Emotionally-stunted video game boys, who are also government contractors and/or quasi government officials, are fighting on Twitter, a POTUS who went all the way to SCOTUS to get immunity for presidents now would like the last president investigated, and America's premiere scientific research institution, the NIH, can't tell us about the bird flu—a widespread and potentially deadly virus that could mutate into a human pandemic. Meanwhile, the assault on immigration has stepped up, with raids now...
Jan 23, 2025•1 hr
All those CEOs cartwheeled down to Mar-a-Lago and then dutifully lined up at Trump's inauguration because they were fed up with social justice warriors and labor having more power—even if their bottom lines were never harmed in the process. Now, they want their next adrenaline rush and more government money without any pesky regulations hampering their highfalutin space-exploration dreams. But they may just pine for those DEI training sessions after the coming populist economic backlash. Stephan...
Jan 22, 2025•46 min
Trump tried to pencil out literal words in the Constitution and then freed 1,500 violent insurrectionists—while the media attempted to normalize it all. Meanwhile, much attention is being paid to Elon's salute, and not enough to the facts that he has an office at the White House, he's a government contractor, and paid a quarter of a billion dollars to get Trump elected. Plus, other Trump executive orders were pissy and petty, the 80s can no longer be called the decade of greed after Monday's Hun...
Jan 21, 2025•1 hr
Trump wants us to believe that nothing matters, so we'll brush off all his corruption and grifting as though everybody does it. That's what aspiring authoritarians always do, including the guy who didn't place his hand on a Bible when he was sworn in today. Meanwhile, Trump just launched probably the biggest scam in the history of the presidency with his memecoin—ordinary people will lose real money, nothing like the small-ball amounts he scoops up with his shoes, mugs, and digital baseball card...
Jan 20, 2025•44 min
Trump governed as a wartime president against blue America, so expect him to keep stirring up culture battles—but the Dems have to avoid getting drawn into them. Kamala and the party were undone in '24 by looking like they cared more about niche issues than putting food on the table. Meanwhile, Biden has left Trump a lot of room to consolidate a bigger coalition than he's ever had. Plus, for Republicans shrugging off climate change and threatening to withhold fire aid to California, here's a new...
Jan 17, 2025•50 min
Pam Bondi is likely to sail to confirmation—even if she's an election denier and pretends she was born yesterday—because she meets the simple qualifications of being a lawyer and former prosecutor, and because she's not a frat paddle come to life i.e. Matt Gaetz. But the fact that she wasn't able to clearly state that the U.S. is her client, not Donald Trump, is a giant red flag. Ditto for his personal lawyers also coming on board. Plus, the ominous removal of Mike Turner from the House intellig...
Jan 16, 2025•57 min
Being secretary of defense is one of the hardest jobs on the planet. But after Pete Hegseth was plucked from a part-time Fox & Friends gig, Republican senators could only kiss his ass and act starstruck during his confirmation hearing—all to ensure he takes their calls when they need military equipment or contracts in their states. Meanwhile, Nancy Mace has been a con artist from the beginning, Trump nominated Nazi-curious Joe Kent to run the National Counterterrorism Center, and Tulsi think...
Jan 15, 2025•1 hr 4 min
Real estate is everything in Los Angeles. Karen Bass's absence from the city when the fires broke out, and now her seeming aloofness, has instantly made her look unfit for the job of mayor. Even Gavin Newsom is distancing himself from Bass. Meanwhile, while we wait on the facts behind the fires, all the Silicon Valley VC guys and Elon need to shut the f*** up. Plus, Mike Johnson is a disgrace, Zuck has no inner core of values, and TikTok Zoomers need to get a better understanding of free speech ...
Jan 14, 2025•1 hr 7 min
Trump's favorite judge, Aileen Cannon, has been attempting to exercise authority she doesn't have over Jack Smith's required report on his investigations of the Jan 6 case and the hoarding of classified docs—but she'll be a model of loyalty that Trump will expect for all his judicial appointments. Meanwhile, it's a big week of hearings for his nominees, Wray could do more to oppose the politicization of the FBI, and what is up with Fetterman? Bill Kristol joins Tim Miller. show notes Bob Kagan's...
Jan 13, 2025•52 min
"Mother" Pence is owed an apology. She snubbed Trump so hard and so beautifully at Jimmy Carter's funeral—and wasn't about to make nice with the man who was all-in on Jan 6 rioters trying to lynch her husband. Meanwhile, the catturd crowd is mad at Amy Coney Barrett for not falling in line, and running off to Greenland while American neighborhoods are on fire is not America First. Plus, the risks of Trump dominating the battlespace with all the stupid stuff. Amanda Carpenter joins Tim Miller for...
