The Bulwark Podcast
The Bulwark
<div>Tim Miller and guests discuss the latest political news for the flagship podcast of the Never Trump movement and the reality-based community. Every weekday we provide insightful analysis, political hot-takes, an unabashed defense of liberal democracy and long-form interviews that cut through the "both-sides" BS. Plus a few laughs to help you wash down the crazy.<br> <br> Bulwark+ members can get a totally ad-free version of the show delivered right to their favorite podcast player.</div>
Rank History (30 days)
Recent Episodes
20 episodesBill Kristol and Ro Khanna: Two Governments Acting with Impunity
The Trump administration is going full speed ahead on its authoritarian project to intimidate the media and the business world—and to gun people down in the streets. And in Israel, Netanyahu is allowing settler militias to run amok in the West Bank, killing Palestinians and destroying their villages and property. Rep. Khanna joins Tim to describe his own personal encounter with the private armed groups near Hebron. Plus, the mixed legacy of Lindsey Graham, Trump is trying to pretend he didn't sign a deal giving Iran management of the Strait of Hormuz, and the Dems have a real chance to weaken Todd Blanche and the whole administration.Bill Kristol and Rep. Ro Khanna join Tim Miller.Show notes: Monday's "Morning Shots" Bill's "Bulwark on Sunday" with Sarah NOBL gives you real travel peace of mind — security, design, and convenience all in one. Head to NOBLTravel.com for 46% off your entire order! #NOBL #ad
Stuart Stevens: We've Got Death Squads on Our Streets
The Trump administration desperately wants the public to just tune out the shooting death of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo by ICE agents in Houston. But this roaming army of masked, armed men chasing people down and killing them is tied directly into the administration's criminality across the board. Trump may pardon Stephen Miller, but he should be on trial in state court in 2029. Meanwhile, McConnell's choice to not convict on impeachment means Donald Trump is his legacy. Plus: Republicans showed with the housing bill that they could find a backbone, Platner is not who he said he was, Dems should talk about race more, some way too early Magnolia Bowl talk, Vance/Trump 2028, and which potential Democratic nominees would Stuart work for in a heartbeat? Stuart Stevens joins Tim Miller. Show notes: Stuart's book, "It Was All a Lie" Stuart's "The Conspiracy to End America" Tim’s playlist
Ben Wittes: Talk About America in Decline
Trump had to take two Air Force ones to the NATO summit in Turkey: his new bling Qatari hand-me-down that he wanted to show off and the old baby blue one which he had to use to fly safely home—given the war in neighboring Iran. And at the FBI, Kash Patel’s thievery of taxpayer resources has gotten so out of hand, even Chuck Grassley wants answers. Plus: Ukraine has created panic in Russia (which has Trump rethinking which side he wants to root for), Dems should be highlighting the massive military waste in Iran, and Ben invites the public to test-run his new giant database of government records. Oh, and baby elephants are the best.Ben Wittes joins Tim Miller. Show notes: Lawfare on the military's potential deployment at the polls Ben’s email: [email protected] Ben's Substack, "Dog Shirt Daily" Get 20% off when you go to trustandwill.com/BULWARK
Alex Wagner: ICE Is Still Killing People
Roughly 2,000 people a day are being swept up by ICE and put in subhuman conditions. And Stephen Miller's quotas likely contributed to the recent tragic deaths of two immigrants. Meanwhile, Graham Platner is still holding the Democratic Party hostage. What lessons can be learned for Democrats who went along with this walking red flag? Also, the Republicans' McConnell story is not convincing, man baby POTUS had some ridiculous demands at NATO, and Susan Collins helped fund the gulags. And on a more silly note: Was Taylor's wedding tacky? And should Tim and Alex do a sex podcast?show notes Alex's pod, "Runaway Country" Alex's Substack Bill on ICE in "Morning Shots"
Piers Morgan: Polishing Trump's Turds
After being a guest on Piers' show numerous times, Tim gets a chance to pin him down for answers. Like, how could he have ever thought Trump in his second term was ready to be a "great president?" And even though Piers is now critical of Trump's tariffs and the war he started in Iran, he still thinks the verdict is out on Trump's obvious corruption—and whether the man can evolve and change the course of his presidency. Plus: Mark Hertling discusses the Air Force major who called for the impeachment of Trump and Vance as well as POTUS's confusion over the role of NATO.
