Bulwark+ Takes

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com Sam Stein is joined by Matthew MacWilliams to discuss his foreshadowing 2016 article in Politico Magazine linking support for Donald Trump to authoritarian tendencies. They discuss how fear activates authoritarian dispositions, the role of social media in amplifying Trump’s message, the dangers of America’s current dr...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com Michael Fanone nearly lost his life defending the Capitol on January 6. Now, he’s watching in disbelief as Trump pardons rioters, grants Ashley Babbitt full military honors, and even parades the military through DC like a strongman. Fanone calls it what it is: a betrayal of the oath he swore to defend the Constitution...

Maryland’s Democratic governor Wes Moore is not known, exactly, as a brass knuckles guy. And when Donald Trump won office in the fall of 2024, he didn’t plan to become one, even as he recognized that life would become much harder for Democrats like himself. But recent events have tested Moore’s approach. It’s not just that Trump is now threatening to withhold bridge funds for his state because Moo...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com Iowa is cracking: Democrats are winning surprise races, Trump’s faux populism is backfiring, and health care cuts are fueling backlash. Candidate Josh Turek, a prairie populist with firsthand experience of social safety nets, is taking the fight to Joni Ernst and billionaire-driven politics. Josh Turek for Iowa As alw...

Sam Stein, Jonathan Cohn and Dan Diamond (Washington Post) discuss the chaos at the CDC. From Dr. Demetre Daskalakis’s blistering letter slamming RFK Jr. to a wave of departures that put America’s health security at risk, they cover the breaking fallout and what it means going forward. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, v...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com A gunman opened fire at a Catholic school in Minneapolis, killing two children and injuring seventeen others. Sam Stein takes on what happened, the response from city officials, and what this tragedy says about America’s ongoing struggle with gun violence. As always: Watch, listen, and leave a comment. Bulwark+ Takes...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com Taylor and Travis were a bright spot until Charlie Kirk made it weird. JVL and Sarah Longwell show how his shift into "submit to your husband" politics reveals the insecurity behind the MAGA movement's obsession with "trad." As always: Watch, listen, and leave a comment. Bulwark+ Takes is home to short videos, livestr...

Tim Miller and Sam Stein react to Donald Trump’s marathon three-hour cabinet meeting where he made several references to himself being a dictator, cabinet members sucked up to comical levels, and RFK talked about windmills and whales. As always: Watch, listen, and leave a comment. Bulwark+ Takes is home to short videos, livestreams, and event archives exclusively for Bulwark+ members. Don’t care f...

Tim Miller joins Nicolle Wallace on MSNBC's Deadline: White House to take on Donald Trump’s attempted firing of Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, the rise of Bill Pulte as a MAGA enforcer inside government, Trump’s mounting autocratic incentives, the hypocrisy of GOP leaders on election control, and new revelations around Alex Acosta and the Epstein files. As always: Watch, listen, and leave a c...

Tim Miller, Sam Stein, and Will Sommer go play-by-play, blow-by-blow, grab-by-grab in the MAGA fight between Bryson Gray and Misfit Patriot at the Turning Point USA conference in Phoenix. As always: Watch, listen, and leave a comment. Bulwark+ Takes is home to short videos, livestreams, and event archives exclusively for Bulwark+ members. Don’t care for video? Use the controls on the left side of...

Trump is bragging that his tariffs “saved $4 trillion” but it’s pure fake math. The CBO report he cites was twisted beyond recognition, while the reality is tariffs are taxes on us the consumers, inflation is rising, and the deficit is still exploding. As always: Watch, listen, and leave a comment. Bulwark+ Takes is home to short videos, livestreams, and event archives exclusively for Bulwark+ mem...

