Comedian and talk show host Bill Maher pressed television personality and former clinical psychologist Dr. Phil McGraw on Friday about his participation in the Trump administration’s nationwide immigration raids.
Why It Matters
Dr. Phil, best known for his long-running daytime show, has become a vocal supporter of the Trump administration. He has appeared at campaign rallies, interviewed then-candidate Trump, and accompanied Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers during raids in cities like Chicago and Los Angeles since President Trump took office in January.
The administration has pledged to carry out the largest mass deportation effort in U.S. history. ICE operations have intensified in recent months, resulting in thousands of arrests and deportations nationwide.
What to Know
During HBO’s Real Time with Bill Maher, Maher questioned Dr. Phil’s decision to join the raids.
“Why are you going on these ICE raids? I don’t understand that,” Maher asked. “You’ve spent your career bringing families together, and now you’re participating in raids that are literally separating families. Explain that to me.”
Dr. Phil pushed back: “Well, now that’s bull****.”
Maher pressed further: “That’s not bull****… They’re not separating families?”
Dr. Phil compared ICE arrests to police arrests of U.S. citizens. “If you arrest somebody that’s a citizen who has committed a crime or is DUI’d with a child in the backseat, do you think they don’t separate that family right then, right there? Of course they do!”
Maher disagreed, saying, “But that’s not what’s going on.”
Dr. Phil then shifted the discussion to the risks ICE agents face, noting that many wear masks to avoid being “doxxed.” According to the Department of Homeland Security, ICE agents “are facing an 830 percent increase in assaults from January 21 to July 14 compared with the same period in 2024.”
Dr. Phil defended ICE agents, arguing they are enforcing the law, not making it. “They didn’t make that law. What are you expecting them to do, just not do their job? If you don’t like the law, change it. I don’t like that law, at all. Change the law!”
Maher then asked, “If you don’t like it, then why are you going?” The question drew applause from the audience. Dr. Phil responded simply: “Because that is the law.”
Over the summer, protests in Los Angeles over large-scale ICE operations escalated to the point that the National Guard and U.S. Marines were deployed. Dr. Phil was present during those raids with his media outlet, Merit TV. Earlier in the year, he also joined a ride-along with border czar Tom Homan during the Chicago raids.
What People Are Saying
Tricia McLaughlin, spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security, said in a statement to Newsweek:
“Under Secretary Noem, we are delivering on President Trump’s and the American people’s mandate to arrest and deport criminal illegal aliens to make America safe. Secretary Noem unleashed ICE to target the worst of the worst and carry out the largest deportation operation of criminal aliens in American history.”
The Department of Justice also told Newsweek: “The entire Trump administration is united in fully enforcing our nation’s immigration laws, and the DOJ continues to play an important role in vigorously defending the President’s deportation agenda in court.”
What Happens Next
Democratic leaders and human rights advocates have condemned the administration’s immigration policies, pointing to reports of poor conditions in detention centers. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem has defended the department, arguing for expanded detention capacity to keep up with the raids.
Operations are expected to continue as the administration pushes forward with deporting those living in the U.S. without legal documentation.