Bill Kristol: Trump Wants All-out Kleptocracy
POTUS went on a stock buying spree the day before he paused some of his tariffs last year. The markets rebounded on his tariffs' reversal. On Monday, Trump from the Oval Office encouraged Americans to buy stock in Dell, a company he's heavily invested in. And he defended his children having access to insider information because of his presidency. This is Putin-grade corruption. Meanwhile, McMorrow's withdrawal from the Michigan Senate race shows Tim was right about the risks of encouraging factional fighting among Dems. Plus: Michael Cohen has always worn a "for sale" sign, and is there any experience in America that Trump hasn't tried to ruin? Go Team USA. Show notes: Monday's "Morning Shots" Sam and Bill on Trump's July 4 speech For their buy 1 get 1 50% off deal, head to: https://www.3dayblinds.com/THEBULWARK
Clint Smith: Make America What It Set Out to Be
It's hard to be in a celebratory mood about America 250. The administration only wants to tell a narrow story of the country without all the contradictions and complexities of its history. And for the past 18 months, it has also been a particularly challenging time for black members of the military under Hegseth, who brazenly disregards their service, blocks promotions of black officers, or expunges them from the ranks. But the aspiration of America as a multiracial, multiethnic, multi-faith democracy is a noble one, and our job is to keep trying to build the country we want it to be. Plus: the man who's trying to stop the magafication of the Smithsonian, advice for how to talk to kids about the country's history, and the simple joys of a July 4th cookout.The Atlantic's Clint Smith joins Tim Miller for the holiday weekend pod.show notes Clint’s piece on being black in Hegseth’s military Clint on the man who’s put himself between Trump and the Smithsonian Clint's "How the Word Is Passed" Thursday’s “Morning Shots” on the words of Gerald Ford Tim’s July 4th playlist This week only, a full Bulwark membership for everything we offer on our website is $86 a year. That's 14 percent off at http://thebulwark.com/july4
Susan Glasser: Our Money-Grubbing President
Not only did Trump pocket $2.2 billion last year—vastly increasing his pre-presidency wealth—he shamelessly showed off his new hand-me-down plane from Qatar which Americans paid hundreds of millions of dollars to upgrade. Not to mention, there's a massive conflict of interest involved in Trump taking a gift from a country that is directly impacted by his administration's foreign policy decisions. Plus: Vance can't tell a joke to save his life, Trump is the polar opposite of Teddy Roosevelt in almost every way, the Russian casualty count from the war in Ukraine has been catastrophic for the country and potentially destabilizing, and the challenge of celebrating 250 when Trump has inverted the American dream.Susan Glasser joins Tim Miller.Show notes: Susan's 'Political Scene' podcast Tim's July 4th playlist This week only, a full Bulwark membership for everything we offer on our website is $86 a year. That's 14 percent off at http://thebulwark.com/july4
Maggie Haberman: A Gross and Messy White House
Trump leaves ice cream cartons, potato chip bags, and candy wrappers all over his personal space at the White House. His diet aside, his aides are working overtime to keep the state of his health a secret. And it turns out that his loss in 2020 made him more powerful: He didn't have to deal with post-Covid inflation and the withdrawal from Afghanistan. Trump also wouldn't have been prosecuted, which ultimately led to him getting his get-out-of-jail free card to break all the laws, courtesy of the Supreme Court. Maggie joins Tim to discuss some of the revelations in her new book, including the pardons Trump is promising and the relationship between POTUS and a young aide who writes him "raw" and "emotional" love notes. Oh, and Marco—who's having the time of his life—was the guy who set up the deal to send people to the gulag at CECOT. Plus: Cam Kasky on why DSA candidates are resonating with voters and how things feel on the ground around Platner in Maine and Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan. Cameron Kasky and Maggie Haberman join Tim Miller. Show notes: Maggie's and Jonathan Swan's book, "Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump" This week only, a full Bulwark membership for everything we offer on our website is $86 a year. That's 14 percent off at http://thebulwark.com/july4
David French: The Birthright Citizenship Ruling Should've Been 9-0
