The Bulwark Podcast
Episodes
Will Saletan: The GOP Surrenders before First Vote
15 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Republicans are racing to bend the knee before the Iowa caucuses even start, while also looking like they want border chaos. Plus, racial resentment r...
Karen Tumulty: The World's Biggest Victim
12 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
As Trump prepares to clean up in the Iowa caucuses, his campaign narrative has gone full 'Trump: The Victim.' Expect more court appearances and more t...
The MAGA Pathology
11 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Chris Christie dropping out shows that one party is at war with the idea of democratic self-government. Meanwhile, Trump's Fifth Avenue comment makes ...
Mark Hertling: Defending American Values
10 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
While North Korea has jumped in to arm Russia, Republicans in Congress are dallying over supporting Ukraine. Plus, presidential hit squads, Lloyd Aust...
Tim O'Brien: The Most Corrupt President. Ever.
09 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Trump is hoping for a market crash on Biden's watch, vowing revenge prosecutions, and plotting on how much he can grift off of foreign countries if he...
Will Saletan: Erasing History
08 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Jan 6 insurrectionists are innocent, and the Art of the Deal guy could've taught Lincoln how to negotiate an end to the Civil War—the Republican Par...
Tom Nichols: Claudine Gay Had to Go
05 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Harvard was justified in protecting its academic standards and the institution itself. But people are taking the DEI bait over Gay, instead of seeing ...
What Will the Supreme Court Do?
04 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
SCOTUS will have to take up up the insurrectionist clause, after Colorado and Maine took steps to remove Trump from their ballots. Plus, Trump's absur...
Susan Glasser: The Fever Won't Break
03 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The Trump experience can't just be undone—we are a different country now, and we're not going back to the status quo before his presidency. Plus, wa...
Will Saletan: The Guts to Tell the Truth
02 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Chris Christie makes clear he's not dropping out, because Nikki Haley is not the one we've been waiting for. Plus, with House Republicans signaling th...
The Day After: The Night My Father Scared America
22 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
ABC's The Day After, the 1983 drama about a nuclear strike on America, was the most-watched movie in television history. It had a profound impact on ...
Sam Wasson: A Francis Ford Coppola Story
21 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Coppola is like a Method actor behind the camera—living the movie to make the movie. For The Godfather, he became like a godfather. And most famousl...
Yair Rosenberg: Israel Is Not a White Colonial Project
20 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The left is lazily applying American ideas about racial identity and intersectionality to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The Atlantic's Yair Rosenb...
Anne Applebaum: The Irreparable Damage of a Second Term
19 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Anne Applebaum discusses a ray of hope in Europe with the defeat of Poland's authoritarian government, while also contemplating the consequences for N...
Will Saletan: Trump Is Anti-America
18 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
On the stump in New Hampshire, Trump parroted Putin condemning the American political system. Plus, the tension among Democrats over Israel, Christie ...
Ready for 2024?
15 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
It was a year of heroes and zeros, highs and lows, and shocks and fizzles. Mona Charen, A.B. Stoddard, and Will Saletan join Charlie Sykes for a speci...
Jack Smith Calls Trump's Bluff
14 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The special counsel is short-circuiting Trump's foot-dragging strategy and mining his phone data to uncover a mountain of new evidence against the ex-...
Where Have All the Democrats Gone?
13 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Democrats used to be the party of the common man and woman, but they have taken a back seat to Hollywood, Silicon Valley, and Wall Street. In the proc...
David Frum: A Dark Path
12 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
If Trump wins, the first crime of his second term will be committing perjury—when he swears to defend the Constitution. Plus, Republicans aren't rea...
Will Saletan: Political Delusion
11 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Kevin swears that Trump will stop with the retribution talk. Meanwhile, the aspiring dictator says it's a hoax that Democrats call him a threat to dem...
