Stuart Stevens: Republicans Are Desperate

The cozy White House Correspondents' Dinner, where Trump joked around with reporters, was only in July. But now he's ripping away press credentials and setting up state-run media. Sarah scolds the WHCA for bending the knee to Trump to begin with. And recent Italian history even foreshadowed the Trump era. Jason, in his new book, explains how Silvio Berlusconi learned how to become the central character in the media. The more he was talked about, the more powerful he became—and the more his opposition became trapped. Plus: a case study of Giorgia Meloni, her love of the hobbits, her opposition to Trump, and the rise of far-right populism in Italy. Also, a little hopium for Texas turning blue. And today's Republicans will always choose power over the interests of women. Sarah Matthews and The New York Times' Jason Horowitz join Tim Miller.show notes: Brendan on watching six straight hours of Trump TV Sarah on MAGA world trying to save Max Miller Jason's new book, "The Italian Job" Catch Tim's TNL rant on George W. Bush Nicole Bassett's Oregeon state senate campaign site BJ's Lounge in NOLA Go to https://zbiotics.com/thebulwark and use THEBULWARK at checkout for 15% off any first time orders of ZBiotics probiotics.

The party has been busy playing defense in Trump states, and now comes the news that Susan Collins is corrupt on top of being a loyal MAGA supplicant. More Democrats should walk with Ossoff's swagger and keep their message simple: attack Trump on his corruption and the war. (And in colder climes, the price of heating oil.) Meanwhile, subpoenas over Trump Jr.'s Russian mobster-funded wedding are coming, and even some Republicans are likely to get on board. Plus: Ukraine is showing how to fight wars now and how the U.S. under Trump and Hegseth is not ready. And Tim keeps his promise and puts on a hair shirt after LSU's loss to Ole Miss. Stuart Stevens joins Tim Miller.show notes: ProPublica’s reporting on Susan Collins Lauren on how Dems are dealing with the Republicans’ huge war chest Tim’s interview with Wright Thompson last week Stuart’s books, including “The Conspiracy to End America” and “The Last Season” Stuart on performance-enhancing drugs The Bulwark’s campaign to help the Haitian community of Springfield The Bulwark store Head to https://forkfulmeals.com/thebulwark for 50% off your first order today!

As Trump’s war of choice continues to expand in the Middle East, it’s clear that the president is desperate not to show how weak he really is. The administration is out of time and out of both strategic and rhetorical options in Iran. Another sign that he is flailing: Trump is trying to ban CNN, MS NOW, and Politico from the White House press pool. But other TV outlets are pushing back in solidarity, forcing Trump to choose between two of his favorite things: punishing his critics and dominating the airwaves. Plus why the triumphal arch would be the silliest possible place for a military installation, Trump’s American Idol-style vote on what to call AI, and the unaddressed, ongoing education crisis.Sitting in for Bill Kristol, Andrew Egger joins Tim Miller on the Monday pod.show notes: Tim’s conversation about the latest AI news with Stephen Witt Tim and JVL’s 2023 conversation with Reid Hoffman Andrew in today’s “Morning Shots” on AI Dan Selsam’s statement Nikole Hannah-Jones on her daughter’s public school education The Bulwark’s campaign to help the Haitian community of Springfield The Bulwark Store Song of the Day: MJ Lenderman - “She’s Leaving You” For a limited time, get 60% off your first order, plus free shipping, when you head to Smalls.com/THEBULWARK.

In Greenland, the Trump administration has got tech bros and hedge fund guys running an influence operation there. The aim may be to fulfill Trump's territorial ambitions—or to create a sovereign state run by CEOs. In Venezuela, the administration is imperialistically seizing its gold, oil and other assets with no oversight. And in Brazil, the White House is trying to bring the Bolsonaro family back to power—which may or may not have something to do with Elon being angry about the country's tech regulation laws. In Trump 2.0, informal envoys, private companies, and hardened ideologues are turning American diplomacy upside down. Plus: Putin has played Kushner like a fiddle, don't let the story of Don Jr.'s Russian gangster-funded wedding die, new additions to the Applebaum book club, and we're going to have to bulldoze the ballroom.Anne Applebaum joins Tim Miller for the weekend pod. show notes: Anne’s Atlantic cover story, “Empire of Grift” “Whistler: A Novel,” Anne's latest book recommendation Tim’s book recommendation, “The Disappearers: A Novel” The Bulwark’s campaign to help the Haitian community of Springfield The Bulwark store Tim’s playlist Closing song - War on Drugs - “Suffering” Try ZipRecruiter to post your job FOR FREE at http://ziprecruiter.com/BULWARK4 out of 5 employers who post on ZipRecruiter get a quality candidate within the first day.