SCOTUS did manage, for now, to stop Trump from recreating the American republic, but four of the court's justices believe that the fundamental law of birthright citizenship in the Constitution can just be repealed—along with the very nature of what American citizenship means. But overall, while Trump had some big wins from the Supreme Court this term, he also had massive losses. David runs down some of the latest rulings with Tim. Plus: Mamdani doesn't think the Constitution should be changed so he can run for POTUS (David thinks he's wrong), Platner is not winning over white working-class voters, Dems need a bigger tent but there have to be lines the party won't cross, and the DOJ is (mostly) losing its immigration protest cases.David French joins Tim Miller.Show notes: David's Newsletter on one-party rule David on the purging of Gen. Donahue More on the Broadview case in Chicago, from DavidThis week only, a full Bulwark membership for everything we offer on our website is $86 a year. That's 14 percent off athttp://thebulwark.com/july4
John Dickerson: When the Media Helps Rewrite Reality
The most powerful person in the world repeatedly creates his own narrative about a news event despite what we can see and hear with our own eyes and our own ears. Media organizations that don’t fight like hell in response are failing at doing their most basic job—and they’re failing the country and our democracy as well. That’s what CBS News did when it settled Trump’s frivolous “60 Minutes” lawsuit and when it tried to change the story of the Minneapolis protests to benefit Trump. Plus: Dems are on the cusp of a big fight, the Iran war is being fought on social media (and on the weekend), Sen. Jon Ossoff is deploying a clever strategy, and why isn’t the left talking about climate change? Oh and this: How do you live a life of value and meaning?John Dickerson joins Tim Miller from the Aspen Ideas Festival.show notes John's Substack John's long-running pod, Slate's "Political Gabfest"
Jane Coaston: POTUS's Racism Notches Another Win
The "eating the cats and dogs" blood libel worked so well that SCOTUS agreed to end humanitarian protections for Haitians. Justice Alito, who complained about the way Italian-Americans were depicted in "The Sopranos," just couldn't see any racism in Trump's repeated disparagement of Haiti or its immigrants. By the way, Megyn Kelly: You didn't do anything to build this country. And while JD thinks Nixon's Watergate crimes are now no big deal, the federal government just sentenced an American to 30 years in prison for moving anarchist zines out of his home. Plus, Jane's nostalgia theory explains why Vanilla Ice thinks the early 90s were the best era, the white male obsession with Caitlin Clark, and the men who can't quit blaming the 19th Amendment for the country's ills.Jane Coaston joins Tim Miller for the weekend pod.show notes Jane’s pod, “What A Day” Roy Cooper’s new ad The reporting on Rep. Hamadeh Tim’s playlist
Tom Nichols: Trump's Trashy 250 Celebration
The POTUS speech to kickoff the "state fair" in honor of America's 250th year was all about how the country is great because of him. Meanwhile, Hegseth is continuing to purge the Pentagon of some of our best warfighters for political and cowardly reasons. Plus, Bill Cassidy caved to Trump yet again, another son-in-law is following in Jared's footsteps and angling to get in on the family's hustle, some love for George Washington, and the administration's levels of corruption are so epic it's like Watergate every day. Tom Nichols joins Tim Miller.show notes Tom on making the 250th "small" Tom on the capitulation to Iran Netflix's "The American Experiment"
Peter Hamby: How Far Can the DSA Go?
The Mamdani sweep in NYC shows that the populist left is winning the arguments about Israel policy and going after billionaires, but it sure seems like there may be limits to their success outside the blue urban core. And Republicans are likely to make hay with at least one of Tuesday’s congressional primary winners—Darializa Avila Chevalier—who wants to end policing and won’t say whether murderers should go to jail. But the GOP colossally screwed up in North Carolina and Georgia, and Tim makes a bold prediction about how the party will respond. Plus, Trump is showing clear signs of aging, another one of his candidates lost on Tuesday, AOC's silence at this moment is noteworthy, and never underestimate the power of charisma in politics.Peter Hamby joins Tim Miller.show notes Peter's podcast, "The Powers That Be" Peter's columns at Puck For a limited time, get 60% off your first order, plus free shipping, when you head to Smalls.com/THEBULWARK.