Tim Alberta: American Idolatry
08 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Is the Almighty, who made heaven and earth, also biting his nails over next year's election? Tim Alberta joins Charlie Sykes to discuss the evangelica...
A.B. Stoddard: No One Feared Kevin
07 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
And now no one is afraid of Mike Johnson—so he won't be able to lead either. Plus, a Christie-Haley alliance is starting to materialize, Marjorie Ta...
Liz Cheney: A Clear and Present Danger
06 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Donald Trump will never be the lesser of two evils. We must unite, look beyond partisanship, and vote in ways that will maintain the republic. Liz Che...
Philip Bump: The GOP Stumbles Towards Impeachment
05 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The smoking gun turns out to be a dud, but James Comer and the Republicans move ahead on their evidence-free Biden impeachment inquiry. The Washington...
Will Saletan: The #MeToo Fail
04 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The progressives both-sidesing the sexual violence against Israeli women and girls has only added to the horrors of the Israel-Hamas conflict. Plus, T...
Adam Kinzinger: Why Trump 2.0 Will Be Worse
01 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Trump wants to weaponize the office of the presidency, and who would stop him? We have a built-in weakness of basing our constitutional norms on the h...
The Banality of Crazy
30 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
From Elon to Trump to Kanye, public decompensation is a part of our culture now. Plus, Georgia's inadequate investigation of the potential Trump-relat...
Michael Steele: The GOP's Humiliation Kink
29 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This is the era of political humiliation: From Kevin nursing Trump back to health after Jan 6, to dominatrixes who get paid to mock your political vie...
David French: It's a Cult
28 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Don't underestimate the power of the belief that Trump is part of a prophecy for many evangelicals. And don't underestimate the general lack of knowle...
Will Saletan: Trump’s Pee-wee Herman Moment
27 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Trump wants you to know that he remembers who the president is. Plus, the asymmetry in the hostage-prisoner exchanges, linking reform of asylum rules ...
Amir Tibon: Terrible Choices for Israel
24 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Hamas triggered the Gaza war—and signed the death warrants of thousands of Palestinians—when it purposefully targeted civilians on 10/7. Israeli j...
We Are Living in a Post-Rational World
22 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
A disconnect from reality has descended on the US: Republicans practice fantasy politics day and night, Trump is out to paint Biden as corrupt, and Am...
Karen Tumulty: The Sununu Effect in New Hampshire
21 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
New Hampshire voters are famously contrarian, and the non-MAGA set is showing up for Haley and Christie ahead of the first-in-the-nation primary. Plus...
Will Saletan: The Annihilation of Truth
20 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
We are in an age where internet randos are beating out reality. Plus, Haley's abortion dance, the cowardice of DeSantis, another Biden panic poll, and...
The Bulwark Live, with Brian Stelter
17 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Fox launched the Big Lie based on a random email from a woman in Minnesota who heard voices in the supermarket. And its viewers wanted to be told that...
Too Crazy for Rudy
16 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
One person we can be certain will not be called as a witness in Georgia: nutty Sidney Powell. Plus, the unsettled Trump trial calendar, one way we may...
Peter Wehner: A Polite Zealot
15 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
We may have averted a government shutdown for the moment, but the new speaker of the House believes dinosaurs were on Noah's Ark. Pete Wehner joins Ch...
George Conway: Trump Knows He's a Criminal
14 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Deep down, Trump knows the truth, and is running again to stay out jail—just like authoritarian leaders do in other countries. Plus, the new non-MAG...
Will Saletan: Punish the Vermin
13 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Very powerful and strong Donald Trump is promising his supporters the freedom to go after the people they don't like if he returns to the White House....
Flooding the Zone
10 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Jack Smith's office filed an epic motion this week laying out the central role of Trump's lies in the election subversion case. Meanwhile, the ex-POTU...
A.B. Stoddard: Insane and Surreal
09 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Trump wants to melt the constitutional order, but NBC didn't bother to ask the also-rans about that at their debate. Meanwhile, Vivek would've embarra...
