ABC’s Jon Karl interviewed Real Time host Bill Maher on occasion of his winning the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. The chat was convivial and even gleeful when Maher was critical of President Donald Trump. But things shifted when it came to the subject of ascendant socialism within the Democratic Party and the 2028 election.The interview kicked off with the prize itself, and with astonishment that attendance to the event was bipartisan. The subject quickly shifted to Karl’s favorite, Trump: reaction to Maher winning the Twain Prize, and to Maher’s dinner at The White House. Karl then moves to Maher’s interview with Vice President JD Vance wherein they discussed election integrity. Watch as Maher credits Vance for coming on, and then denounces the ascendancy of the socialist wing of the Democratic Party: WATCH: Bill Maher repeatedly denounces the rising socialist wing of the Democrat Party as ABC's Jon Karl tries to change the subject. In this case, Karl shifts to the Jay Clayton hearing and the 2020 electionBILL MAHER: No, that's what I love about those Republicans. The first… pic.twitter.com/p4iVjWJivn— Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) July 19, 2026 BILL MAHER: No, that's what I love about those Republicans. The first thing I said to him is, it's so odd, isn't it, that I didn't vote for you, and yet you guys come to the show and take your beating like a man. The Democrats don't come, and yet they got my vote. It's just odd, isn't it?JON KARL: Yeah, why is that? So what is that all about? I mean, by the way, you get some Democrats, but...MAHER: Democrats are cowardly, they're cowardly. Their party is being taken over now by, you know, every day I hear about a new very radical- I feel very good about, like, 10-whenever years ago, like, I did lose fans because, you know, I wasn't gonna go along with some of this crazy stuff on the left, too. I didn't change really on what I thought about the right, but just, I can't sit and just not notice stuff, which people seem to wanna do because it's all about my team or your team. But yeah, there's some crazy stuff, you know, when we're cheering for the Intifada, I gotta cut, I'm out.KARL: Well, I don't know if you saw it, Jay Clayton is nominated to be the head Director of National Intelligence…Karl didn’t just try to move Maher a bit on his criticism of Democrats. He changed the subject entirely- pivoting to DNI nominee Jay Clayton and the 2020 presidential election. Karl then engages Maher on his openness to Vance. Instead of engaging Maher, Karl shifts again: WATCH: Bill Maher states he'd vote for JD Vance over a socialist Democrat in 2028, Jon Karl diverts the conversation back to TrumpJON KARL: You told JD Vance you're open, your vote is up for grabs.BILL MAHER: Yes, my vote is in play because it can't be Trump running, so. I'm… pic.twitter.com/vYCwDG8oy1— Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) July 19, 2026 KARL: You told JD Vance you're open, your vote is up for grabs.MAHER: Yes, my vote is in play because it can't be Trump running, so. I'm not living in communist America. I mean, I know that the talking point is, it's not communism, it's socialism. Okay. I've read the quotes from the DSA.KARL: Yeah.MAHER: -- platform from their own mouths. Don't tell me I'm now seeing what I am seeing. And DSA, again, they say things like, you know, takeover of key industries, government take -- that's communism. You know, there is a definition.KARL: By the way, Trump's doing that, too.Karl didn’t show any interest in exploring why Maher is so repelled by the Democrat socialists- whether their hostility to the Constitution, to private property rights, free speech, or Israel. Karl simply nodded and took the easiest offramp: “But Trump.”After consoling themselves with more Trump criticism, Karl asks about the midterms. And although Maher expressed support for the Democrats, he pivoted back to Vance in 2028: WATCH: Despite generally backing the Democrats in the midterms, Bill Maher reiterates he'd back JD Vance over a DSA Dem in 2028. KARL: So you want to see Democrats win in the midterms?MAHER: Absolutely, and they will, because it will still be a referendum on Trump. So I think… pic.twitter.com/OYTrhp81CX— Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) July 19, 2026 JON KARL: So you want to see Democrats win in the midterms?BILL MAHER: Absolutely, and they will, because it will still be a referendum on Trump. So I think the Democrats will do very well in the midterms. 