 1 When you're 70 and you've never been married, I've said this before, it's either because you don't like girls or you like them a lot.

Speaker 1 But I got to tell you, I'm kind of gay and I have been with women before, but I really like being alone. It doesn't mean I don't love my marriage, but I love it.

Speaker 1 I love being alive. So how do you handle that in a marriage? It's really tough for me.
I got to be honest. It's really tough for me.
I could not agree more. Because I'm so used to it.

Speaker 1 I didn't get married until I was. You got to save up your charm.
58 years old. So when you see the person.

Speaker 1 You can't be charming every day of the year. You just can't.
But you're confirmed bachelor. You said if a guy's 70s, either gay or what did you say? I'd say

Speaker 1 either you don't like girls or you like them a lot. Yes.
Okay, so you're on the I like them a lot part.

Speaker 1 I do. I like them a lot.

Speaker 1 There could have been that element for me on the other side. That was part of it.
But part of the biggest part of it is that I liked myself and I liked being alone.

Speaker 1 I loved living alone, but I also love having a husband. But there are times when I say...
Did his his family accept you readily and lovingly?

Speaker 1 You mean did I accept them?

Speaker 1 I mean, okay, yeah, sure. That's true.
I think it was an insult to just ask that.

Speaker 1 I'm just saying, yes, of course. And I wouldn't.
No, because he's a white guy. I would not have expected anything else.
It was just a question. But yeah, he's a white guy.

Speaker 1 I'm assuming the white people are bad in that question.

Speaker 1 Okay, so

Speaker 1 I'm defending my in-laws. No.
So listen, I think,

Speaker 1 you know, my husband is a, his family's devout Catholics. He's an Irish Catholic, church, mass, whatever.
Every Sunday, like, these are really great people.

Speaker 1 Like during the pandemic, one of his family members filmed the Mass because he couldn't go to church and videotaped it. Right.
So they're there.

Speaker 1 They're a family that is entrenched. Oh, what a good idea for a silly superstition.
For a silly superstition. So, yeah, they accepted me.
They're amazing. That's great.

Speaker 1 They never even, I don't, look, they never said to me that they thought twice about it, but I consider them my family, and I'm as close to them as I am my blood family.

Speaker 1 But I mean, if they were bigots, they'd have like two reasons to hate you.

Speaker 1 You know, you got to give them credit. That's the least, Bill.
You got to give them credit. That's the weird thing, though, right? They got past everything.

Speaker 1 The gay and black part is like the least of it. There are other things that they should be like, fuck that guy.
Fuck that guy. We don't want him going out.
Are you a lot older than your husband?

Speaker 1 I'm just, I'm making up. But like, I think the gay and the black part is like not as agreeable.
What is your age difference?

Speaker 1 19 years, almost 20 years.

Speaker 1 Wow. So he's 78?

Speaker 1 Okay. All right.
So 20 years. So it's okay when you do it, but I'm a pervert.
What?

Speaker 1 You think you're a pervert? No, but people say that when you're with women who are not your age. Yeah, but who cares? I certainly don't.
If I cared, it would have been evident by now. I don't care.

Speaker 1 If I had cared, I would not be married to who I'm married to and it would not have the age difference. Well, I hope the next time your

Speaker 1 guy is out here with you, that you'll have dinner. We'll come over.
We love, we're only. You can go out to a restaurant.
I'm only a few blocks from you. It took me three minutes to go.

Speaker 1 Let's not say where I live. Oh, sorry.
I mean, this is

Speaker 1 Bel Air. No, no.
This is, you know, we're in the

Speaker 1 Los Angeles area.

Speaker 1 We're in an undisclosed state. Don't put that in.
Sorry. Everybody can find out anything.
I mean, they could could have a drone overhead. I have seen your house online.
You talked about it.

Speaker 1 You showed pictures when you couldn't get the solar panels.

Speaker 1 All kinds of shit. Yeah.
Anyway, thanks, man. This is such a fun thing.
Oh, my gosh. Did you enjoy this? Well, we were here for like two hours, so I must have.

Speaker 1 I can be a little, you know, what's the hand? Science. We're all.

Speaker 1 We're all here. Stand up.
Stand up. Still extra.

Speaker 6 Even though severe cases can be rare, respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, is still the leading cause of hospitalization in babies under one.

Speaker 6 RSV often begins like a cold or the flu, but can quickly spread to your baby's lungs. Ask your doctor about preventative antibodies for your baby this season and visit protectagainstrsv.com.

Speaker 6 The information presented is for general educational purposes only. Please ask your healthcare provider about any questions regarding your health or your baby's health.

Speaker 1 Be our guest at Disney's enchanting musical, Beauty and the Beast. Experience this timeless, classic tale brought to life like never before.

Speaker 1 Fill your heart with joy and Disney magic at this dazzling and beloved production.

Speaker 1 Coming to the Orpheum Theater July 14th through August 9th. Tickets on sale now at BroadwaySF.com.