Tim Miller and JVL take on Trump’s flag-burning executive order, the absurd “one year in jail” claim, and how even Barstool hosts are against it. As always: Watch, listen, and leave a comment. Bulwark+ Takes is home to short videos, livestreams, and event archives exclusively for Bulwark+ members. Don’t care for video? Use the controls on the left side of the player to toggle to audio. Add Bulwark...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com Lauren Egan talks with Terry Virts, the former astronaut and fighter pilot running for Senate in Texas. Virts says he won’t back Chuck Schumer, calls Donald Trump a fascist, and argues Democrats need to refocus on middle class issues to win. Check out more from Virts here: terryvirts.com As always: Watch, listen, and...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com Donald Trump says he’s firing Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook. He claims that she falsified mortgage records, though she’s never been charged with wrongdoing and was confirmed by the Senate. Tim Miller and economics reporter Ben Walsh break down what this move means, whether Trump even has the legal authority to do...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com Sam Stein and Andrew Egger take on new developments in the Kilmar Abrego Garcia case and the heartbreaking story of a Massachusetts mom with four kids both devastating cases that left families broken and afraid. As always: Watch, listen, and leave a comment. Bulwark+ Takes is home to short videos, livestreams, and eve...

Tim Miller and JVL take on Trump once again floating the idea of a “dictatorship” while his allies cheer him on. As always: Watch, listen, and leave a comment. Bulwark+ Takes is home to short videos, livestreams, and event archives exclusively for Bulwark+ members. Don’t care for video? Use the controls on the left side of the player to toggle to audio. Add Bulwark+ Takes feed to your player of ch...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com Sam Stein and Andrew Egger take on Trump’s latest meltdown after Maryland Governor Wes Moore invited him to walk the streets of Baltimore and see the city’s progress on crime. Trump threatened to “take back” federal bridge funds and even floated sending troops into Baltimore. As always: Watch, listen, and leave a comm...

Bree Fram joins Bill Kristol to discuss the escalating attacks on transgender Americans—from the removal of federal health care benefits to subpoenas for hospital records and even reports of the Department of Justice searching VA files for evidence of transition. What does this mean for trans service members and for the broader assault on trans lives? Support Bree and her work at militarytransrigh...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com Senator Catherine Cortez Masto joins Lauren Egan to talk about how Democrats can actually win in swing states — and what it will take to beat Donald Trump. From grocery prices to border security, she argues that moderation and voter engagement are the key to victory. As always: Watch, listen, and leave a comment. Bulw...

Trump’s latest press conference was pure chaos: he joked about renaming the Kennedy Center after himself, called the Epstein files a “Democrat hoax,” gushed over a signed photo from Putin, and bragged about sending masked federal police into Chicago and New York. He even mocked his own allies like Kristi Noem while wearing a hat that read “Trump Was Right About Everything.” As always: Watch, liste...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com Tim Miller sits down with Congressman Greg Landsman (D-OH) to discuss his bold new plan to reframe the Democratic Party’s message: a “Pledge to America.” Inspired by Newt Gingrich’s “Contract with America,” Landsman argues Democrats must stop running as simply the anti-Trump party and start addressing core issues head...

Tim Miller joins MSNBC’s The Beat With Ari Melber and The 11th Hour to take on JD Vance’s defense of Trump’s unpopular economic bill and its hidden healthcare cuts, the stagnant Trump economy, Republican redistricting power grabs, and MAGA's authoritarian theater on the National Mall. As always: Watch, listen, and leave a comment. Bulwark+ Takes is home to short videos, livestreams, and event arch...

Tim Miller, JVL, Mona Charen and George Conway reacted live to the breaking news that John Bolton, former national security adviser, had his home raided by the FBI on August 22, 2025. George Conway was live on the scene. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thebulwark.com/subscribe

Tim Miller and Andrew Egger take on Trump’s lawless TikTok play. The White House just launched an official account even though the platform was supposed to be banned under U.S. law — a ban upheld 9–0 by the Supreme Court. Trump shrugs it off, admits he’s doing it to chase young voters, and meanwhile creators say TikTok is censoring anti-Trump voices. As always: Watch, listen, and leave a comment....

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com Sonny, JVL, and Hannah Yoest take on the Cracker Barrel rebrand, from the missing barrel man to the minimalist junk drawer décor. Is this about chasing Gen Z, corporate blandness, or American nostalgia gone wrong? As always: Watch, listen, and leave a comment. Bulwark+ Takes is home to short videos, livestreams, and e...