Real Time with Bill Maher Ep. #728: Gov. Gavin Newsom, Gillian Tett, Bret Stephens
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May 2, 2026 
Gavin Newsom, California governor and presidential hopeful, discusses taxation, governance, and culture wars. Gillian Tett, anthropologist and Financial Times columnist, analyzes social media, conspiracies, and erosion of democratic trust. Bret Stephens, Pulitzer-winning columnist, tackles political violence, campus debate, and the Voting Rights Act. They explore radicalization, universities, and the online forces shaping civic life.
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Why A State Billionaire Tax Won't Work
- Gavin Newsom rejects a one-time California billionaire tax as counterproductive at the state level.
- He argues capital is mobile and calls for federal fixes like taxing stepped-up basis and capital gains as ordinary income.
Newsom's Childhood Shapes His Politics
- Gavin Newsom recounts his upbringing with a teenage single mom and a distant father to explain his personal motivations.
- He frames his memoir Young Men in a Hurry as an honest, unsanitized love letter to his mother and his mistakes.
Leadership Rhetoric Sets The Political Climate
- Newsom says political rhetoric from leaders shapes public tone and can normalize violence and sewer-level discourse.
- He contrasts presidential conduct with accountability and calls out corruption and grifting in Trump's circle.