Tommy Vietor: The 'Peace' President

Trump is overseeing extrajudicial killings off the coast of Venezuela but nothing was going to stop him from getting a peace prize—even if it’s a fake one from super highly reputable FIFA. He also helped himself to a federal agency that used to work on peace initiatives, but which Elon DOGE’d. Democrats should embrace the spirit of McCain and focus on the massive corruption in the administration around crypto, the ballroom, the pardons, and more. At the same time, the Dems have a disconnect between leaders and the base over Israel, Netanyahu, and AIPAC. Plus, Candace may be less worried about the French taking her out than she plays on her podcast, and Fox doesn’t seem like it’s rooting for war in Venezuela. Tommy Vietor joins Tim Miller for the weekend pod. show notes Tommy's podcast, "Pod Save the World"  Hillary on TikTok influencing young people's opinions on Israel  Ben Rhodes's piece on Israel in the NYT Tim's playlist Get 15% off OneSkin with the code BULWARK at https://www.oneskin.co/BULWARK #oneskinpod

Trump’s use of his pardon power is downright crazy, and that’s not even counting his rescue of a convicted drug kingpin. He’s also sabotaging his own redistricting plans in Texas by pardoning Rep. Henry Cuellar, and wasting taxpayer money absolving a sports executive who was indicted by his own Justice Department earlier this year. Meanwhile, down in NOLA, two men with a Napoleon complex are unleashing misery of the psychic and economic kind on the city through its ICE and Border Patrol operation. Plus, someone needs to scour the immigration history of Phil Mickelson’s family, and why is Tucker so obsessed with the gays? Sam Stein joins Tim Miller. Sam's 'Bulwark Take' on the DOJ attorney fired for not restoring Mel Gibson's gun rights Lauren on the Dems itching to go after AI Exclusive $35 off Carver Mat at https://on.auraframes.com/BULWARK. Promo Code BULWARK Go to https://zbiotics.com/THEBULWARK and use THEBULWARK at checkout for 15% off any first time orders of ZBiotics probiotics.

Trump’s rallies have been his signature event, but since he returned to the White House, he has stopped doing them. And his allies are worried he’s losing touch with voters, as well as his political antenna. Instead of traveling the country, he’s dining with billionaires, playing golf, and going abroad in search of his elusive peace prize. Meanwhile, he can’t stay awake in own Cabinet meetings. Plus, the heat is on Hegseth, the ex-Honduran president Trump pardoned bragged about stuffing drugs up the noses of Americans, and the results of the Tennessee special election are a good sign for Democrats—and a reminder for the party to go all-in on the gerrymandering war. Jonathan Lemire joins Tim Miller. show notes Jonathan's piece on Trump not doing rallies The Atlantic on Germany permanently stationing troops beyond its borders 

There are no shortage of scandals plaguing Washington D.C. right now. One that has captivated much of the political and media professions involves Olivia Nuzzi, a political writer formerly of the magazine New York, and now an editor with Vanity Fair, who was involved in a relationship with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. during the 2024 campaign. Nuzzi’s relationship has provided incredible fodder for the press, not least because her ex-fiance, Ryan Lizza, has penned a multi-part series on the matter where he has unspooled numerous accusations against her and RFK Jr., in anticipation of the publication of Nuzzi’s book, American Canto, which was released Tuesday. Those accusations are quite serious, many of which Nuzzi addresses in her book, including an admission that she secretly aided RFK Jr.’s campaign. The more important ones, however, deal with RFK Jr. himself, including the charge that he has hid drug use and was both manipulative of and threatening to Nuzzi during their relationship. Nuzzi has not discussed any of it on camera. Until now. In a sit down interview with Tim Miller, she talked about the ethical breaches that cost her her job, the conflict between her responsibilities as a reporter, the private relationship that blurred those boundaries, and the fear and isolation she experienced as the scandal unfolded. She describes withdrawing from the world, fleeing across the country, and trying to rebuild her sense of self while contending with public shaming and, what she saw as, the “weaponization” of her personal life against her. She also offers some insights and revelations regarding the now Health and Human Service secretary, who has denied the relationship. She and Tim discuss her relationship with RFK Jr. and the wreckage that followed, whether he continues to use drugs while occupying a cabinet post, what type of threats she felt, and why she didn’t feel compelled to speak up as it became clear that Kennedy was ascending to remarkable heights of political power. They also discuss the broader political moment that shaped all of it: the Trump era’s constant tug between reality and spectacle, the corrosion of public trust, and the ways journalists become characters in the dramas they cover. And they broach one of the more understated questions throughout this entire, sordid ordeal: why even bother writing this book to begin with? Nuzzi explains that writing was an act of survival and the clarity that came from separating herself from Washington, D.C.’s rituals and delusions. Along the way, she says, she became further entrenched in the delusions she was hoping to escape. show notes Buy American Canto by Olivia Nuzzi

