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00:04From the most trusted journalists at Comedy Central, it's America's only source for news.
00:11This is The Daily Show with your host, Jordan Klepper.
00:27Welcome to The Daily Show.
00:28I'm Jordan Klepper.
00:29We got so much to talk about tonight.
00:31Trump tells Canada, you shall not pass.
00:34China will let you know when you're dead.
00:35And if downplaying international sex rings were an Olympic sport, Pam Bondi would take
00:40home the gold.
00:41So, let's get into the headlines.
00:47You know what?
00:48Let's kick things off with something uplifting.
00:51The Winter Olympics are underway.
00:52And if there's one thing I love, it's those post-victory interviews where medal winners
00:57from around the world just radiate pure joy.
01:01I can't get enough of it.
01:03Congratulations so much on Olympic bronze.
01:05How are you?
01:08It's been the worst week of my life.
01:16Okay.
01:17A little less joy than I expected.
01:19Uh, that was Norway's Sturla Homelagarde, who won bronze in the biathlon.
01:25But he got a bronze.
01:26I mean, I know it's not gold, but it's still bronze.
01:30So, why is he so upset?
01:34Half a year ago, I met the love of my life.
01:37The world's most beautiful, finest person.
01:41And three months ago, I made my biggest mistake, which was cheating on her.
01:50Okay, uh, not how I would have celebrated in a post-game interview.
01:57I would have gone with a thank you, mom and dad, or a thank you, God.
02:02But, you know, instead you went with, guess what, world?
02:05I can't keep it in my pants.
02:08Buddy, buddy, there are other ways of dealing with your guilt.
02:11How about, I don't know, flowers, an edible arrangement,
02:15or burying the shame deep inside you and letting it fester
02:18until it explodes in a public meltdown in the freezer section of Trader Joe's?
02:23I need a pizza for one because I ruined the best thing that ever happened to me!
02:28And by the way, if I was listening closely,
02:31did I hear that right that you met her six months ago?
02:35I mean, you guys weren't even dating long enough to fart in front of each other.
02:40You were still in that honeymoon phase where you pretend you need something in the other room
02:44and go fart there.
02:48You know what? You know what?
02:49If repairing your six-month situationship is that important,
02:53I guess it's fine to hijack the news cycle to talk about it.
02:56I'm sure your teammate, who won the gold, had nothing more important to draw attention to.
03:01And it was an emotional win for Norway's Johan Olegbotten in the men's 20-kilometer individual biathlon.
03:07The Norwegian dedicated it to his late teammates, who died unexpectedly in December.
03:13Oh, right! Our dead teammates!
03:16I was between honoring him or talking about how much pussy I was getting.
03:26Dude! Come on!
03:28You hijacked that to try to win back your fling?
03:31This is basically like if instead of interrupting Taylor Swift,
03:35Kanye had interrupted the In Memoriam segment.
03:39You know what? You know what?
03:41Love is a rocky road sometimes.
03:43And if this big display helped our boy get his girl back, it was all worth it.
03:48Well, speaking to a Norwegian tabloid,
03:50the former girlfriend says it's hard to forgive what he did
03:53and that she did not appreciate him making their private issue so public.
03:59Ah.
04:02Shit.
04:05Well, you know what?
04:06Look at the bright side.
04:07You didn't get your girlfriend back,
04:09but every woman you date from now on knows you can't go three months without cheating.
04:15I mean, no things aren't going well for you
04:17when even Lindsey Vonn is like,
04:19this guy's having a bad week.
04:22I mean, what a mess!
04:24This is why I'm always saying we need to keep men out of men's sports.
04:29You don't see the women's teams having this much drama.
04:32In the women's 15K individual biathlon,
04:35the gold goes to Julia Simone of France.
04:38Last fall, she was found guilty by a French court of theft and credit card fraud
04:43and given a three-month suspended prison sentence
04:46after stealing the credit card numbers of a teammate.
04:49What?
04:50What?
04:51What?
04:52What?
04:53What is it about this sport where you voluntarily freeze your genitals off
04:57and spandex and shoot guns that attracts so many lunatics?
05:02And, you know, and to be fair to her, it's not right to steal,
05:06but what do you think skiing with a gun even pays these days?
05:10You know, nobody's hiring.
05:12She probably gets one or two contracts a year to kill James Bond,
05:15but that barely covers rent, you know?
05:20Moving on to something else going downhill, America.
05:24Today, Congress heard testimony from Pam Bondi,
05:27attorney general and woman who stresses everyone out at book club,
05:31but it's not worth uninviting her because that'll become a whole thing.
05:37Congress had a lot of serious questions for her
05:40about everything from ICE to Epstein,
05:42and I'm sure she handled them with the grace and maturity
05:45we have come to expect from the Trump administration.
05:48Are you kidding?
05:49I'm going to answer the question the way I want to answer the question.
05:52She's not going to get in the gutter for her theatrics.
