bill maher
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As the U.S. House of Representatives passes a bill to ban TikTok this week, Bill Maher wasted no time Friday to share his thoughts on the controversial issue.
At the beginning of the latest episode on HBO real timethe host joked during his monologue, “China, you know, you can manufacture all the other things we use, but our It’s our job to keep kids stupid.”
The bill, which passed in the House of Representatives by a vote of 352-65, would lead to a nationwide ban if China-based owner ByteDance does not sell the popular video app. Lawmakers have expressed concern that the company’s current ownership structure poses a national security threat. President Joe Biden has said he would sign the bill if Congress passes it, but the bill must first pass the Senate.
later real timeduring a discussion with Republican Rep. Nancy Mace and Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna, Maher brought up the topic again, saying he feels like there are bigger problems in this country at the moment than TikTok. said.
He also noted that while members of Congress “quite overwhelmingly” voted in favor of passing the bill, there were others like Mace, Khanna, Donald Trump, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene. Some politicians pointed out that they all had different positions. The political aisle — has spoken out against it.
“Please explain to me why the people who are against the bill and against signing it are saying, ‘No, we can keep TikTok in Chinese.’ What’s the common ground there?” Maher asked.
“The common ground is the First Amendment of free speech,” Khanna responded. “So, of all the problems in this country, it shows how out of touch Congress is, but the one thing we can end in three days is banning TikTok. Is that the problem?
He added that Congress should consider passing a “data privacy law” instead.
Mace agreed, saying, “This is a First Amendment issue. I think it’s potentially a Fifth Amendment issue. It’s the government’s role to ban apps from app stores and websites. isn’t it.”
Maher agreed he was a “free speech man,” but then said there was a bigger issue Congress should focus on: artificial intelligence.
“I’m very worried about AI,” the host said. “I mean, I heard what you said. [Khanna] This week, tell me you think this country’s first billionaire will be an AI entrepreneur. To me, the only thing scarier than this is a billionaire and an idea coming from an AI. By the way, the U.S. State Department said this week about the worst-case scenario: [AI] It poses an extinction-level threat to humanity. ”
Maher continued: It’s like an arms race and we are the guinea pigs. And shouldn’t the tech fraternity be made to work out the bugs before unleashing them on humanity? Slightly? “
Protections for the use of artificial intelligence also emerged as a major issue during last year’s writers’ and actors’ strike. And there’s been a lot of talk about the threat it poses to jobs, not just in Hollywood but in other industries as well.
Former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder also appeared as a guest. real time During a one-on-one interview on Friday.
