Bill Maher challenged California Gov. Gavin Newsom on HBO’s “Real Time with Bill Maher” over the state’s long-delayed high-speed rail project and Newsom’s defamation case against Fox News, a dispute Newsom has urged the network to settle or publicly retract.
In an interview that aired on May 2, 2026, HBO host Bill Maher warned California Gov. Gavin Newsom that Republicans would highlight California’s cost-of-living and governance record if Newsom seeks the 2028 Democratic presidential nomination.
“The other side, what they are going to say though is, but have you seen the stats from California?” Maher said.
Newsom replied:
“Good! Fourth largest economy. Let’s go!”
Maher then pointed to issues such as gasoline prices, rents and other affordability concerns before turning to California’s high-speed rail effort.
“I mean the train! Gavin, you got to get rid of the train! I say this as a friend, you got to let that train go! Let the train go. It’s up to $231 billion,” Maher said.
The $231 billion figure has surfaced publicly in recent weeks in connection with the California High-Speed Rail Authority’s 2026 draft planning documents and subsequent reporting and commentary. However, the rail authority has disputed that the $231 billion number reflects its “published plan,” and coverage has also highlighted lower figures tied to more limited scopes or different assumptions.
The project was approved by voters in 2008, and early planning documents from that period put the San Francisco–Los Angeles/Anaheim system in the tens of billions of dollars in 2008 dollars. Over time, timelines and cost estimates have repeatedly shifted, and the authority’s recent materials and outside analyses continue to project service for the initial Central Valley operating segment in the early 2030s.
During the interview, Newsom argued that delays and escalating costs were driven in part by litigation and environmental issues, and he said construction was advancing, including track-laying work.
Maher also questioned Newsom about his legal fight with Fox News, suggesting the governor’s approach echoed President Donald Trump’s frequent attacks on and lawsuits against media organizations.
“Many people would say that you are imitating him,” Maher said.
Newsom responded:
“Fox better look to settle right now or apologize for defamation.”
Maher pressed the comparison, and Newsom replied:
“Well, don’t defame, don’t lie.”
Newsom filed a defamation lawsuit seeking $787 million from Fox News, a figure close to the amount the network paid to settle Dominion Voting Systems’ defamation case. In late April 2026, a Delaware judge allowed Newsom’s case to proceed past an early dismissal attempt, writing that it was “reasonably conceivable” the network acted with actual malice—an early, procedural threshold rather than a final finding on the merits.