Greg Lukianoff: The Canceling of the American Mind
08 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
When Gen Z began attending college and demanding protection from speech, the left argued that cancel culture was a myth. But now that the anti-Zionism...
Cassidy Hutchinson: Why I Testified
07 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Next year's election is not a vote for a Democrat or a Republican: It's a vote for the survival of our nation. Cassidy Hutchinson joins Charlie Sykes ...
Will Saletan: Don't Panic
06 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Recent polls have some Democrats reverting to bed-wetting, Christie calls out the deplorables, and Scalise is an election-denying weasel. Plus, Biden ...
Tim Miller: Trump Keeps Telling Us
03 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Trump is glorifying insurrectionist prisoners, Bannon-world is using Confederate code words, and Republicans and a lot of the media are just pretendin...
McKay Coppins: The Last Temptation of Mitt Romney
02 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Romney's journey from the party's standard-bearer to its pariah is also a story of the dramatic transformation of the GOP. And his nomination in 2012 ...
Insurrection and Its Consequences
01 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
A Colorado case will determine whether Trump should be kept off the ballot there because of that annoying little insurrection issue. Plus, founding fa...
Adam Kinzinger: Renegade
31 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The former congressman says he wasn't always fighting the good fight, and that he feels some responsibility for the GOP's descent into dysfunction—a...
Our Exhausted Politics
30 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Trump talked about a new Muslim ban and the media barely covered it. Meanwhile, the House only could choose a pro-coup speaker. The biggest danger to ...
Josh Kraushaar: The Pro-Hamas Left
27 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The vast majority of Democrats support Israel, but a very loud, younger segment on the left is lending its support to the terrorist group Hamas—with...
The Bulwark: Live from New Orleans
26 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sarah, Mona, and Sonny join Tim in The Big Easy to talk about new Speaker Mike Johnson, Biden, Israel, and left-wing antisemitism.
Flipping Is in the Air
25 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Jenna Ellis will not be the last flip in Georgia, former Trump water carrier Michael Cohen testifies about the fudged books, and the confusing case of...
Jonathan Martin: The Antibodies Resisting the Virus
24 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Remnants of the pre-Trump party are hanging on and putting the brakes on MAGA in the House, B-lister lawyer Jenna Ellis shows her deep loyalty to Trum...
The GOP Is a Failed State
23 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
House Republicans don't have a platform, and in the absence of Trump, they can't pull together. Plus, the anti-Israel left vs Biden, and the fallout f...
John Avlon: Is the Center Finding Its Spine?
20 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Republican threats and bullying have finally gone too far when it comes to Jim Jordan. But what about the red line that has to be crossed for stable g...
A Bad Day for the Kraken
19 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sidney Powell pleaded guilty and agreed to testify for the state in Georgia—Trump's legal woes just took a turn for the worse. Plus, Jim Jordan's ba...
Ryan Reilly: The Sleuths Who Helped Nab Jan 6 Rioters
18 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Ordinary Americans pored through reams of digital evidence to ID hundreds of people who stormed the Capitol. And in the process, the sedition hunters ...
Kara Swisher: Jim Jordan, Legislative Terrorist
17 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Jim Jordan spent the weekend bullying moderates, but threatening shame on social media and Fox may not be enough. Plus, narcissistic tech bros and the...
Will Saletan: Don't Forget Who Jim Jordan Is
16 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Jordan was not just another Republican who voted against the election—he was behind the scenes in strategy meetings plotting how to keep the electio...
Tom Nichols: Testing the System 'Til It Breaks
13 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The Republicans elevated fringe players who have no interest in governing, and now they don't have enough members to get the House functioning again. ...
An Undue Risk of Conviction
12 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Jack Smith signaled he will be able to prove why Trump held onto the classified documents. Plus, Trump’s claim of presidential immunity, chaos in th...