05:54Can I finish, please?
05:56I'm not being rude, please.
05:57I only have...
05:57She doesn't say how much money she took from Reid Hoffman, did you?
06:00You don't tell me anything washed up.
06:02Yeah, oh, I did tell you because we saw what you did in the Senate.
06:04You're a lawyer, not even a lawyer.
06:06You're a failed politician, hypocrite.
06:08Shame on you.
06:10You don't get to reclaim your time.
06:11Your time is up.
06:12This is so ridiculous.
06:15Wow.
06:17I mean, you could do something like that in Congress,
06:19but when I do it in a Chili's, I get banned for life?
06:26To be fair, though, you'd be in a bad mood, too,
06:28if you'd spent the last month redacting images
06:31of old man generals from the Epstein files.
06:34Allegedly.
06:35Now, keep in mind,
06:36this is not how these hearings traditionally go.
06:38The attorney general used to carry
06:40some level of seriousness and gravitas.
06:43It's only recently that they'd spend a congressional hearing
06:45acting like a bratty senior
06:47who got called into the principal's office.
06:50Suck my d***, Principal Gilbert.
06:52I already got to ASU.
06:53You can eat it.
06:57Now, look, look.
06:58Her performance upset a lot of people
07:00because they were hoping for justice
07:02for Jeffrey Epstein's victims.
07:04But for Pam Bondi,
07:05there's only one victim in all of this.
07:08Have you apologized to President Trump?
07:10Have you apologized to President Trump?
07:13All of you.
07:14I find it interesting that she keeps going after President Trump,
07:17the greatest president in American history.
07:19You sit here and you attack the president,
07:22and I am not going to have it.
07:24He is the most transparent president
07:26in the nation's history.
07:29Donald Trump,
07:31the Dow,
07:32the Dow right now
07:33is over...
07:35the Dow is over $50,000.
07:37I don't know why you're laughing.
07:39Hold on.
07:40Oh, okay.
07:40Hold on.
07:42Come, you know,
07:42if you're going to embarrass yourself
07:44on national television like that,
07:45at least win a bronze medal first.
07:52Have you no dignity?
07:54No dignity.
07:56You know, there is some good news for Donald Trump,
07:58and it comes right out of my own home state of Michigan,
08:01where the state motto is,
08:03Welcome to Michigan.
08:04We're sorry about Kid Rock.
08:08For decades now,
08:10the only bridge between Canada and Detroit
08:12has been the Ambassador Bridge.
08:13But in Trump's first term,
08:15Canada started construction on the Gordie Howe Bridge.
08:18And Trump was so excited about it
08:19that he even got a little poetic.
08:21America is deeply fortunate
08:23to have a neighbor like Canada.
08:26We have before us the opportunity
08:28to build even more bridges
08:30and bridges of cooperation
08:32and bridges of commerce.
08:35Wow.
08:36Wow.
08:37Remember when he used to pretend to try?
08:42At the time, we were like,
08:44look at him phoning in diplomacy.
08:46Now we're like,
08:47dear God,
08:47please phone in some diplomacy.
08:50Anyway,
08:51the point is,
08:52the bridge is almost complete,
08:53which will soon open up a public crossing
08:55that will enrich both our nations.
08:57Trump must be so excited
08:59for this new era of U.S.-Canadian friendship.
09:02This morning,
09:03President Trump threatening to block
09:04the opening of a brand new bridge
09:05between Canada and the U.S.
09:07I will not allow this bridge to open
09:09until the United States is fully compensated
09:11for everything we have given them.
09:15Or friendship.
09:19After all,
09:19what has friendship ever done for Trump
09:21other than associate him
09:22with the world's largest sex trafficking ring?
09:31Still,
09:32still,
09:32Mr. President,
09:33this bridge is a win-win.
09:35Canada is paying for all of it,
09:36and they're going to share ownership
09:38with Michigan.
09:38We get a public bridge
09:40instead of having to pay tolls
09:41to the billionaire owner
09:42of the Ambassador Bridge.
09:44Why would the president oppose that?
09:46The owner of the older Ambassador Bridge,
09:49Matthew Maroon,
09:50lobbied the Trump administration
09:51on the same day
09:53the president unleashed his tirade
09:55about the Gordy House ban.
09:58Oh,
09:59I see.
10:00You were for it.
10:02Then one of your donors called you,
10:03and you immediately turned against it.
10:06I mean,
10:06say what you want about Trump.
10:08He is always transparent
10:09with his corruption.
10:11You never have to
10:12follow the money with him,
10:14you know?
10:14The money is like,
10:15I'm going to Donald Trump,
10:17I'll drop you a pin.
10:18Well done,
10:19Mr. Jordan.
10:21Looks like he solved me riddle.
10:23I,
10:24I,
10:24wait,
10:25who said that?
10:27Tis I,
10:28the troll of the Gordy House Bridge.