Jan 10, 2025•56 min
Americans have been spending more time alone—and less time doing face-to-face socializing—than we have for at least 60 years. And our alone time is impacting the economy, our politics, and our personalities, particularly among young people. Meanwhile, the fires in Los Angeles are a heartbreaking reminder that the California landscape was meant to burn—and it will keep happening whether we like it or not. Plus, the mystery around the sister of Sam Altman. Derek Thompson and Liz Weil join Tim Mill...
Jan 09, 2025•1 hr 14 min
Trump talked a lot more about Hannibal Lecter during the campaign than one of his actual top priorities: extending his 2017 tax cuts. With those $4.5 trillion in cuts set to expire by the end of the year, that's the first major item of business for congressional Republicans. But how they get paid for will affect people's lives. Tim takes a deep dive into the reconciliation process that would allow Republicans to make deep cuts to programs without having to work with Democrats. Plus, the billiona...
Jan 08, 2025•1 hr 7 min
Mark Zuckerberg is doing all he can to get an audience with the big man at Mar-a-Lago, including praising Trump's (faux) free speech bona fides and restructuring Meta to eliminate fact-checking. Maybe it's because Zuck wants to show his middle finger to the mean tech reporters—or maybe it's because Trump threatened to imprison Zuck. Plus, the conspiracies around Jan 6 v 9/11, and the potential threat to our financial system from crypto. Charlie Warzel joins Tim Miller. show notes: Charlie's piec...
Jan 07, 2025•56 min
Kash Patel's Jan 6 lie requires FBI officials to have been able to see into the future: to *know* that Trump would lose in 2020 and then try to get Congress to reverse the election results. And they also would have to have known they could get thousands of people to attack the Capitol—just to make MAGA look bad. Are GOP senators really going to clear this conspiracy theorist extraordinaire to run the bureau? Plus, the martyrology around Jan 6 and the mass exodus of journalists from The Washingto...
Jan 06, 2025•51 min
New Orleans is the most special city in America, but it's a place that also breaks your heart. Local leaders will have to reassure the world that the French Quarter is safe. Plus, Mike Johnson is bound up in a Gordian Knot, and Democrats are petrified of the wrath of leading progressive interest groups in DC— it's like the Dem Party's version of Trump's Twitter ire. Jonathan Martin joins Tim Miller for the weekend pod. show notes Glen David Andrews leading a second line to reopen Bourbon Street ...
Jan 03, 2025•44 min
Apart from the death and carnage on New Years Day in New Orleans, Americans revealed another darkness once again: an eagerness to pin violence on someone who doesn't share their political world view. Meanwhile, Republicans rushed to attack the FBI as a way to justify confirming Kash Patel. Plus, Trump has tossed populism aside as he preps to be openly oligarchical, and the real threats TV journalists face. David Frum joins Tim Miller. show notes Chart shared by Marc Andreessen that Tim reference...
Jan 02, 2025•51 min
While some media outlets may be moving to accommodate Trump out of fear he'll target them, The Bulwark will not be recalibrating. We'll keep providing the (sometimes funny) content you expect, we'll try not to chase Trump's bait (Canada, Greenland, Panama), and we'll disaggregate the real from the trolling. Plus, when one of the worst people in the world makes a good point, and how much is Trump stuck with Elon? Sarah and JVL join Tim for the last show of 2024. Happy New Year! show notes The NBC...
Dec 31, 2024•1 hr 3 min
MAGA v DOGE, the Christmas gift that keeps on giving, is an early sign of the coming infighting that could diminish Trump's power—we're definitely not seeing signs of an iron fist amid all that golfing and DJ-ing at Mar-a-Lago. Meanwhile, the world he'll be dealing with is far less stable than it was in 2017. Plus, a Carter appreciation, love for Chalamet's Dylan portrayal, and anticipation of a wild January. Bill Kristol joins Tim Miller. show notes Tim's Bannon interview Tim's dispatch from Am...
Dec 30, 2024•48 min
Do you have to pick a side in politics? That was the question Reason Magazine, the flagship publication of the libertarian movement, invited The Bulwark to debate. In a panel moderated by Reason features editor and Across the Movie Aisle co-host Peter Suderman, Sarah and Tim debated picking sides with Reason editors-at-large Matt Welch and Nick Gillespie. The debate was sharp, occasionally heated, enlightening, and definitely amusing. The results were . . . resounding. Watch for yourself....
Dec 27, 2024•1 hr 23 min
While it's still going to be bad, for the first time since the election we're beginning to see that we may actually have a little fun watching these idiots prove they don't know how to govern. Meanwhile, we've also got aspiring authoritarians on the left who think they're right at any cost. Plus, the challenge of holding on to American ideals, how to reach low-info voters, Tim's take from Phoenix on TPUSA, and can Tim make Jon cry? And one more Biden critique (that comes toward the end)... Merry...
