MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough joined HBO Real Time host Bill Maher on Friday to discuss how they believe that Republicans are more guilty of spreading misinformation than the left. However, one of their examples of right-wing disinformation was their claim that the Russia collusion hoax is itself a hoax.
Maher and Scarborough began by misunderstanding each other. Maher was dismayed at California citing Elon Musk’s political activities as a reason for limiting his company’s ability to launch rockets in the state. Scarborough predicted the courts will reverse the decision, but Maher insisted that, “It's just the attitude that I find scary. That—far too willing to stifle freedoms, including speech, for the sake of safety or misinformation. Sometimes, which is coming from everybody because, you know, no one has a monopoly on it or just power. It’s just power.”
Scarborough, apparently not knowing what “monopoly” means, lamented, “Come on, that's some moral relativism, right there.”
Alluding to fellow panelist Mark Cuban, Scarborough continued, “That's like saying no one has a monopoly on being a billionaire—he's got that monopoly out here. I mean, he's got more money than us, a lot more money than us.”
Maher claimed he didn’t understand what Scarborough was trying to get at, so Scarborough sought to clarify, “You don’t get it. You’re saying it's both sides. There's no doubt there’s some disinformation from the left, but comparing it to what Donald Trump is spewing out.”
Moving closer to each other’s position, Maher interrupted, “No, of course, I agree.”
Scarborough continued, “every week, comparing it to what Elon Musk is spewing out, unfortunately, on X. There’s no—you sound like Bret Stephens with all due respect. It’s a joke. That’s a Real Time with Bill Maher joke.
Eventually, Maher added, “I've never argued with that. I've never argued for a false equivalency. I just said there is misinformation from both sides.”
Later, during the Real Time Overtime segment, Maher undermined their claim, “I mean, I kind of alluded to in the show, but I think the biggest hoax going is the idea that the Russia collusion was not a, was a, is a hoax. It's not a hoax. There was collusion just because Bob Mueller was bad at proving it. There is definitely collusion.”
Scarborough agreed, “That's one of the more maddening things. I still read the Wall Street Journal editorial page and the op-eds and, and it's sort of my go to in the morning and it's maddening to even see people on there talking about ‘Russia hoax’ and you just want to say, read the Mueller report, read everything that's happened.”
Reconciliation complete, Maher added, “And it's more dangerous than even that because they use it as a jumping-off point. Like, ‘Well, since Russia was a hoax then’ and it's like, but Russia wasn't a hoax, but once you get them to believe that Russia was a hoax, now, now anything goes.
If Mueller “was bad at proving it,” maybe that is because there was no conspiracy.
Here is a transcript for the October 18 show:
HBO Real Time with Bill Maher
10/18/2024
10:29 PM ET
BILL MAHER: It's just the attitude that I find scary. That—far too willing to stifle freedoms, including speech, for the sake of safety or misinformation. Sometimes, which is coming from everybody because, you know, no one has a monopoly on it or just power. It’s just power.
JOE SCARBOROUGH: Come on, that's some moral relativism, right there.
MAHER: I said nobody has a monopoly.
SCARBOROUGH: You said nobody has a monopoly on it, that's like saying no one has a monopoly on being a billionaire — he's got that monopoly out here. I mean, he's got more money than us, a lot more money than us, so—.
MAHER: I don’t get the— I don't know what point you're making.
SCARBOROUGH: You don’t get it. You’re saying it's both sides. There's no doubt—
MAHER: There’s no misinformation—
SCARBOROUGH: — there’s some disinformation from the left, but comparing it to what Donald Trump is spewing out—
MAHER: No, of course, I agree.
SCARBOROUGH: — every day—
MAHER: I agree.
SCARBOROUGH: — every week, comparing it to what Elon Musk is spewing out, unfortunately, on X. There’s no—you sound like Bret Stephens—
MAHER: I don’t.
SCARBOROUGH: — with all due respect. It’s a joke. That’s a Real Time with Bill Maher joke.
MAHER: And you sound like him, who looks like Rachel Maddow.
[Crosstalk]
SCARBOROUGH: But you understand what I'm saying?
MAHER: I've never argued with that. I've never argued for a false equivalency. I just said there is misinformation from both sides. I lived through COVID, don't tell me there wasn't misinformation.
***
HBO Real Time with Bill Maher Overtime
10/18/2024
BILL MAHER: I mean, I kind of alluded to in the show, but I think the biggest hoax going is the idea that the Russia collusion was not a, was a, is a hoax. It's not a hoax.
MARK CUBAN: It's not.
MAHER: There was collusion just because Bob Mueller was bad at proving it. There is definitely collusion.
SCARBOROUGH: That, that, that's, that's one of the more maddening things. I still read the Wall Street Journal editorial page and the op-eds and, and it's sort of my go to in the morning and it's maddening to even see people on there talking about "Russia hoax" and you just want to say, read the Mueller report, read everything that's happened.
MAHER: Yeah.
SCARBOROUGH: Ask yourself why time and time again, Donald Trump's doing things that make no sense.
Why does he say in Helsinki in 2018 regarding Russia, I trust Vladimir Putin more than my own intel agencies? Why? As I always tell my kids, something doesn't make sense. There's a good reason it doesn't make it make sense.
MAHER: And it's more dangerous than even that because they use it as a jumping-off point. Like, "Well, since Russia was a hoax then" and it's like, but Russia wasn't a hoax, but once you get them to believe that Russia was a hoax, now, now anything goes.