2028 is a different story because by then, this wing of the party, this new wing with all the energy, and it's not just a few people anymore. I read, every day I read about a new person in some Colorado and Wisconsin, somebody who is saying some variation of not defund the police- abolish the police. No prisons, no police, like what world do they think we could possibly live in under these conditions? It's just a level of nutty that I'm so glad that whenever it was I was like no, I'm not going along because this is where it ends.KARL: Could you see yourself voting for JD Vance?MAHER: Yes. if this is the Democratic side, yes.Here again, Karl shows no interest in exploring the why behind Maher’s response. In this case, he pivots to whether Maher has interviewed any of the potential 2028 candidates and whether he prefers any particular one. Maher demurs, and the on-air portion of the interview comes to an end.Throughout the interview Maher, a reliable liberal, sounded the alarm on the dangers of the socialist ascendancy with the Democratic Party. Unfortunately for Maher, Karl was only interested in retreating to the safe space of Trump-bashing. I hope I’m wrong, but this sure looks like a foreshadowing of what 2028 coverage will look like. Click “expand” to view the full transcript of the aforementioned interview as aired on ABC’s This Week with George Stephanopoulos on Sunday, July 19th, 2026:JONATHAN KARL: Comedian and talk show host Bill Maher has shown a willingness to call out hypocrisy on both sides of the aisle. He was recently awarded the nation's highest honor for comedy, the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor, from The Kennedy Center. I talked with Maher this week at his home in Los Angeles. Well, congratulations on winning the Mark Twain Award.BILL MAHER: Thank you.KARL: It seems like it's like the Nobel Prize for comedy.MAHER: There aren't a lot of awards for comedy and it's pretty overlooked, like in movies. But for- for what I do it's yes, the award, I think, to get. And again, there's not many for this particular brand of show business, so I was very grateful.KARL: Now, the White House reaction to the news that you were getting this award was really something. I mean -- I want to read it exactly. Karoline Levitt, the Press Secretary, "This is fake news. Bill Maher is not getting this reward." Steve Cheung, the Comms Director, "literally fake news." What was going on with that?MAHER: I don't know, but it was lovely to see him at the awards.KARL: I mean, it's not the first time --MAHER: Actually, there were a lot of Trump people at, you know, people in the administration. Pam Bondi came, you know, and I'm glad. But it was not a conservative crowd. It was- it was a mixed crowd. And they both liked me. So to me, that was like, there, boom. That's what I've been doing.KARL: But what do you think was going on? Because he controlled -- he's the chairman of the Kennedy Center, it was the board that chose you --MAHER: He was just mad at me because I went to his house for dinner with no guarantee that I would leave -- guarantee? It was never in the cards that I was ever going to come over to their -- his side. But you know, it was set up as rather than just screaming at each other, all these insults... You know, the first thing I did that you saw on the special, the page that he signed with the 56 different things he's called me. I love stuff like that. You know, it's better to just talk and go through this. But, you know, I mean, those people, they really have no argument for not doing it.KARL: Maher faced backlash after he talked about that March 2025 dinner at The White House on His HBO Show Real Time. MAHER: So meet up in person. Maybe it'll be different. Spoiler alert, it was.MAHER: I reported honestly that it- no, it wasn't a terrible experience at all. From a guy who has done some terrible things.KARL: Right, right. And he -- and then you kept on doing what you do on your show. You didn't change, you didn't become, you didn't become MAGA.MAHER: Thank you for noticing, Jon, because that's what the haters pretend didn't happen.KARL: I mean it did and then he starts, I think that some of his attacks on you after the dinner are harsher than the ones that were before the dinner.MAHER: Yes, because now he feels betrayed, which is silly because there was never a deal. It was only set up as, instead of shouting at each other, talk to each other.KARL: In Maher’s Club Random podcast studio, he has a framed list of all the ways Trump has insulted him, a list that he had the president sign. MAHER: Just the idea -- this many different ways, off the top of his head, over years!...KARL: And that list of 56, or whatever it is, insults. It would have to be longer now.MAHER: Exactly. There's an addendum. And it's available for $9.99. BillMaher.com. It’s on my website.KARL: Maher recently had Vice President JD Vance as a guest on Real Time. MAHER: Here's my deal breaker for your side, okay?JD VANCE: Okay.MAHER: Under Trump, you guys have two outcomes than an election can be. Either we win or they cheated…MAHER: This stuff that's going on now, as I said to the vice president, this [BLEEP] has to stop.KARL: Yeah. Yeah, you were specifically talking about this, like the sore loser syndrome. It's, the election is only, I won or you cheated, which is -- perfectly summarizes the way Trump is, has done this.MAHER: Thank you. Exactly, there's only two