Susan Glasser: A Superpower in Crisis
11 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The U.S. is knee-deep in the war in Ukraine, and now another potentially enormous war in the Mideast may draw us in. At the same time, military and am...
Steve Inskeep: Kevin Is No Lincoln
10 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Lincoln's political skills were a key part of his legacy, but the politics he practiced were not like today's base-oriented version. He didn't demoniz...
Will Saletan: Israel's 9/11
09 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The attack by Hamas on Israel was barbaric, but the incursion—by land, sea, and air—was also sophisticated. And it was an Israeli intel failure. M...
The GOP’s Rubik’s Cube for Morons
06 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The Republicans have been on a trajectory to get a Jim Jordan-style speaker for 11 years, and the Democrats couldn’t have stopped it. Plus, Liz Chen...
The Crazed Slavering Jackal Caucus
05 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The Crazed Slavering Jackal Caucus is running the GOP. Plus, Giuliani's drinking may undermine Trump's defense in the Jan 6 case, Fani Willis gets her...
Tim O'Brien: The Hollow Men
04 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Kevin McCarthy aspired to the speakership for his resume, not because of legislative talents. In the end, he was a victim of hubris. And in NYC, Trump...
Dana Milbank: The Chair Was Already Vacant
03 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Kevin McCarthy hasn't been doing much of anything all year as speaker, except lurching from crisis to crisis and leading from behind. Meanwhile, Trump...
Will Saletan: Everybody Hates Matt Gaetz
02 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The bipartisan loathing of Gaetz is almost a kumbaya moment. Meanwhile, Trump likes to say the US is turning into a third world country, and he's work...
David Frum: The Kraken Is Never Coming
29 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The first impeachment hearing was panned on both sides, while House Republicans keep promising a new unicorn. Plus, the GOP is not going to follow Tru...
A.B. Stoddard: A Completely Pointless Debate
28 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The kids' table debate was a cacophony of speed talking, interruptions, and yelling. Plus, Milley responds to the death threat, more Dems tell Menende...
Trump’s Empire of Fraud
27 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The ex-POTUS has been put out of business in New York, after his fraud was found so overwhelming that no trial was needed. Meanwhile, his lawyers are ...
Will Saletan: The Politics of Atonement
26 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Cassidy Hutchinson atones. Bob Menendez refuses. Plus: the government shutdown about nothing. And MAGA’s war on (checks notes) Taylor Swift. Will ...
Trump Ever After: Live from TribFest
25 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Olivia Nuzzi, Bret Stephens, and Ben Terris joined Charlie Sykes on stage in Austin over the weekend. While the Dems have Gretchen Whitmer to look for...
Yascha Mounk: The Identity Trap
22 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Our democratic order is facing a two-front war. While the immediate crisis may be from the right, the left is presenting its own threats—which only ...
A Raging Bull Elephant
21 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Trump is trying to intimidate witnesses and jurors in the election case, and Chutkan's only remedy may be to move up the trial date. Plus, Republicans...
Manu Raju: The Hostage Crisis on Capitol Hill
20 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
House Republicans are bickering and calling each other names, while the Matt Gaetz caucus threatens to hold the country hostage with a government shut...
Ruy Teixeira: Biden’s Working Class Blues
19 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The system feels rigged for the millionaires and the billionaires, and the populist red lights are flashing for 2024. Can the Democrats get back to be...
Will Saletan: In Defense of Kristen Welker
18 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Trump threw the pro-life movement under the bus in his NBC interview, and essentially pleaded the Fifth on Jan 6. Plus, Jack Smith wants a gag order...
Anne Applebaum: Musk Buys Russia’s Lies
15 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The billionaire was duped by Russian nuclear propaganda, but he's not the only one in the West who worries about provoking Russia by helping Ukraine. ...
Did the FBI Get a Pass on Jan 6?