As a candidate, Trump knew to steer clear of Project 2025. But as president, he embraced its deeply unpopular policy goals and it has been driving down his poll numbers. Meanwhile, what are we doing with Venezuela? No one in the administration has made a remotely convincing case for the intimidation campaign against President Maduro. And the boat bombings are putting members of our military in legal danger under the guidance of Hegseth. Plus, the threats against legislators in Indiana who aren't going along with redistricting, and the broad-based coalition standing up to ICE—including people in costumes and grannies on scooters—has been one of the most successful responses to Trump's immigration agenda. Amanda Carpenter joins Tim Miller. show notes: Protect Democracy's web site Amanda's Substack "If You Can Keep It" on Substack Take advantage of Ridge’s Biggest Sale of the Year and GET UP TO 47% Off by going to https://www.Ridge.com/THEBULWARK #Ridgepod

Not only are the opportunities for personal financial gain for Trump and his White House cronies driving the administration’s foreign policy decisions, his tariffs look more and more about grift. Trump also inexplicably granted clemency to a private equity exec who ripped off ordinary Americans in a Ponzi scheme, while he plans a pardon for a former Honduran president who trafficked cocaine to America—even as he orders the bombings of suspected drug smugglers in the Caribbean. Meanwhile, on the immigration front, Border Patrol is moving into NOLA, and the administration is exploiting the heinous and tragic DC Guard shooting to try to rid the country of black and brown immigrants. Bill Kristol joins Tim Miller. show notes Bill's 'Bulwark on Sunday' on Trump's anti-immigrant agenda Tim's 'Bulwark Take' on Scott Jennings WSJ's piece, "Make Money Not War: Trump’s Real Plan for Peace in Ukraine" NYT on David Sacks Andy McCarthy on the killing of two survivors of a missile strike in the Caribbean Makeup-less Trump at Mar-a-Lago New Bulwark merch! Go to https://www.american-giant.com and get 20% off your first order with promo code BULWARK. Thanks to American Giant for sponsoring the show!

Americans were already losing touch with basic decency before Trump came along—and he exploited that indecency, distrust, and division to win power. In his new novel, George Packer spins a story of an imaginary country that just collapses, and how ordinary people have to learn to live together again. Fiction has a way of making the real world more clear. Plus, Charlie Kirk’s influence on our political climate before his death, JD’s phoniness and lust for power, Trump may be flailing but he’s still amassed immense power, and how AI moving us away from the written word threatens our democracy. The Atlantic’s George Packer joins Tim Miller for the holiday weekend pod. show notes George’s new book, “The Emergency: A Novel” Tim's playlist George’s piece on Arizona and Charlie Kirk from last year “The Talented Mr. Vance” piece by George Other books by George: “The Assassins’ Gate” “The Unwinding: An Inner History of the New America” “Last Best Hope: America in Crisis and Renewal”

Trump needs to quit the games and his defamatory accusations about who's in the Epstein files, and just release the 300 gigabytes of data from the Epstein case—even if he has an army of elves trying to redact or whitewash any references or images of Trump himself. Meanwhile, the dismissal of charges against Comey and Tish James show how bad Team Trump is at political retribution. Plus, the commander-in-chief doesn't want members of the military hearing the truth, spies are listening in to Steve Witkoff, and is Weissmann going to sue Trump for defamation? Andrew Weissmann joins Tim Miller. show notes: Andrew's Substack Andrew and Mary McCord's podcast, "Main Justice" New Bulwark merch!

A troika of foreign policy amateurs—Steve Witkoff, Jared Kushner, and JD Vance—are trying to impose a Russia-drafted peace plan on Ukraine. While Trump was in the loop, other senior officials in the administration were in the dark, even as Kushner was using backchannels to work with a Putin ally. Vance eagerly got on board because he’s desperate to stab Ukraine in the back and declare himself MAGA’s heir apparent for 2028. But rival Marco Rubio—who sees that Russia doesn’t really want peace—is working on an alternative deal. Michael Weiss joins Tim Miller to break all the machinations down. Michael's Substack, "Foreign Office" Michael's reporting at "The Insider" Today’s Morning Shots New Bulwark merch! Exclusive $45-off Carver Mat at https://on.auraframes.com/BULWARK. Promo Code BULWARK

Unrest has broken out in MAGA, and Mike Johnson looks like he’s losing control of the House—which means that Trump could be losing control of the party. And the fear of Trump is morphing into loathing because Republicans are not winning. Meanwhile, DOGE has ended in another total Elon failure: Not only was no money saved, the program’s biggest success was cutting assistance to the world’s most vulnerable people. Trump has only been ‘fixing’ the government to work for his grift. Plus, Mamdani showed real political skill in meeting Trump, but the left needs to cool it with its 'Trump is a populist' take. As MTG pointed out, he definitely is not. Bill Kristol joins Tim Miller. show notes 'Bulwark on Sunday' with Bill and Catherine Most recent 'Shield of the Republic' Jon on the fraud in the health care system Tim's 'Bulwark Take' on Trump turning 'fascist' into a punchline The Bulwark's new merch! Don’t miss NOBL’s biggest Sale of the Year! Head to NOBLTravel.com for up to 62% off your entire order! #NOBL #ad