10:32It seemed you solved the riddle
10:34of the bridge dispute.
10:36Give Trump a bribe,
10:37and you'll have your root.
10:40Uh,
10:41yeah,
10:42it wasn't that hard.
10:44The answer with Trump is
10:45probably always a bribe.
10:47But if true,
10:49puzzle master ye be,
10:51then see if ye can answer
10:53these riddle three.
10:55Yeah,
10:55I'm sorry,
10:56I actually have a show to do.
10:57Riddle one.
10:58Okay.
11:00If two companies
11:02want profits to search,
11:04they'll need this
11:05in order to merge.
11:08If two companies
11:09want to merge,
11:10I'm guessing you
11:11try to give Trump a bribe?
11:16Aren't you clever?
11:18No,
11:19no,
11:19I'm not.
11:20The answer is just
11:21always going to be...
11:21Riddle number two.
11:22Okay.
11:24If thou desirest
11:26an ocean for drilling,
11:28only this
11:29will make Trump willing.
11:31Uh,
11:32again,
11:32I'm going to guess a bribe.
11:34What?
11:34Where are you getting
11:35these answers from?
11:36Did you hack my laptop?
11:41Bridge trolls
11:42have laptops?
11:43Yes.
11:44And the password
11:46is impenetrable.
11:48Is the password bribe?
11:57Riddle number three.
12:01If a 20-year
12:02sex trafficking sentence
12:04ye face,
12:07with this,
12:08your punishment
12:09may be erased.
12:10Oh,
12:11wow,
12:11yeah,
12:11you know,
12:12this is a tough one.
12:13Oh,
12:14I've got you now,
12:16mister.
12:16Is it a bribe?
12:18Motherfucker.
12:19I'm sorry.
12:25I'm sorry.
12:29Troll.
12:29Troll.
12:30Trump is just
12:31not that complicated.
12:32It always comes down
12:33to a bribe.
12:34Why are you even
12:35guarding a bridge anyway?
12:37Because
12:37I tried to bribe
12:39Trump by buying
12:40his crypto,
12:41but then it crashed
12:42and I lost everything.
12:44So,
12:45I live here now.
12:46Oh.
12:47I'm,
12:48you know,
12:48I'm sorry.
12:49That's,
12:49that's very sad.
12:50I know.
12:51I just,
12:52like,
12:53honestly,
12:54I could really
12:55use a place to stay
12:56until I,
12:56like,
12:57get back up
12:57on my feet.
13:05Well,
13:06good luck to you.
13:06Um,
13:08I guess we're done here.
13:09Not just yet.
13:10If you wish
13:11to end your bout,
13:13permit me to crush
13:14on your couch.
13:15I mean,
13:16we're not even rhyming now.
13:17You know,
13:17it rhymes count.
13:19Gordie Howe Bridge Troll,
13:20everyone.
13:21We'll come back,
13:22we'll find out
13:23what other countries
13:24have wrong with them.
13:25Don't go away.
13:44Welcome back to The Daily Show.
13:45Contrary to what they teach
13:47in Texas schools,
13:48America is not
13:49the only country
13:50in the world.
13:51For more,
13:52we go to our senior
13:53international correspondent,
13:54Troy Iwata,
13:55in his new segment,
13:56So Not Our Problem.
14:07The world is always
14:08ragging on America
14:10these days.
14:10Like,
14:10your president sucks,
14:12your economy is just AI,
14:13you're all dying of measles.
14:16Like,
14:17we get it.
14:18We get it.
14:18We're not perfect.
14:19We know we have problems,
14:21but guess what?
14:22The rest of the world
14:23has got issues, too.
14:24K?
14:25All right.
14:26For instance,
14:27China,
14:28with your fancy solar panels
14:29and your fast trains
14:30and your sneezing pandas
14:33falling down,
14:34you know China.
14:35You've got problems.
14:37Check this out.
14:38Condoms and birth control pills
14:40just got more expensive
14:41in China.
14:42The change is part
14:43of a push
14:43from China's government
14:45to reverse the country's
14:46falling birth rate
14:47and encourage more couples
14:49to have children.
14:53Okay, first of all,
14:54why would you pay for condoms?
14:56Just go outside.
14:57They're on the ground.
15:00But, like,
15:01ha-ha, China,
15:02you've got falling birth rates.
15:03And I know,
15:04I know you're gonna say,
15:05hey, Americans,
15:06don't you also have
15:07falling birth rates?
15:08Yeah,
15:08but we find ways
15:09to embrace them.
15:10Like,
15:11like,
15:11becoming Disney adults.
15:13Okay?
15:14It's like,
15:15we don't need kids.
15:17We are kids.
15:21Also,
15:21who does this condom text
15:23target exactly?
15:24Someone's like,
15:24I want to have sex,
15:26but I'm a cheapskate,
15:27so I guess I'll just
15:28have a baby?
15:29Okay?