Dec 20, 2024•1 hr 5 min
We are seeing in real time what it looks like to turn a democracy over to an oligarch, namely the unstable guy from South Africa who thinks he's going to be emperor of the universe. It's also authoritarian for that one unstable guy to threaten members of congress with job loss if they vote to provide hurricane relief or to rebuild part of the interstate highway system. Plus, the need for a pro-democracy media ecosystem, the difference between liberal and left, and the terribleness of the William...
Dec 19, 2024•45 min
Russia is on its weakest footing since it invaded Ukraine: Putin has destroyed his military, his economy is in the toilet, and the North Korean troops who've been deployed to help out are dying in waves on the battlefield. Why would the US bail Putin out? Meanwhile, MAGA world is trying to distract us with phony DEI issues in the military while we're dealing with some of the biggest challenges we've ever faced in the international space. Plus, with 180,000 US troops currently deployed overseas a...
Dec 18, 2024•46 min
The existential dread has a strong pull, especially since Trump has made a lot of Americans worse people, but we've had other bad, immoral, and creepy presidents who've sullied the office. Meanwhile, Vance is basically the invisible man while Elon lives in Trump's bedroom, and Andreessen is loading up a pile of BS to justify his vote. Plus, a Tim v Tom Christmas playlist. Tom Nichols joins Tim Miller. show notes: Tom's audiobook version of "The Death of Expertise" Tim's Christmas playlist John G...
Dec 17, 2024•58 min
ABC News and George Stephanopoulos have joined the preemptive capitulation parade by settling Trump's defamation suit—and by conspicuously paying out protection money ahead of the inauguration. The potential chilling effect on a key First Amendment issue is breathtaking. Meanwhile, Mitt Romney backs off of his criticism of Trump and Vance. Plus, the anti-oligarchic, semi-populist grounds for challenging the incoming administration. Bill Kristol joins Tim Miller. show notes: NYT piece Bill mentio...
Dec 16, 2024•37 min
The billionaires rushing to get on board with Trump, and contributing millions for his inauguration, may have missed this key detail: Enhancing the power of a leader—to bend the rules and undermine the rule of law—is often very bad for business. Meanwhile, Team Trump is distracting the media and the public with the firehose of nominations. Plus, election laws v TikTok and Elon, how brutal regimes can quickly die, and the impact of Israel's campaigns on international law during wartime. Anne Appl...
Dec 13, 2024•43 min
The origins of the Democratic party's current malaise include ineffective messaging on climate and economic policy, too rigid a tent on cultural issues, and Dem politicians just too scared to speak their mind. Like, Kamala could've turned the trans youth in sports convo into one about parents spending boatloads on sports camps so their kids can get into a good college. Plus, Christopher Wray chose the worst option. Matt Yglesias and Tyler Austin Harper join Tim Miller to hash it out. show notes:...
Dec 12, 2024•1 hr 8 min
Team Trump is trying to intimidate the opposition. Stop showing them your fear. Plus, Gaetz moves from AG nominee to low-rent MAGA cable channel host, and RT's girlfriend, Tulsi, could have access to the identities of our informants in Russia if she is confirmed. Meanwhile, as Dems plot a way forward, they need to be more clear about calling out the heroes and the villains: When you're trying to be everything to everyone, you're nothing. Adam Kinzinger and Rep. Pat Ryan join Tim Miller. show not...
Dec 11, 2024•1 hr
A sense of Biden's irrelevance has descended on Washington, with Trump flying off to Paris and meeting world leaders, and also openly conducting his own foreign policy—often at odds with the current US policy. Meanwhile, following the diminishment of our foes in the Middle East, and after all the assistance America gave to Israel and Ukraine, Biden isn't being given credit—or he's choosing not to take it. Plus, the MAGA media mob is doing all it can to get Trump's nominees through, and a postscr...
Dec 10, 2024•50 min
Trump is threatening members of Congress with jail and Republican senators may be circling the wagons around his nominees, but we still need to protect ourselves from a nihilistic mindset. Plus, cautious optimism and uncertainty after the fall of Syria's brutal dictatorship. And no, Tulsi: You were wrong. Assad was our enemy. Bill Kristol and Michael Weiss join Tim Miller. Show notes: Tim's Triad piece on fighting a nihilistic mindset...
Dec 09, 2024•57 min
Trump may have authoritarian aspirations, but he's very bad at governing and managing—four weeks into the transition, he's had two major Ls. Meanwhile, Democrats have to rebuild their connection to voters with local party clubs, and not wait until an election year. Plus, a reverse cancel culture is silencing any conversation about the role that gender and race played in Kamala's loss. And finding solace in the words of Frederick Douglass. Jamelle Bouie joins Tim Miller. show notes: Jamelle's col...
Dec 06, 2024•47 min
