Claim OwnershipThe Bulwark Podcast
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© Bulwark Media
Description
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.
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500 Episodes
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Kash Patel is making legal threats to try to silence his critics, and Tulsi Gabbard wouldn't even be able to get a security clearance in the regular job market: The parade of incompetence is so bad that Pete Hegseth is being described as the most unqualified Cabinet nominee in American history—and that's before the rape and alcoholism. Plus, Bluesky v Twitter, Russia is running out of military equipment, and are preemptive pardons a good idea?
David French joins Tim Miller.
show notes
Steve Schale's Bulwark piece on the Democratic Party
The Southern Baptist Convention's 1998 "Resolution on Moral Character of Public Officials"
1We're going back to a president who can't be bothered to read his briefing books. So who will be getting in the ear of the man who had the judgment to choose Pete Hegseth in the first place? Plus, blue state governors v Trump, the need for more mid-range housing, the role of women in modern combat, and Tim reads more from the mailbag.
New Jersey gubernatorial candidate Mikie Sherrill joins Tim Miller.
Russ Vought, Trump's nominee to run the Office of Management and Budget—and a Project 2025 author—believes we are living in a post-constitutional America and that any check on Trump's power would be illegitimate. And what's really scary is that Vought knows how the government works. Meanwhile, jihadi technocrats effortlessly took over Syria's second-largest city because Assad's protectors—Russia and Iran—are a bit distracted. Plus, Ukraine prepares for Trump.
Michael Weiss and Georgetown's Thomas Zimmer join Tim Miller.
show notes
Zimmer's piece on Russ Vought
Michael's piece on the fall of Aleppo
Cathy Young's latest regarding Russia's war on Ukraine
Kash Patel, who could potentially run the FBI, is a compulsive liar who can't keep his facts straight about his work experience or even where he was born. Aside from being a player in the attempted coup, even Trump loyalists are alarmed by his devotion to the president-elect. Meanwhile, by pardoning Hunter, Biden is not only putting his family ahead of the public interest, he's also giving a giant gift to Trump. Plus, more details on Pete Hegseth's disqualifying behavior, and Trump's avenue for getting around the Senate confirmation process. Elaina Plott Calabro and Bill Kristol join Tim Miller.
show notes:
Elaina's profile of Kash Patel
Patel's target list
Jack Goldsmith on Trump getting around the Senate confirmation process
Tim and Sam on Biden's pardon of Hunter
Tim and Sam on Pete Hegseth's mom
Pete Hegseth may have a winning Fox & Friends smile, but his desire to shoot protesters, commit war crimes, and purge non-MAGA leaders from the military aligns with Trump's views—and is probably the reason why he was nominated for defense secretary. Plus, Republicans won without offering a middle-class economic agenda, and the ties between the Democrats' loss and the party's busy-body language police.
Jonathan Chait joins Tim Miller.
show notes
Chait's piece on Pete Hegseth
Tim's Thanksgiving playlist
For those living under a gray cloud because of what the American electorate has done, it's time to get to work on changing opinions. People who follow the news and read op-eds may be in a minority, but salient minorities have propelled history. On the 50th anniversary of George Will's tenure at The Washington Post, George joins Tim to discuss the power of criticizing presidents and saying what you think. Plus, Tim reads from the mailbag and serves up some advice for dealing with Trump-supporting relatives at the Thanksgiving table.
George Will joins Tim Miller
show notes
George on his first 50 years as a columnist
George's first column for The Post
An appreciation of the Iron Man of America's oped pages
Mona's tribute to George
The danger of Trump's nominees is that the main condition of employment—aside from being on Fox—is their fealty to him, and a willingness to go along with the ideological fervor of Stephen Miller, Russ Vought and JD Vance. Meanwhile, the math may not add up for Tulsi, Sarah McBride shows grace and dignity in response to Nancy Mace, and Trump goes weirdly quiet.