15:33Like,
15:33if China really wants
15:34to put condoms
15:35out of reach,
15:36they should put them
15:36on the top shelf.
15:40Oh,
15:41actually,
15:42yeah,
15:43no,
15:43no.
15:45Really,
15:45though,
15:45their overall health
15:46has improved,
15:46so they are getting taller,
15:47but,
15:49you know,
15:50you know what else
15:51they're getting?
15:51Lonelier.
15:52There's a new app
15:53in China
15:54that's making headlines,
15:55Are You Dead?
15:57Skyrocketing
15:57to the number one
15:58paid app spot,
15:59it's a, quote,
16:00safety tool
16:01crafted for solo dwellers,
16:02aka people living alone
16:04to let their loved ones
16:06know that they're alive.
16:07Users have to hit
16:08a big green button
16:10once a day,
16:10and if you fail to do it
16:12two days in a row,
16:13it reaches out
16:14to your emergency contact.
16:18Okay, wait,
16:19so first of all,
16:20this is a paid app?
16:23So after the free trial,
16:25I have to, like,
16:25watch an ad for DraftKings
16:26before finding out
16:27if my grandma's dead?
16:31Okay,
16:32so, like,
16:32doing it through an app
16:33is so impersonal.
16:34Like, just do what I do.
16:35I text my mom,
16:36are you dead?
16:37And she always says no,
16:39and then I respond,
16:40how about now?
16:42Like,
16:43it's this cute little thing
16:44that we do,
16:44and although she hasn't
16:45texted me back in two days,
16:47so miss you, old gal.
16:49But,
16:50see,
16:50this is like the Uber Eats
16:52of wellness checks.
16:53It's like,
16:53hey,
16:54do I smell rotting flesh?
16:55I could get up
16:56from the couch,
16:57or I can check
16:58the old dead neighbor app.
17:02Sorry about that,
17:03China,
17:03but that is
17:04so not a problem.
17:14And,
17:15do you think
17:15we forgot about you,
17:16England?
17:17Yeah,
17:18maybe we don't have
17:18health care like you do,
17:19and we did end up
17:21with a king after all,
17:22but,
17:23at least this
17:24didn't happen to us.
17:26An English beach
17:27has been covered
17:27in French fries
17:28after a cargo ship spill.
17:30Thousands of spuds
17:32and other veggies
17:32have washed up,
17:33tumbling off
17:34a container ship
17:35in a storm,
17:36and it could take years
17:38to clean it up.
17:39What?
17:42French fries go in your mouth,
17:43not the sea.
17:45Also,
17:46it's gonna take years
17:47to clean this up?
17:48Just get a group
17:49of girlfriends together
17:50who will be like,
17:51hold on,
17:51should we be bad
17:53and eat all these
17:53ocean fries?
17:56They'll have the beach
17:57cleaned up in an hour.
17:58This is,
17:59this is what British people
18:00get for not seasoning
18:01their food, okay?
18:03Food deserves better.
18:05Frankly,
18:05I'm not convinced
18:06those French fries
18:06didn't just kill themselves.
18:08So,
18:09sorry, Brits,
18:10maybe we're clogging
18:11our arteries with French fries,
18:12but you're clogging
18:13the channel with them.
18:14And that,
18:15that is
18:16so-na-na-da-da-da-da.
18:26Guten Tag, Germany.
18:27You think you're better
18:28than us
18:29because you have,
18:30what,
18:30accordions
18:31and giant pretzels?
18:32It's not like
18:33you don't have
18:33your own weird shit
18:34going on.
18:36Cyborg cockroaches
18:37ready for the battlefield.
18:38Sci-fi?
18:39Fantasy?
18:40Absolutely not.
18:41Swarm Biotactics
18:43in Central Germany
18:44is working
18:45with the Bundeswehr
18:46to develop technology
18:47that can steer
18:48the creepy critters
18:49autonomously
18:50and send them
18:51on reconnaissance missions.
18:54Jesus Christ.
18:57Cockroaches
18:58in the military?
18:59Can you imagine?
19:00Wait,
19:00so now instead of screaming
19:01when I see a cockroach,
19:02I have to say
19:03thank you for your service?
19:07Let me guess.
19:08Let me guess.
19:09They get to board
19:10the plane
19:10before everyone else, too.
19:13You know,
19:14if they get 10% off
19:15at Carvel,
19:15I'm going to
19:15f***ing lose it.
19:18But hey,
19:18as long as this isn't
19:19part of a larger
19:20trend in Germany.
19:22Germany's new chancellor
19:23has vowed
19:24to build
19:24the strongest army
19:25in Europe.
19:26Germany wants
19:27to recruit
19:27an estimated
19:2880,000 more
19:29active soldiers
19:30in the upcoming years.
19:31Deutschland!
19:33Deutschland!
19:34Deutschland!