Republicans are reeling, the vibes are shifting, and the wave is building. Jesse serves up a particularly optimistic view of the Democrats' chances in the midterms, with even stretch districts now in play. And ahead of Saturday's Ole Miss-LSU game, Wright shares how Mississippians are responding to the gutting of the Voting Rights Act and says that conservative farmers in the state are turning on MAGA. Plus, the love of a father and Ole Miss football, some Magnolia Bowl lore, why 1956 is the linchpin year in college sports history, and predicting the hate ratio on Saturday in Oxford. Wright Thompson and Jesse Lehrich join Tim Miller.show notes: Wright's books, including "The Barn" and "The Cost of These Dreams" Wright's ESPN piece on Friday will post here Jesse's "Nobody Knows Anything" podcast "Nobody's Listening," Jesse's newsletter Campaign site for Eliott Rodriguez, Maria Elvira Salazar's opponent Erick Erickson piece Tim mentioned Bulwark LIVE: Benefit for Springfield The Bulwark Store Try ZipRecruiter to post your job FOR FREE at http://ziprecruiter.com/BULWARK4 out of 5 employers who post on ZipRecruiter get a quality candidate within the first day.

The Fed raised interest rates to curb inflation, as expected, but mortgage rates are surging and flailing Scott Bessent remains the treasury secretary. Meanwhile, the alarm raised in the AI community is not an op despite the backlash from people like Nvidia's Jensen Huang, who seems to get everything he wants from Donald Trump. Plus, the Europeans who once parked their gold in the US to hide it from the Nazis are now trying to protect it from Trump. Catherine Rampell and Stephen Witt join Tim Miller.show notes: Subscribe to Catherine Rampell's Receipts podcast and newsletter on Substack or follow her new show wherever you get your podcasts: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube | More  Stephen's "This Is Really Bad" piece in the NYT Stephen's "The Thinking Machine," about Nvidia and Jensen Huang The latest episode of "The Next Level" Dan Selsam's statement on Twitter that Tim read from "If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies," the book Stephen mentioned Huang's "impromptu" phone call with Trump Closing song - Orville Peck - It's the End of the World 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 Bulwark LIVE: Benefit for SpringfieldSome moments require you to step up. Some require you to show up. That’s why The Bulwark is coming to Ohio.  Join Tim, Sarah, JVL, Sam and friends Friday, September 25 at the Dayton Masonic Center for an evening of politics and fellowship.

The co-author of the signature book inside Trump 2.0 says the media only knows 5% of what is happening inside the administration—particularly when it comes to national security, the money-making, and the self-dealing. Jonathan does have new reporting about how the administration keeps pretending that our military is not running low on long-range missiles. In reality, the war is costing us a month's worth of Patriots almost every day. Plus: Stephen Miller has become the White House's resident kingmaker, why Trump is turbocharged on AI, and some contentious moments when Tim and Jonathan discuss how to characterize JD's divergent private and public posturing on the war.Jonathan Swan joins Tim Miller.show notes: Jonathan’s “Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump” The Bulwark’s campaign to help the Haitian community of Springfield Closing Song - MJ Lenderman - She's Leaving You Get 15% off OneSkin with the code BULWARK at https://www.oneskin.co/BULWARK#oneskinpod Bulwark LIVE: Benefit for SpringfieldSome moments require you to step up. Some require you to show up. That’s why The Bulwark is coming to Ohio. Join Tim, Sarah, JVL, Sam and friends Friday, September 25 at the Dayton Masonic Center for an evening of politics and fellowship.

