It was perfect because he clearly wasn’t expecting this.
This week on Bill Maher’s latest episode of his Club Random podcast, he got a stunning reality check on President Trump’s immigration policy from a very unlikely guest.
Psychiatrist Dr. Daniel Amen had just told the story of how his father, an immigrant from Lebanon, came to America and eventually became chairman of a multi-billion-dollar company, Unified Grocers.
Maher had started by praising the kind of immigrant story Amen had just described. But, out of nowhere, he quickly turned it into a criticism of President Trump’s immigration policies.
MAHER: “This what is awesome about America that we are flirting with ruining. We attract the best, smartest, most ambitious people from everywhere.”
“This was always our secret sauce, and you know who, is with this…”
“You know, we did need to close the border but—”
That “but” is where Amen jumped in.
Instead of allowing the conversation to become another argument about Trump destroying America’s tradition of immigration, Amen asked Maher to consider why the administration had taken such a hard line on the border in the first place.
AMEN: “You don’t think he’s messing with it in a reaction to the insanity? Of open borders?”
MAHER: “Yes, totally.”
“Closing the border is something we needed to do. I totally give him credit for that. Then they went…”
And then, almost as quickly as he had started the argument, Maher backed away from it.
“Okay, we don’t have to get into that.”
[Dr. Amen chuckles]
“What I’m saying is like people like your father always…you know…that is why I still believe in this country so much.”
That was the moment.
You could tell Maher was ready to take the conversation somewhere else, but Amen clearly wasn’t going to let him frame Trump’s border policy that way.
Amen wasn’t willing to allow his own father’s story be used as an argument against securing the border.
Maher knew he didn’t have the cards, and he had no other choice but to fold.
Suddenly, it was evident that Amen had just forced Maher to agree with one of Trump’s biggest immigration arguments before trying to move on.
