Bulwark Takes

Tim Miller joins Nicolle Wallace to discuss a stunning new reality: Americans are leaving the country at record levels, the U.S. may be facing population decline, and Trump’s “golden age” looks more like national humiliation. From the Qatari jet embarrassment to foreign-backed media consolidation and escalating tensions with Iran, the conversation covers how corruption, chaos, and bad optics are c...

Donald Trump isn’t just attacking voter ID opponents—he’s laying the groundwork to reject the midterms if Republicans lose. Will Saletan traces the throughline from 2020 to now: the claim that Democrats can only win by cheating, the endless escalation from voter ID to reopening old elections, and the growing chorus inside the GOP repeating the same message.

Sam Stein, JVL, Catherine Rampell, and Sonny Bunch respond to Paramount taking over Warner Bros. Discovery after Netflix walked away. The deal, still pending regulatory approvals, would put CNN, HBO, and CBS under one Trump-backed company.

Tim Miller and Andrew Egger give their takes on the shocking and strangely stylish White House visit by Zohran Mamdani, who met with Trump to discuss housing plans. They break down Mamdani’s strategy of engaging Trump directly, the optics of the now-viral meeting photo, and whether Mamdani managed to “mog” the president or simply played to Trump’s ego. Is Mamdani’s approach political genius, dange...

Tim Miller, Will Sommer and Sam Stein give their takes on down two of the strangest—and most troubling developments in MAGA media right now. First: Nick Shirley promotes a gross "documentary" targeting Jewish people and why anti-Semitic tropes keep surfacing in so-called investigative content. Then the trio goes deep on the premiere of Candace Owens’s “Bride of Charlie” series about Erika Kirk. Ow...

In a new edition of Command Post, Retired Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling and Ben Parker give their takes on Trump’s military-heavy State of the Union address, including Trump’s claim that Iran’s nuclear program was “obliterated” even as he suggests military action. They break down how the speech leaned more on ceremony and applause lines than on strategy, vision, or a clear explanation of U.S. national se...

Tim Miller is joined by reporter Roger Sollenberger to discuss Sollenberger’s reporting on Epstein-related records connected to Donald Trump. Roger breaks down the documents from a survivor who allegedly accused Trump of abuse as a minor, the interviews conducted by the FBI, and claims that portions of the investigative files were held by DOJ. They also examine document logs, slideshow materials l...

Sam Stein, Sonny Bunch, and Ben Parker give their takes on a Wall Street Journal story about a DC tax policy expert who made nearly $500,000 betting that Elon Musk wouldn’t actually cut federal spending, a wager that turned out to be almost free money. They break down how the bet worked, why it was such a lock, how political betting markets create openings for insider trading, and just how absurd...

After the State of the Union, Tim Miller spoke with Pete Buttigieg for a rapid-fire breakdown of the speech. They took on affordability, immigration, corruption, AI, corporate capitulation to Trump, and what Democrats need to do differently. Get 30% off your order with Soul at https://GetSoul.com with promo code BULWARKTAKES.

Join Sam Stein, Tim Miller, Andrew Egger Joe Perticone, and more for real-time reaction and analysis as President Trump delivers his State of the Union address. One more thing: special guest Pete Buttigieg will join the panel after the address.

Will Saletan gives his take on Donald Trump’s escalating war against anyone who refuses to show total loyalty, including his own appointees. After the Supreme Court ruled against Trump on tariffs, the president lashed out at the justices, even targeting justices he nominated. But it’s not just the Supreme Court, it’s also Jerome Powell, Republican senators, governors, and lawmakers who dared to ex...

Bill Kristol and Andrew Egger are going live to discuss Trump’s brutal poll numbers and the political stakes of his State of the Union address.

Candace Owens just dropped a trailer for her new “Bride of Charlie” series—and it is something else. Tim Miller and Will Sommer discuss the wild claims, the "handler" plotline, the Romania detour, and the right-wing civil war it’s fueling. Plus: Tucker Carlson’s latest White House visit, his clash with Mike Huckabee over Israel and Iran, and why parts of MAGA are threatening to revolt.

Sam Stein is joined by Drew Harwell of The Washington Post to talk about his reporting on one of the most disturbing viral stories of the year. Ben Palmer, a Nashville comedian, set up a fake ICE deportation tip line and watched as Americans flooded it with calls. The callers weren’t trolls. They were neighbors, coworkers, even a kindergarten teacher, calmly trying to get families deported. What b...

Sam Stein and Will Sommer go live to discuss the Kash Patel Olympics controversy—from the FBI jet questions to that now-viral hockey locker room moment. Plus: the blowback from Tucker Carlson’s sit-down with Mike Huckabee, and a James Fishback update after Byron Donalds labeled him a fake groyper.

Bill Kristol and Tim Miller go live on Sunday—fresh off their Minneapolis trip. Read JVL's The Triad newsletter, "What I Saw at the Battle of Minneapolis"

Sam Stein is joined by Columbia Heights Superintendent Zena Stenvik for a sobering conversation about what happened when ICE began targeting families in her school district. After multiple students were detained, including five-year-old Liam Ramos, Stenvik describes how her community mobilized, how schools shifted to online learning out of fear, and why she says “we can never normalize this.” It’s...

Catherine Rampell is joined by Obama’s former U.S. Trade Representative Mike Froman for his take on Friday’s landmark Supreme Court ruling that struck down Trump's emergency tariffs. They explore the implications of the court’s decision on executive power, the future of U.S. trade policy under Trump, and what it means for American consumers.

Tim Miller and Sonny Bunch give their takes on Trump’s bizarre temper tantrum after the Supreme Court ruled against his emergency tariffs. In weird mood lighting, Trump bashed the Supreme Court justices, announced new tariffs, and kept repeating stories about how much men want to kiss him.

Catherine Rampell and Andrew Egger take on the breaking news that the SCOTUS has blocked Trump's tariffs.

Sonny Bunch speaks with Andrew Jarecki and Charlotte Kaufman to discuss their Oscar-nominated documentary, The Alabama Solution. Currently streaming on HBO, their documentary combines interviews, investigative journalism, and footage from within the prisons themselves obtained via contraband cellphones to reveal the horrible and dangerous living conditions of those serving time in the Alabama corr...

In this edition of Command Post,” Ben Parker and Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling (Ret.) give their takes on the alarming report that Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth is blocking military promotions because one colonel worked for General Mark Milley, a former Trump adviser turned foe. Plus, the team breaks down the "toxic leadership" behind Kristi Noem’s Coast Guard scandal and why the Trump administration...

Andrew Egger and Jonathan Cohn give their takes on the stunning back-and-forth at the FDA over Moderna’s new mRNA flu vaccine, why the agency initially refused to even review the application, and what the sudden reversal says about political pressure inside the Trump administration’s health agencies.

Sam Stein and Will Sommer give their takes on the latest lawsuit against Steve Bannon. The suit alleges investors behind a pro-Trump meme coin that Bannon promoted saw $2.7 million in transaction fees meant for charity go missing. They break down how the “FJB Coin,” launched to capitalize on the “Let’s Go Brandon” movement, promised that a portion of every transaction would go to conservative-frie...

Tim Miller and JVL give their takes on the escalating drama at CBS. The Colbert-Talarico interview controversy is less about FCC fears and more about high-stakes merger politics tied to CBS’ fight to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery. They break down Bari Weiss’ role at CBS News, the internal fight over contributor Peter Attia following disgusting emails he sent to Jeffrey Epstein, and why Weiss drov...