outcomes. I won, you cheated.KARL: And you, you, you pushed JD Vance on this, he did not ...MAHER: No, that's what I love about those Republicans. The first thing I said to him is, it's so odd, isn't it, that I didn't vote for you, and yet you guys come to the show and take your beating like a man. The Democrats don't come, and yet they got my vote. It's just odd, isn't it?KARL: Yeah, why is that? So what is that all about? I mean, by the way, you get some Democrats, but...MAHER: Democrats are cowardly, they're cowardly. Their party is being taken over now by, you know, every day I hear about a new very radical- I feel very good about, like, 10-whenever years ago, like, I did lose fans because, you know, I wasn't gonna go along with some of this crazy stuff on the left, too. I didn't change really on what I thought about the right, but just, I can't sit and just not notice stuff, which people seem to wanna do because it's all about my team or your team. But yeah, there's some crazy stuff, you know, when we're cheering for the Intifada, I gotta cut, I'm out.KARL: Well, I don't know if you saw it, Jay Clayton is nominated to be the head Director of National Intelligence, had a hearing, just had a hearing --MAHER: No, I’m on vacation…KARL: And he was asked, who won the 2020 election? Did Joe Biden win the 2020 election? And he can not answer. Now, Jay Clayton is a very serious guy with serious credentials, serious lawyer, former prosecutor, and he can't say who won the 2020 election.MAHER: Neither could Vice President Vance...KARL: On your show.MAHER: Yeah. They can't because they know he's watching. They know where their bread is buttered. What's important to JD Vance who, by the way, we had a good time. I had a good time with him, too. You know, these are people. I always say it. You know, everybody's a monster until you talk to them. You can disagree with them a lot. But, you know, he has to do that. Trump is watching. And there's a kind of a winking thing with those kind of guys. You know, it's like, you know he's crazy. I know he is crazy. I know you're saying this because you have to because he's watching. You know I know.KARL: Yeah, yeah.MAHER: And let's just not, like, pretend this is the end of the world because this is just what the world is. Now let's move on to something substantive.KARL: But it is a problem if you have an entire political party, an entire movement that doesn't recognize the legitimacy of elections.MAHER: Of course, it's been my big issue. From the beginning, before he was elected even the first time.KARL: You told JD Vance you're open, your vote is up for grabs.MAHER: Yes, my vote is in play because it can't be Trump running, so. I'm not living in communist America. I mean, I know that the talking point is, it's not communism, it's socialism. Okay. I've read the quotes from the DSA.KARL: Yeah.MAHER: -- platform from their own mouths. Don't tell me I'm now seeing what I am seeing. And DSA, again, they say things like, you know, takeover of key industries, government take -- that's communism. You know, there is a definition.KARL: By the way, Trump's doing that, too.MAHER: Of course. Yes.KARL: And, and, and, and to a degree that we haven't seen any other president, Democrat or Republican, do.MAHER: No -- that's crazy, too.KARL: He's got a piece of Intel.MAHER: Right.[CROSSTALK]KARL: -- a piece of the AI companies.MAHER: He treats everything like it's a real estate deal, or, I don't know, he's an agent or something and he always wants 10 or 15 percent.KARL: So you want to see Democrats win in the midterms?MAHER: Absolutely, and they will, because it will still be a referendum on Trump. So I think the Democrats will do very well in the midterms. 2028 is a different story because by then, this wing of the party, this new wing with all the energy, and it's not just a few people anymore. I read, every day I read about a new person in some Colorado and Wisconsin, somebody who is saying some variation of not defund the police- abolish the police. No prisons, no police, like what world do they think we could possibly live in under these conditions? It's just a level of nutty that I'm so glad that whenever it was I was like no, I'm not going along because this is where it ends.KARL: Could you see yourself voting for JD Vance?MAHER: Yes. if this is the Democratic side, yes.KARL: Now, you have interviewed several of the possible Democratic candidates for 2028. How do you assess? Who do you like?MAHER: Oh, I'm not going to... ruin future guests by telling you that, Jon? How ridiculous. They're all great.KARL: Especially the ones you haven't talked to yet. See, they got to come on the show.MAHER: I hope we can have an eight-person presidency next time because I can't pick between this crop of geniuses.No, there's some very talented people. And my problem is, like I told you, the people, a lot of people on the left won't come. Everybody on the right comes.KARL: All right. Our thanks to Bill Maher.