A Putin bestie who's involved with the kidnapping of Ukrainian children bankrolled Don Jr.'s island wedding for some mysterious reason. Kushner is calling on Ukraine to give in to Putin's territorial demands. And Trump himself is blaming Zelensky for the high cost of diesel even though prices shot up after Trump launched his war of choice. It's the whole Trump family that tends to remind us of their close ties to Russia, Russia, Russia. Meanwhile, POTUS is not troubled by China's involvement with the death of U.S. soldiers in the Mideast. Plus: Adam Hamilton in Kansas was on fire in his debate with Roger Marshall, the list of horrible Republican candidates keeps growing, and the fears about AI have broken wide open.Bill Kristol joins Tim Miller. show notes: ProPublica on the Russian oligarch bankrolling Don Jr.'s wedding The Bulwark's campaign to help the Haitian community of Springfield Tim's 'Take' on the debate between Mary Peltola and Dan Sullivan Bill in "Morning Shots" on AI fears The NYT on Roger Marshall suing patients for debts The Trio 'Take' on Brandon Herrera The Bulwark Store Get 20% off your DeleteMe plan when you go to www.joindeleteme.com/BULWARK and use promo code BULWARK at checkout. Bulwark LIVE: Benefit for SpringfieldSome moments require you to step up. Some require you to show up. That’s why The Bulwark is coming to Ohio.  Join Tim, Sarah, JVL, Sam and friends Friday, September 25 at the Dayton Masonic Center for an evening of politics and fellowship.

Rudy Giuliani and others who purport to represent the families of 9/11 victims ginned up the idea that it would be wrong for the Muslim mayor of NYC to attend Friday's memorial at ground zero. Republican politicians and Laura Loomer keep pushing their trash Islamification conspiracy. And a law-abiding Muslim family has been imprisoned for five months because Rubio declared them a national security threat—and most of the media could care less. At the same time, Tucker has a new, large Muslim fan base because they like what he's saying about Gaza and the Palestinians, even though he's a solid anti-Muslim bigot who just hates the Jews more right now. Plus: Trump seems to really like communism, JD has never publicly said he opposes the Iran war but he keeps leaking that he's against the administration's signature foreign policy initiative, and Hunter is a crypto-scamming mess.Mehdi Hasan joins Tim Miller for the weekend pod. show notes: Mehdi’s Zeteo news site Tim’s piece for the 20th anniversary of 9/11 Tim on the Iranian family Marco is imprisoning The Bulwark store Tim’s playlist Closing song - Orville Peck - It's the End of the World Bulwark LIVE: Benefit for SpringfieldSome moments require you to step up. Some require you to show up. That’s why The Bulwark is coming to Ohio. Join Tim, Sarah, JVL, Sam and friends Friday, September 25 at the Dayton Masonic Center for an evening of politics and fellowship.Benefit for OhioAll profits from this event will be donated to those in Springfield who are in need. Own your health for $365 a year. That’s a dollar a day. Learn more and join using my link. Visit www.functionhealth.com/BULWARK and use gift code BULWARK25 for a $25 credit toward your membership.”

As Sarah explains in her new book, Trump has been so successful teaching a new generation of Republicans about the political value of vice signaling that Nazi talk and racism has become the norm among young MAGA edgelords. Disdain for women is also a key element. One former true believer, Pedro, says the right sees all of Trump's corruption and abuse of power as justified because he's focused on the country's true enemies: brown people, immigrants, and their white allies. And Vance buddying up to the racists shows that he is the real heir apparent to Trump. Plus, Tucker is not well, Trump keeps lying about handing out money, Pence can't seem to come to terms with how he enabled this moment we're in, and Pedro's anti-Tim tweets before his Road to Damascus moment.Sarah Longwell and Pedro Gonzalez join Tim Miller.show notes: Sarah's book, "How to Eat an Elephant: One Voter at a Time" Pedro's Substack Pedro's piece in The Nation The Bulwark, including Tim, live tonight on YouTube or Substack Cormac McCarthy's "The Road," mentioned by Pedro Bulwark LIVE: Benefit for SpringfieldSome moments require you to step up. Some require you to show up. That’s why The Bulwark is coming to Ohio. Join Tim, Sarah, JVL, Sam and friends Friday, September 25 at the Dayton Masonic Center for an evening of politics and fellowship. - TICKET INFO