Real Time with Bill Maher guests - Friday, November 21, 2025 (Season Finale)

[Rhiannon12866]

Real Time with Bill Maher continues its 23rd season Friday, November 21st (10:00-11:00 p.m. live ET/7:00-8:00 p.m. PT), with a replay at 11:51 p.m., exclusively on HBO.

This week features a one-on-one interview with Mel Robbins, host of The Mel Robbins Podcast and author of the bestselling book The Let Them Theory: A Life-Changing Tool That Millions of People Can’t Stop Talking About.

This week's in-studio panel discussion will include Michael Render (“Killer Mike”), an entrepreneur and musician, best known as one half of Run the Jewels and host of the podcast Conversations with Killer Mike; and Donna Brazile, veteran political strategist and ABC News contributor.

[Prairie Gates]

1. Fuck Bill Maher

[Halicarnassus]

5. How is this not a weekly, "divisive group attack?"

Bill Maher is in the mainstream of the Democratic coalition, like it or not. He has many fans here in DU, and this drivel is insulting every damn week. I’m not going to blatantly declare “Fuck Zohran Mamdani;” “Fuck Bernie Sanders;” “Fuck Joe Manchin”… because it contributes nothing to any argument and only seeks to divide.

[3_Limes]

6. IMHO, the continued insistance on repeating the announcement of

his guests, and his show, despite the deep and widespread distaste for him and his commentary here is the divisive act.

[muriel_volestrangler]

7. No, he is nowhere near "the mainstream of the Democratic coalition". He is a libertarian

who happily went to dinner with the rapist Trump, and reported back he'd enjoyed it. He is an individual, rather than part of the Democratic party. He is also an idiot when it comes to vaccines.

[PJMcK]

10. Didn't he sleep with Ann Coulter?

I could be wrong but if not, that says it all.

[niyad]

8. Hmmmm, "weekly attacks"? Welcome to DU, by the way. Happy one week

anniversary. Very interesting and clever way of phrasing your last sentence.

[GoneOffShore]

31. I read that and my spidey senses started to tingle.

[niyad]

32. Thank you. I thought perhaps it was just the editor in me.

[GoneOffShore]

33. Looking at a few other comments, plus that one, gave me a distinctive frisson.

I suspect that this is not their first DU rodeo.

[niyad]

34. That was my impression as well.

[Scrivener7]

12. Lol. "Bill Maher is in the mainstream of the Democratic coalition."

Not a surprising comment from someone who identifies as "not a wokester."

[Just_Vote_Dem]

18. What, Libertarians are not in our mainstream?

I'm shocked, I tell ya

[BannonsLiver]

26. lol

[Crunchy Frog]

28. Bill Maher is an entertainer. Those other people all

are or were elected officials.

I don't believe that he's outside the bounds of harsh criticism or even insults.

In fact I've seen equally harsh things posted about Rachel Maddow in the last couple of days. That's not beyond the pale here either.

[Sympthsical]

2. The "Let Them" theory is the funniest thing to me

It's this cultural phenomenon, but it's pretty much just been my experience with aging and being increasingly busy throughout adulthood.

I call it NMP - Not My Problem - in daily life. The idea that so much going on with people has absolutely nothing to do with me. Oh, watching drama while being removed from the drama is fun, but if someone tries to drag me in, nope. NMP. Not my circus, not my monkeys. I have to tell my partner this all the time, because he'll somehow get involved in all these peripheral work dramas. He'll be standing in the kitchen telling me all about it, and I constantly have to ask, "How are these your monkeys?" And he'll take a moment and go, "Wait. They're not. WTF am I doing . . ."

There are so many other ways of saying this. Don't borrow trouble. Don't join people in crazy. Don't invest in people who aren't invested in you.

I do think social media has had us losing this ability a bit. We're constantly asked to care about things, to invest, to judge, to have an opinion, to be involved. And caring (not actually doing something - just caring) is seen as a virtue.

So we've gotten to this place where "Why not just worry about your own shit for a change instead of everyone else's?" has somehow become a radical perspective in life.

It's really funny if you think about it for a minute.

Also, Donna Brazile is always a panel win. I haven't actually watched a panel in maybe a month or two, but I might catch this one.

[niyad]

9. Thank you for explaining the "let them" thing so I don't have to go look it up.

[617Blue]

3. Can you update us on what Nick Fuentes will be discussing today?

[Halicarnassus]

4. Donna Brazile...

once called me “honey-child” as a term of endearment. That was… wow, 21 years ago. The time, it flies.

[UTUSN]

11. K&R

[BannonsLiver]

13. Killer Mike. Oof.

[niyad]

14. Who, or what, is a "killer mike"?

[BannonsLiver]

15. A talentless clown who was virulently anti Hillary from the left in 2016.

[niyad]

16. Ahhh, so I have not been missing anything in not being familiar with him.

[Jbraybarten]

17. F Maher

Last edited Tue Nov 25, 2025, 05:21 PM - Edit history (1)

...that's what we're supposed to say, right?