Bill Kristol joins Tim Miller.
show notes
Clip of Sarah McBride on MSNBC
The country is now paying for the pathologies of the oligarchs and baddies who were stuffed into lockers when they were kids. And let's be honest: A chunk of MAGA doesn't mind the sexual assaults at all—they "put women in their place." Meanwhile, Gaetz's replacement, Pam Bondi, was an active member of the attempted coup, Elon's plan to slash the federal workforce would cut a minuscule part of the budget, the oil men don't want to produce more oil, and Democrats have to go back to their 90s-style economic messaging.
Sarah and JVL join Tim Miller for the weekend pod.
show notes
The Secret Podcast
JVL's Triad newsletter from Thursday
Tim's playlist
Because Trump wasn't penalized for trying to steal the 2020 election, our democracy has already been damaged. And he was laying the groundwork to do it again in '24, with the assistance of MAGA's opportunistic election fraud lies. Meanwhile, David Sacks & co would never let Trump run any of their businesses, but they're all in on his Alex Jones-grade lies. Plus, was Kamala done in by not responding to the anti-trans ad? And 90% of what's wrong with Elon is his Twitter addiction.
Sam Harris joins Tim Miller.
The incompetent and compromised nominees Trump has assembled at record pace show how little regard he has for the essential functions our government provides. He wants to harness its power for his own ends, in a way that could put Americans and our national security at risk—but he can only do this if Congress is complicit. Meanwhile, the roundly-hated Matt Gaetz is providing cover for the sex abuse allegations against the other nominees, and the House majority margin may be razor thin.
Rep. Dan Goldman and Marc Caputo join Tim Miller.
The Democrats focus too much on reaching white college-educated voters, and the threat to democracy was not the right closing message. Plus, Nancy Mace needs to get a life beyond getting MAGA street cred, no one wants to be in the same bathroom with MTG, and Jared Polis may be on to something with the hippie-ish libertarians.
Jen Psaki joins Tim Miller.
show notes
Gov. Polis tweet about RFK, Jr.
The governor's follow-up tweet
Trump is flooding the zone with unqualified nominees who would destroy government norms and standards and create the kind of chaos that would let him do what he wants—and Senate Republicans may be too afraid of him to put up much resistance. Meanwhile, allies are already seeing the third world-style political decay, beyond the orgies and sexual assaults. Bill Kristol joins Tim Miller.
show notes
"Art of the Surge" doc on Apple TV; Ep 5 has debate reaction backstage
Ted Cruz and Jim DeMint ground things to a halt in the Senate quite effectively during the Obama era, and Democrats should take a cue from them for Trump's appointments: Demand hearings or hold their own. More broadly, the opposition has to be loud and make a scene, while also staying unified and focused. We are a big country with big ideas, and there are more of us than there are of them.
Amanda Carpenter joins Tim Miller for the weekend pod.
show notes
Part 1 of the "Behind the Bastards" podcast on RFK, Jr.
Tim's playlist
Trump's appointments—like degenerate Matt Gaetz and Putin stooge Tulsi Gabbard—are about his raw power and his stupid show, but are also a risk to our nation's security and institutions. Plus, America's diploma divide has trapped us in a caste society, where future leaders are being chosen based on how they performed on standardized tests at age 18.
David Brooks and Rick Wilson join Tim Miller.
show notes
Ed Whelan on Trump's recess appointment scheme (gifted)
David's cover story on the Ivy League (gifted)
Republicans have been good at telling a story about the economy and how people should feel about it, and Democrats haven't responded in a sufficiently compelling way. Meanwhile, plucking Pete Hegseth off the Fox & Friends couch to run one of the biggest organizations in the world is a sign of how dumb the next administration will be.
Osita Nwanevu joins Tim Miller.
show notes
Osita's forthcoming book
The worst people believe their worldview has been validated, while the best people are uncertain, scared, and angry. But we have to stay focused on the menace, including the threat to officials Trump may target for revenge—and the immigrants whose cheap and willing labor helped build our economy.