19:35The world
19:36hasn't heard
19:36Germany assert itself
19:38like this
19:38since World War II.
19:42Yes!
19:44Germany's rebuilding
19:45its military
19:45for the first time
19:46since World War II.
19:48And that's okay
19:49because it's...
19:50Actually,
19:51maybe that is
19:51everyone's problem.
19:59when we come back,
20:01Andrew Jarecki
20:01will be joining
20:02by the show.
20:02Don't go away.
20:15Welcome back
20:15to The Daily Show.
20:16My guest tonight
20:17is an award-winning
20:18filmmaker whose
20:19latest documentary,
20:20The Alabama Solution,
20:21is currently nominated
20:22for an Oscar.
20:23How long
20:24you been here?
20:25How long
20:25you been here?
20:2630 years, man.
20:30How long
20:30they been paying you?
20:3330 years.
20:34Working there
20:34for free.
20:36They cover up
20:38all
20:38the real
20:39addiction.
20:41Man,
20:42he's helped
20:43for real,
20:43for real.
20:44Addiction is real.
20:47And
20:47the atrocities
20:49and the corruption.
20:50Look at this.
20:53The riot game.
20:54They just be supposed to.
20:57Please welcome
20:58Andrew Jarecki.
21:14First of all,
21:16congratulations
21:17on the Academy Award
21:19nomination.
21:20Do you think
21:20you would have
21:20gotten that
21:21if Melania
21:21was in the category?
21:24I considered
21:25doing that,
21:25but I was actually
21:26just too busy
21:26with the Alabama thing.
21:27But I'm going to
21:28try to go back
21:28for part two.
21:30For part two,
21:30yes, yes.
21:31I'm sure Melania
21:31would take all
21:32of the attention
21:33she should get.
21:33So, yeah, yeah.
21:34Think about it.
21:35This movie is,
21:37it is harrowing.
21:38But this isn't
21:39the movie you started
21:39out thinking
21:40you were going to make.
21:40Is that right?
21:42I mean,
21:42I knew that
21:43there were problems
21:43in the Alabama
21:44state prison system.
21:45Yeah.
21:46I knew that
21:46I wasn't going
21:47to be able
21:48to get in there
21:49because it's such
21:49a secretive system
21:50as a lot of prisons
21:51are in the U.S.
21:53And then we sort
21:54of miraculously
21:55got access
21:56to one of the prisons
21:57to go in
21:58and film a revival meeting.
22:00And we saw
22:00this kind of
22:01beautiful meeting,
22:02but the understory
22:04was that there were
22:05really terrible things
22:06happening in the prison.
22:06And the men inside
22:07said to us,
22:09the stuff they're
22:10showing you here
22:10is not real.
22:11This is curated.
22:12You need to know
22:13what's going on
22:13in that building over there.
22:14You need to know
22:15what's going on
22:15in that bunker over there.
22:17And then when we
22:18sort of got kicked out,
22:19which you see
22:20in the beginning
22:20of the film
22:21because we got too nosy,
22:22we discovered
22:23that there were
22:24these men inside
22:24who had contraband
22:26cell phones
22:27and were incredible leaders
22:28and had been running
22:30sort of a nonviolent
22:31protest effort
22:32to try to get the word out.
22:34And so we began
22:35a collaboration
22:36with them in a way.
22:37And it really ended up
22:38being this like
22:39seven-year journey.
22:41So you're essentially,
22:42as you're making this film,
22:43you're communicating
22:43with them.
22:44When we're watching
22:45a lot of this FaceTime
22:46with what's going on,
22:47essentially,
22:47they're almost
22:48citizen journalists
22:49reporting on what's
22:50happening inside the prison
22:51as you're communicating
22:52with them.
22:53Was there,
22:54like, how are you
22:54navigating that
22:55as a filmmaker
22:56knowing that these
22:57are people on the inside
22:58who could be
22:58in a lot of trouble
22:59if they're found
23:00to be recording
23:00what's going on?
23:01Well, they've been
23:02doing this kind
23:03of activism
23:03and this kind
23:04of sort of
23:04outspoken truth-telling
23:07for a long time.
23:08And we were
23:09an opportunity,
23:10I think,
23:10for them to get
23:11the story
23:12to have a bigger platform.
23:13And they really are
23:15struggling
23:16to try to survive.
23:18And so the idea
23:18of getting the word out
23:19was important.
23:20Also, they really believe
23:21in the power of journalism.
23:23They really believe
23:23in the power
23:24of the fourth estate.
23:26And so, you know,
23:26the audience is,
23:28for them,
23:29the only way out
23:30is to have people
23:31understand
23:32what's happening to them.
23:33It's remarkable,
23:33the images you see.
23:34You see people addicted
23:35to drugs
23:36and the way in which
23:37they're treated there.
23:38There's a murder
23:39that takes place
23:40that they're essentially
23:41tracking the entire time.
23:43But specifically,
23:44the role of the phone
23:46is so important
23:47as a witness.