[Paladin]

19. Always a pleasure to skip his shitty show. (nt)

[question everything]

20. I don't know the guys but can always learn something. Brazile may add a view point about the party

at this crossroads. She may not play a leading role tough.

And, of course, the monologue and New Rules.

Thank you for your perseverance. You deserve a break too.

[thebigidea]

23. " She may not play a leading role tough. "

is there literally a single person on the planet who wants Brazile to play a leading role in the Democratic Party going forward?

I don't even think she does, grifting via her consulting firm is much more lucrative

[Abolishinist]

21. We'll be watching!

We're attending a play tonight, so taping it for watching later this weekend.

Mel Robbins sounds interesting. I looked up her book on Amazon - over 30,000 reviews with 90% giving it a 4 or 5. I also read several comments, and a few reviews by those in the profession. Without ever hearing about her or the ‘Let Them’ theory, I tend to follow it in my own life. Or at least, when I do I feel better about things.

I've always enjoyed Donna Brazile, she should be fun.

And of course, his opening and New Rules are usually worthwhile. Thanks for posting!

[thebigidea]

22. has Donna Brazile ever said anything interesting on this show?

She's been on from the start and I can't recall her ever contributing much other than some cliches. She must be really good at manipulating Maher off camera.

She's also a safe bet when Maher needs someone to agree with his bashing of Democrats.

[question everything]

24. She is a regular on the ABC Sunday show. Manipulating Stephanopoulos?

[thebigidea]

25. Well, you definitely expect stale bread punditry on the morning shows.

Curious why she's such a regular on Bill Maher's show, tho. I mean, can you honestly say she's ever contributed much to a discussion on Real Time? When?

It's just a safe booking that will never disagree much with Maher or interrupt his ranting about how the left has gone too far.

[Pisces]

27. She's an embarrassment to herself now. Her sexual innuendos are sad. I do not enjoy her on the show.

[Celerity]

29. She was even more of 'an embarrassment' in 2016:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donna_Brazile

snip

Sharing debate questions with Clinton campaign (when she was both Vice Chair of the DNC and also a CNN contributor)

A WikiLeaks e-mail dump revealed that Brazile sent an e-mail message on March 5, 2016, to John Podesta and Jennifer Palmieri with the title: "One of the questions directed to HRC tomorrow is from a woman with a rash." The message continued, "her family has lead poison and she will ask what, if anything, will Hillary do as president to help the ppl of Flint." At the next event in Flint, Clinton was delivered a similar question from audience member Mikki Wade, whose family was affected by the poisoned water.

On October 11, 2016, a WikiLeaks e-mail dump included an e-mail Brazile sent on March 12, 2016 to Clinton communications director Jennifer Palmieri with the subject header: "From time to time I get questions in advance." In the e-mail, Brazile discussed her concern about Clinton's ability to field a question regarding the death penalty, and in a CNN town hall debate the following day, Clinton received a similar question about the death penalty. According to tech blog Errata Security, the e-mail in question was verified using an everyday verification program and the DKIM system.

Brazile at first vehemently denied receiving or furnishing the Clinton campaign with any town hall questions and dismissed the WikiLeaks organization as "these sad ass whipper leakers try to slow my groove".

snip

On October 31, 2016, The New York Times reported: "CNN has severed ties with the Democratic strategist Donna Brazile, after hacked e-mails from WikiLeaks showed that she shared questions for CNN-sponsored candidate events in advance with friends on Hillary Clinton's campaign." CNN said it had accepted her formal resignation on October 14, adding: "We are completely uncomfortable with what we have learned about her interactions with the Clinton campaign while she was a CNN contributor."

On November 1, 2016, an internal call about the collusion was initiated by CNN President Jeff Zucker. Zucker informed his staff that, while the instances have been fully investigated and the perpetrators dealt with, the perception that campaigns received questions in advance "hurts all of us," adding that, "I have no tolerance for her behavior or that kind of behavior," going on to describe former network commentator Brazile's interactions with the Clinton campaign as "unethical" and "disgusting."

On March 17, 2017, Brazile admitted to forwarding debate questions to Clinton's campaign during the 2016 Democratic primary, while she was Vice Chair of the DNC and working as a CNN commentator. In an essay she wrote for Time magazine, she said, "Then in October, a subsequent release of e-mails revealed that among the many things I did in my role as a Democratic operative and D.N.C. Vice Chair prior to assuming the interim D.N.C. Chair position was to share potential town hall topics with the Clinton campaign." Brazile went on to explain: "My job was to make all our Democratic candidates look good, and I worked closely with both campaigns to make that happen. But sending those e-mails was a mistake I will forever regret."

snip

[Pisces]

30. I remember that debacle. It looked bad for all involved. She has no integrity and rules are something

that applies to others is her attitude. It could be that others have done this in the past giving her the idea that it was ok. I personally do not like her delivery or assessments. Very hard to take her seriously when she is acting so silly.