Jon Lovett joins Tim Miller for a special crosspost with the "Lovett or Leave It" pod.
show notes
Speech by Otto Wels in March 1933
The 'Lovett or Leave It' podcast
The Trump team is moving quickly to sell out Ukraine, but it's not clear yet whether Putin would settle for taking a quarter of the country—or if he intends to crush it, so he can plant the Russian flag in Kiev. Meanwhile, Elon has been at Mar-a-Lago every day, expanding his oligarch résumé to include helping choose the incoming president's Cabinet and advisors. Plus, key Senate Republicans are already prepping to sacrifice their constitutional duties to advise and consent, and the election denialists on the left have to accept reality.
Bill Kristol joins Tim Miller.
show notes
Charles Gaba's thread on the new 'Stop the Steal' conspiracy
Tim's appearance on the "Pablo Torre Finds Out" podcast
It's time to get our opposition organized and develop a narrative about Trump. And one narrative that's likely to emerge is how he betrayed his voters. Plus, did Kamala's interview on "The View" seal her fate?
James Carville joins Tim Miller.
show notes
Carville documentary, "Winning Is Everything, Stupid" (post-election recut out 11/14)
The Trump trials were a cosmic democratic disaster, and the justice system did not do justice: Trump was not treated in the same way as other people who've stolen classified docs or tried to overthrow the election—and his conviction and indictments made him more qualified in MAGA's eyes. Plus, the Sotomayor/SCOTUS issue, aiding Ukraine before January 20, and avoiding the sound of Trump's voice.
Ben Wittes joins Tim Miller for the weekend pod.
show notes
Ben's column, "Were the Trump Trials Pointless?"
Tim's playlist
The American people made their choice, and the fight to preserve the global democratic coalition against the global authoritarian movement continues. But maybe letting those voters see unadulterated Trumpism in the White House, without the baby bumpers—at least for a little while—is how we save America. Plus, the price of eggs v fascism, and Trump is going to inherit a great economy and take credit for it.
Tom Nichols joins Tim Miller.
show notes
Tom's most recent Atlantic Daily newsletter
Derek Thompson's piece mentioned by Tim (gifted)
Nick Catoggio's piece
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can you send me your song list. ygk
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I don't hurt , can't vote that north. love ur play list
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When Bill Barr thinks you're incompetent speaks volumes about Kash Patel. Lol. It's like making George Santos head of the FBI. The "best people" indeed. 🤣
As a 65 year old father of two, I completely get his pardoning his son. He's not pardoning someone for money or graft or political favours. He's protecting his son from the threats of a man who will soon have unfettered access to all the powers of an American president. I think his big mistake is having said that he wouldn't do this. It does seem like dumb timing, though.
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Pretty sobering observation from Sam that a lot of MAGA wouldn't have accepted a Harris victory even if she had one. Trump and his conspirators spent years sowing the notion of a rigged election... which they shockingly abandoned when things turned in his favor. Not a very competent deep state it would seem.
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If the VP had done Rogan, spent 500 words explaining her evolution on gender changing surgery, she would have won? But the risks Trump poses were missed because the spoor emitted by his passage was too subtle to "track?" "Shithole countries, pride in Dobbs, love of tyrants, hate for NATO, stealing secrets. Too subtle to "track" by many smart people you know. Hate PC speech, fine don't use it. But Dobbs, attempting to steal the election, on and on, do not track? You are funny and so bitter.
This is an essential part of the American political news ecosystem. Fact based honest reporting and discussions. Substance and style.
you do realize that trump, or some lacky, can x a mistruth and have the lacky send it at 4am to try to give people the feeling he is working hard for american people.
I never thought the day would come when I feel kinship with Bill Kristol. I'm grateful that my home is now in Asia. whether I'll ever live in the US again is uncertain .