14 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Romney's text message to Mitch McConnell renews questions about what law enforcement knew ahead of the attack on the Capitol. Plus, the weak counter-p...
A.B. Stoddard: McCarthy's Month from Hell
13 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The speaker is trying to sate the MAGA wing with a sham impeachment, and maybe a government shutdown, but it will never be satisfied. Plus, Ignatius s...
James Hohmann: Kevin in a Vise
12 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
McCarthy has caved on an impeachment inquiry so he can hold onto his gavel. Meanwhile, Congress should really be investigating Elon Musk's power as a ...
Will Saletan: Lying Dog-Faced Pony Soldier
11 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Biden giving a press conference while jet-lagged may not quell rising concerns about his age. Plus, Kamala sticks to the script on abortion, Trump can...
Tim Miller: Down to Clown
08 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Tucker is in some corner of Elon's basement testing to see what he can get away with, while Elon is cozying up with Putin. Plus, Santos' oppo on himse...
Trump Keeps Admitting His Crimes
07 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Trump did himself no favors talking to Hugh Hewitt, the Proud Boys could've spared themselves a lot of prison time, the Fulton case may move quickly, ...
Adam Kinzinger: Trump Ignited the Proud Boys
06 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Never forget it was Donald Trump telling the Proud Boys to "stand back and stand by" which ultimately set Jan 6 in motion. And now he's retconning tha...
Will Saletan: The Hammer Philosophy of Governing
05 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Republican leaders in Wisconsin sound like they're planning an end-run around democracy, Musk is running with one of the oldest antisemitic tropes in ...
Tim Miller: Heroes and Zeroes of the GOP
01 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
How different would things be if other Republicans had stood up to MAGA like the way Kemp did for Fani Willis? Plus, Ted Cruz tried on beer-swilling t...
Justice for Ruby and Shaye
31 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Giuliani is going to pay $$$$ for defaming Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss—and Trump may too, for his financial statements in New York. Meanwhile, ex-PO...
Mike Murphy: The Psychopath vs The Cynic
30 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Does cynical Nikki Haley have the guts to run an edgier campaign? Plus, Vivek's Hermain Cain moment, Iowa's unpredictable caucus voters, and the denia...
2024 Will Be a Train Wreck
29 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
From Trump's court calendar to concerns about Biden's age, we may be underestimating how bad next year could be. Plus, Mark Meadows' dubious claims ab...
Charlie and Will Monday: Vivek’s BS
28 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The new hotness, Ramaswamy, is serving up a load of bull. Plus, the risks of our political gerontocracy, the mug shot heard 'round the world, and of c...
Tim Miller: We Told You So
25 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
We were always going to get this first-of-its-kind presidential portrait. What else would you expect from a con man and a criminal? But this is all be...
A.B. Stoddard: A Pointless Exercise?
24 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
At Wednesday's debate, Ramaswamy touched all the MAGA erogenous zones, Haley had a great night while Tim Scott did not, and DeSantis seemed to shrink ...
When the Hammer Comes Down
23 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Almost nothing concentrates the mind more than an indictment, so expect other minor players in Trumpland—especially in Georgia—to flip on the don....
Tom Nichols: Our Surreal Moment
22 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Trump's co-defendants don't even dispute what they're accused of doing—they just claim it wasn't illegal. Plus, will the debate penetrate Fox's herm...
Joe Perticone and Mona Charen: Trusting the Chronic Liar over the Pastor
21 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The base gives Trump higher marks for speaking truth than they give to religious leaders, Vivek will be targeted at the debate, DeSantis turns on MA...
DeSantis’s WTF Memo
18 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The governor of Florida is being treated like a low-IQ child. Meanwhile, Trump hasn't been treated like the common criminal he is: mugshot him, weigh ...
Thumbprints on a Conspiracy?
17 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Could Trump have been dumb enough to use Twitter DMs for his plot? Plus, the dangers of not fearing the law, the politics of four indictments, and the...