The interview started innocuously enough, with Maher asking Walz the standard questions about his campaign, his views on the 2024 election, and his thoughts on the current political climate. Walz responded with well-rehearsed talking points, but his answers were notably lacking in substance. As usual, the governor danced around direct questions, offering flowery but empty phrases about “uniting the country” and “moving forward.”

But Maher, never one to let anyone off easy, quickly grew frustrated. The tipping point came when Maher asked Walz about the controversy surrounding his National Guard service—specifically, the claims that Walz had retired from the Guard just before his unit was deployed to Iraq. It’s a topic that has dogged Walz throughout his political career, and Maher wasn’t going to let him sidestep it.