Sports pundit and political commentator Stephen A. Smith recounted what he said was a four-hour dinner with comedian Bill Maher and President Donald Trump, hosted at the White House on Thursday night.
“Essentially, it amounted to what I consider to be a very substantive evening,” Smith said. “We were there for over four hours in the White House. And Donald Trump did not run from any question. He answered every single question. He was very, very defiant with any criticism that came in his direction or any disagreement. But as Kid Rock went on Fox News on Friday morning and articulated, it was a pleasant meeting. It was respectful.”
Smith was invited to the dinner by Maher, who had attended a dinner at the White House with Trump in March 2025, an event notable largely for Maher’s subsequent address about the evening, which was described as friendly rather than adversarial despite the pair’s history of publicly attacking each other. Smith similarly said he enjoyed the meeting and appreciated Trump’s willingness to speak with figures with whom he disagrees.
“I don’t consider myself a liberal, I don’t consider myself a conservative, I’m a registered independent,” Smith said of his political affiliation. “I say that all the time.” Smith, who has broadly functioned as a left-wing figure throughout his career, has increasingly interviewed Republican figures on his own show since Trump won the 2024 presidential election and has at times split with Democrats on certain issues. Smith has been floated as a potential celebrity 2028 presidential candidate, not too unlike Trump himself, though the radio host shot down such rumors for fear of being “taken off the air.”
“The dinner last night… was great, I think they had a good time,” Trump said of the meeting. “We talked about everything. It lasted a long time. And you know, even though they have to sort of, you know, put on a sort of facade for their people, they like Trump. And I actually like them. We had a great time. We even took a little tour of the ballroom.”
“It was a great dinner. It was a very informative dinner. Smart people. Stephen A. is great, Bill Maher, I tell you what, he likes me a lot more than people understand. And I actually like him.” Trump had gone after Smith in a rant over the summer, calling him an “arrogant fool” and “dumb as a rock” over a disagreement stemming from Trump’s attendance at an NBA Finals game the New York Knicks lost.
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“He deserves to be recognized for his hospitality and his unwillingness to run from any single issue we brought up that he disagreed with,” Smith also said, despite his history of criticizing the president. “When I say we were there for over four hours, it was because of him. He wouldn’t let us leave. And we were bringing up stuff, trying to pummel him with it. He wouldn’t bend.” The group discussed the economy, the conflict in Iran, Texas Republican Senate candidate Ken Paxton, and Trump’s White House projects.
Trump and Smith have known each other since long before Trump first ran for president, and Smith often recounts Trump calling him about his desire to purchase the Buffalo Bills in 2014. Smith said much of his motivation for attending the meeting was to discuss the Trump administration’s approach to policies regarding Historically Black Colleges.