23:49What did you notice
23:50what the phone
23:51brought to it?
23:52Well, the phones
23:53were sort of introduced
23:55into the Alabama
23:56state prison system
23:56around 2013.
23:58And the men
23:59instantly realized
24:01that if they wanted
24:02to get the story out,
24:03they were going to have
24:03to use these phones
24:04to do it.
24:05And they were also
24:05going to be able
24:06to use the phones
24:06to communicate
24:07with their children
24:08and their loved ones.
24:08Are they supposed
24:08to have phones in there?
24:10Oh, no,
24:10they are not supposed
24:11to have phones in there.
24:11So how are they getting
24:12these phones?
24:13The guards are selling
24:14them the phones.
24:15I mean, clearly,
24:15you know,
24:16I've spoken to guards
24:16who said,
24:18well, you know,
24:19I make like $36,000
24:21a year without the phones,
24:23but I make like $70,000
24:24a year with the phones,
24:26so the phones
24:26aren't going anywhere.
24:27Yeah.
24:28That's even part
24:28of the argument
24:29inside as well, right?
24:30A lot of the drugs,
24:31there are people
24:32trying to kick
24:32the drug habit
24:33and guards are selling drugs
24:34because they're getting
24:35more money there.
24:36You know,
24:36the Alabama Department
24:37of Corrections
24:38is the biggest
24:38law enforcement agency
24:40in the state,
24:41and it's also
24:42the biggest drug
24:43dealing operation
24:44in the state.
24:46Bonkers.
24:47Bonkers.
24:47So you do this film,
24:48and it is remarkable
24:50and harrowing,
24:51but so much of this,
24:54you're rooting
24:55for accountability
24:55and exposing this,
24:57and I was telling you
24:58backstage a little bit
24:59as well,
24:59what resonated so much
25:00with me in seeing this,
25:02a lot of these things
25:02I'd never imagined,
25:03and you can imagine
25:04pretty horrific things
25:05happening inside a prison
25:07that you never hear or see,
25:08but it goes beyond that,
25:09and you're rooting
25:10for accountability,
25:11and it echoes
25:11so many things we see
25:12today in the news
25:13that we watch today
25:14where you're rooting
25:15for accountability
25:15and you're just not seeing
25:17that kind of accountability.
25:18Yeah.
25:19But then you're putting it out,
25:20and it's been out for,
25:22since August,
25:23is that correct?
25:23Well, it was at Sundance
25:24last year,
25:27and then it just came out
25:29on HBO in October,
25:31so it's been out
25:32in sort of in front
25:32of the public,
25:33but now you can see it
25:34on airplanes and things,
25:35so it's just getting
25:36more into people's consciousness.
25:37But many of these people
25:38are still in prison.
25:39Yeah.
25:40Yeah, and what has happened
25:41since then,
25:42now that what they have
25:43been doing,
25:45what they've been filming
25:46has now sort of been outed?
25:47What has happened?
25:49You know, the men
25:49who are in prison
25:50and the people
25:51who are depicted
25:52in our film
25:52are so extraordinary,
25:55and one of the things
25:56that is so difficult
25:58about people being in prison
26:00and us not being able
26:01to see in
26:02is that you can't see
26:04the brutality,
26:04you can't see
26:05the terrible things
26:06that are happening,
26:06but you also can't see
26:07the beauty in these men.
26:08And these are guys
26:09who have been locked up
26:10for decades for crimes
26:12they probably never
26:13should have been locked up
26:14for before to start with.
26:16And so we have this opportunity
26:19to see inside
26:20in a way that is completely unique.
26:23And a lot of people
26:23are just saying to me
26:24when they see the film
26:25or to Charlotte,
26:26my co-director,
26:27she, you know,
26:28they'll say,
26:29this is kind of the first time
26:30I ever feel like
26:32I was in a conversation
26:33with an incarcerated person.
26:36Like, just being able
26:37to talk to those people
26:38and there's so much propaganda.
26:39And of course,
26:40there are people in prison
26:41who are Jeffrey Dahmer
26:42and maybe not redeemable
26:43or mentally ill,
26:45but there are so many people
26:46in prison
26:47who have just been there
26:47for decades
26:48when they committed a crime
26:50when they were 18.
26:51And now they're
26:52an ordained minister
26:53and they're, you know,
26:55have a college degree
26:56from being in prison.
26:57You know, so it's a loss of humanity.
27:00It's a really frightening thing.
27:03But you're seeing it now
27:04in our daily lives.
27:06You know, what was happening
27:07in Minneapolis
27:08and the way that Alex Preddy
27:10was really murdered
27:10for having a cell phone,
27:13for using a cell phone
27:13and that Christy Noem
27:15had to come out and say
27:16that he was brandishing a weapon.