John Ganz: Trump’s Coalition of the Aggrieved
The era of hell that we are living through may have been ordained in the 90s by angry Republican voters who felt screwed by the corporate elite—and political leaders who didn’t represent them. Trump watched Pat Buchanan and David Duke and saw how their protectionist, anti-immigrant, culture war messaging was resonating. More recently, Trump returned to his New York wheeler-dealer vibe by getting us in a war because he needed to look strong after SCOTUS struck down his stupid tariffs. Plus, more on Vance’s insincere religious discovery, Platner’s tattoo, the Dems’ nerd problem and its incompatibility with the base’s desire for a fighter, the jock/creep administration, and the Dan Goldman coffee shop incident.John Ganz joins Tim Miller.show notes John's book, "When the Clock Broke: Con Men, Conspiracists, and How America Cracked Up in the Early 1990s" John's Substack Tim's interview with Jon Ossoff Start your new morning ritual & get up to 43% off your @MUDWTR with code THEBULWARK at mudwtr.com/THEBULWARK! #mudwtrpod
Bill Kristol: Call the Pool Police
Trump is so embarrassed by his own personal vandalism of the Reflecting Pool that he's got the Justice Department investigating his latest conspiracy about bad guys that don't exist. Of course Fox News is happy to oblige by menacing journalists who dared to report on the damage POTUS did to the national monument. Meanwhile, Vance's Catholic conversion story is almost more fake than Trump's tough stance against the Iranian regime. Plus, Tulsi has been under the sway of a cult leader, Italy's Meloni is a pleasant surprise, Brexit was stupid and ruined the political careers of British prime ministers, and the World Cup is the perfect patriotic antidote to Trumpism.Bill Kristol joins Tim Miller.show notes Monday's "Morning Shots" Tim's and JVL's live reading from Vance's new book Clip from Douthat's interview with JD George Packer's piece, "The Talented Mr. Vance" Jon Swaine's reporting on Tulsi (gift)
Ta-Nehisi Coates: Obama's Legacy in a Trump World
Obama never thought Trump could win in 2016, perhaps because he underestimated how much the opposition loathed him. At the opening of his new presidential center on Thursday, he spoke of presidents acting with duty, honor, and kindness—even though the current occupant at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue is all about destroying things, being mean, hurting people, and starting dumb wars. Indeed, Trump's foreign policy may be more in the American tradition than Obama's. Plus, a debate over whether Kamala's response to Gaza cost her the White House along with her standing in the party. Also, some Knicks love and another installment in the perils and pitfalls of wokeness—this time with some Talarico comments from 2020.Ta-Nehisi Coates joins Tim Miller for the Juneteenth holiday weekend pod.show notes Ta-Nehisi's latest piece in Vanity Fair Tim's playlist
Adam Kinzinger: Trump Is a Cheese-Eating Surrender Monkey
Donald Trump gave away the store in the second worst treaty signed at Versailles. The bounty POTUS delivered has already started to flow with the lifting of oil sanctions on Iran. The unfreezing of restricted assets—and a $300 billion reconstruction and investment fund—is just around the corner. Trump is even defending Iran's right to have ballistic missiles. He likes to talk tough, but he is a wuss, and the Dems can't let up on calling him out for his cowardice and his stupid war. Plus, gaming which group of Trump supporters got cucked the most, Republicans on the Hill are already rushing to protect Trump on the deal, and a Texas temperature check on Talarico v Paxton.Adam Kinzinger joins Tim Miller.show notes Text of the agreement between the U.S. and Iran Kinzinger's Substack "The Kinzinger Report" podcast Tim's and JVL's reading of Vance's new book
Krystal Ball: The MAGA Neocon Tears Are So Sad
The pro-Israel hawks are still reeling from the terms of Trump's initial deal with Iran, which grants access to funds that had been frozen because of the regime's support of terrorism. The neocons got bamboozled by Trump, like so many before them—in this case believing that he would always have Israel's back. On the domestic front, Trump repeatedly lied when he said taxpayers weren't funding his ballroom, and in an act of revenge, he's keeping down and dirty Bill Pulte as acting director of national intelligence. Plus, the left has a shortage of candidates that can win non-blue states, and a debate over whether social and cultural issues are why Dems often don't resonate with voters.Krystal Ball joins Tim Miller.show notes Krystal's "Breaking Points" "Krystal Kyle & Friends" pod Brendan testing a water sample from the algae-covered reflecting pool Get $35 off your first box of wild-caught, sustainable seafood—delivered right to your door. Go to: https://www.wildalaskan.com/BULWARK.
Michael Weiss: The Vice President Is Looking Pretty Stupid
Vance is trying to sell the administration’s initial deal with Iran as a signal that the regime is ready to end its reign of terror and join the community of nations. Never mind that the CIA is outwardly saying that the Iranians can’t be trusted and that the developing agreement looks like a disaster waiting to happen. Also looking pretty naive are the pro-Israel American foreign policy hawks, who thought Trump would be a good war partner with the Israelis. Trump is now on day three of trash-talking Bibi and Israel—this time at the G7. Plus, Sam Forstag, Democratic congressional candidate in Montana, joins Tim to explain how he’s managed to unite the lefties and the centrists behind his campaign, why Dems need to cool it on language that alienates the working class, and how voters are so damn tired of being told to hate each other.Sam Forstag and Michael Weiss join Tim Miller.show notes Sam's campaign website Michael's Substack Watch for Tim's and JVL's live reading of Vance's new book Wednesday on YouTube or Substack Tim's 'Take' with Caolan Robertston in Kyiv re the Russian strike on the Dormition Cathedral "The Pulp" interview with Sam