27:18And this is exactly
27:20what these men are doing
27:21and it's exactly
27:21what any authoritarian organization,
27:24the U.S. government,
27:26the Alabama state prison system,
27:28thinks is that
27:29if somebody brings
27:29the light of journalism,
27:32it's going to be a problem
27:33and it needs to be eliminated
27:34because it's a weapon
27:35and it prevents them
27:36from doing what they would
27:37otherwise do.
27:38So these men are kind of
27:39really freedom fighters.
27:41We just don't get to see them.
27:42We don't get to know them.
27:43And there's a lot of propaganda
27:44to say,
27:45don't even talk to those guys.
27:46You know,
27:46when we first went into
27:47that very first prison,
27:48you see,
27:49the warden said to us,
27:50look,
27:51you can talk to that guy
27:52and that guy.
27:52You can't go over there
27:53and you can't go over there.
27:55And, you know,
27:56I said,
27:56why can't we talk to anybody?
27:57And he said,
27:57oh,
27:58they're very dangerous.
27:59You don't want to talk
27:59to these men.
28:00And when we went in,
28:02I always felt so much
28:02more comfortable
28:03talking to the men
28:04who were incarcerated
28:05than the guards.
28:06I was much more comfortable
28:07with the men, right?
28:08And they're just trying
28:09to tell you their story.
28:10Have any of these men
28:11been punished
28:11for appearing in the film?
28:13I wouldn't say
28:14for appearing in the film,
28:15but for their activism
28:16throughout time,
28:17you'll see in the film,
28:19they're regularly
28:20retaliated against.
28:21And most recently,
28:23you know,
28:24the film was out
28:24for like a year
28:25and then they hadn't
28:28been retaliated against.
28:30And then they announced
28:31or their supporters
28:32announced a work strike.
28:33And that's very,
28:35very problematic
28:36for Alabama.
28:37They get $450 million
28:38a year in unpaid labor.
28:41$450 million a year.
28:43Is that right?
28:44Yeah.
28:44And it's really forced labor,
28:46right?
28:46Because you can say,
28:47well, I don't feel
28:48like working today.
28:49And they can put you
28:50in solitary confinement.
28:51They regularly do that.
28:52They will regularly
28:54essentially extend
28:55your sentence
28:56by giving you
28:57disciplinaries.
28:58So, you know,
28:59they'll put you
29:00in an institution
29:01where you can be
29:01beaten to death
29:02as Stephen Davis
29:03was in our film.
29:05And so it's not
29:06very different than
29:08what we saw
29:09in the earlier days
29:10in America.
29:10You know,
29:10there's not a lot of,
29:11not a lot of difference
29:13between this
29:14and convict leasing
29:15or anything like that.
29:16I mean,
29:16I think that's also
29:17what's haunting there
29:18is you're rooting
29:19for people to find
29:20a path on the way out,
29:21this idea of rehabilitation.
29:22And you see images
29:23of people working
29:24outside of the prison system
29:25for no pay
29:27with an idea
29:28that perhaps
29:28this is a path
29:29towards reentering society.
29:32Although your film
29:32alludes to that
29:33not being the case
29:34for a lot of these people.
29:35Well, it's a scam.
29:37And I think
29:37the men inside
29:38want to be hopeful
29:40we learned
29:41that there were
29:43statistics
29:43that Alabama
29:44does not track
29:45for reasons
29:46that are obvious
29:47when you see the film.
29:48But for example,
29:50people who are deemed
29:51safe enough
29:52to be given
29:53the opportunity
29:54to go work
29:54in the community.
29:55And Alabama,
29:56you know,
29:57essentially leases
29:58people out
29:58not just to be
29:59the guys
30:00that are managing
30:01the prison
30:01and helping
30:02with the food
30:03and stuff like that
30:04which maybe
30:04people could understand.
30:05They also send them
30:07out to work
30:07on road crews,
30:08construction crews,
30:09to work at the governor's mansion
30:11and clean up
30:11and do landscaping.
30:13And they also send them
30:14to work at McDonald's
30:15and at Burger King
30:16and at the Hyundai
30:17Parts Company
30:18and they also work
30:19at the Budweiser
30:19distributorship.
30:20So all of these,
30:22this is a very,
30:23very ingrained system
30:25and it's worth
30:26so much money.
30:27And when they announced
30:29or their supporters
30:30announced this work strike,
30:31the three main people
30:33in our film,
30:33Robert Old Council,
30:34Melvin Ray
30:35and Raul Poole
30:36were all whisked off
30:37to solitary confinement.
30:39And they were put in
30:40kind of like
30:40a Hannibal Lecter
30:42type environment
30:43where they couldn't
30:44talk to each other.
30:45There were no windows
30:46in the cells.
30:47Two of them
30:47are there right now.
30:49The good news
30:50is that so many people
30:52now have been
30:52watching the film
30:53that we could go
30:54on social media
30:55and say,
30:56hey, these guys
30:56are locked up.
30:57And there was
30:58a huge outcry
30:59and people went
31:01to the website
31:02and they got
31:02the phone number
31:03for Bibb County Correctional
31:05and hundreds of people
31:06called Bibb
31:07and said,
31:08we care about these guys.
31:09Like, we're watching.
31:10Don't do anything bad to them.
31:12And they released
31:13the first of them,
31:14Melvin Ray,
31:14just a couple days ago.
31:15So we feel like
31:16the public is,
31:17you know, maddering.
31:21I mean...
31:22Have you...
31:24Have you heard
31:25from the governor at all?
31:27Such a great question.
31:28You know,
31:29the governor
31:29is called Meemaw
31:31by the people
31:32who love her.
31:33Sure.
31:34And, you know,
31:35she's quite old
31:36and she's quite confident
31:37that they're doing
31:38the right thing
31:38in the prison system.
31:39And she didn't...
31:40These are basic beliefs
31:41of a Meemaw.
31:42Yeah, exactly.
31:43Perhaps that Meemaw
31:44and a lot of Meemaw.
31:44This is Meemaw-like behavior.
31:46Yeah.
31:46By the way.
31:47But essentially,
31:48she said nothing
31:49and her office said nothing.
31:51Like, like,
31:52I...
31:53I think GMA reached out
31:55to them and said,
31:55what do you think
31:56about this film?
31:57And they said,
31:57well, we're aware
31:58of the film
31:59but we cannot comment
32:00on the authenticity
32:01of the material in it
32:03because it was,
32:04you know,
32:05contraband cell phones.
32:06Like, anybody was asking them
32:07if this is authentic.
32:09You know, right?
32:10And then a year later,
32:12you know,
32:12we got nominated
32:12for the Oscar
32:14and they immediately
32:15came out with a statement
32:16basically saying, like,
32:17the Oscars are for suckers.
32:19You know?
32:19It was a very Trumpy
32:21kind of amazing statement.
32:24Oh, and they also said,
32:26they said the Oscars
32:27have a low...
32:28We always knew
32:28the Oscars had a low bar
32:29and, by the way,
32:31Meemaw is the best
32:33governor ever.
32:35Like, nobody has done
32:36prisoning as good
32:38as Meemaw
32:39and it really
32:40is quite a statement.
32:41You know,
32:42I don't know
32:42if you heard the news,
32:43she won the FIFA
32:44Governor's Award
32:45recently as well.
32:46It's remarkable.
32:48It's...
32:48That's...
32:48Well-deserved.
32:49I want to take note of that.
32:51You allude to this here,
32:53but people watch this
32:54and they get mad
32:54and they get frustrated
32:55as I think they should.
32:57Where should they
32:58take that frustration?
33:00You know,
33:00the website for the film
33:01is not like
33:02a promotional website.
33:03It's really...
33:04It's kind of a deep dive
33:06into the investigation
33:07we did on 1,500 deaths
33:09which have happened
33:10in the Alabama prison system
33:11since we started
33:12making the film
33:13and it's pretty remarkable.
33:17And secondly,
33:18there's a
33:19take action button
33:20and that will tell you
33:22some things you can do
33:23without taking
33:24too much time.
33:25But there are places
33:26that you can engage
33:27and it's not like
33:28give money.
33:28It's really,
33:29you know,
33:30like you've got to
33:30try to make phone calls.
33:32You've got to let people
33:32know that we're paying attention
33:34because this goes
33:35way beyond Alabama.
33:36You know,
33:36Alabama is sort of
33:37famously bad,
33:39but we just saw
33:39in upstate New York,
33:41Robert Brooks
33:41got murdered
33:42by corrections officers.
33:43The only reason we know
33:44is because of
33:45the remote cameras.
33:46so these cameras
33:48and your ability
33:49to expose
33:52what these
33:53authoritarian type
33:55people are doing
33:56like they did
33:56in Minneapolis,
33:58you've got to keep
33:59doing that.
33:59You've got to keep
34:00taking your camera out
34:01and you've got to keep
34:02taking pictures.
34:04They are...
34:07They're afraid
34:08of the witnesses,
34:09right?
34:09Yeah.
34:10It's truly
34:11an incredible film.
34:12I hope everybody sees it.
34:13The Alabama Solution
34:14is available to stream
34:15now on HBO Max.
34:16Andrew Jarecki,
34:17we're going to take
34:18a quick break.
34:18We'll be right back
34:19after that.
34:28That's our show
34:29for tonight.
34:29Now, here it is.
34:30Your moment is nice.
34:31I've seen some
34:32of the protesters.
34:33I know some of them
34:34are deeply weird.
34:36Some of them
34:37give off
34:38this,
34:40I don't know,
34:41I've got a freezer
34:42full of body parts
34:44in my basement
34:45vibe,
34:46but that's not
34:47against the law.
34:48You can be deeply
34:49weird in America.
34:51Sorry.
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