Episodios

  • Amanda Carpenter: Fake Emergencies

    Amanda Carpenter: Fake Emergencies
    Aug 12 2025
    Trump keeps creating all these phony crises—an 'invasion' at the border, immigrants in the interior, crime in D.C.—so he can put on a show of force for his white base. He's also declaring fake emergencies on college campuses so he can shake them down, or declaring an economic emergency to impose tariffs. Now, he's looking at a 'quick reaction force' to respond to protests. It's all a naked power grab, and a potential prequel to sending in troops during elections. Plus, Trump wants fabricated economic data, his 15% cut of Nvidia's and AMD's chip sales to China quacks like a bribe, and will "Idiocracy" come alive with a UFC Octagon on the South Lawn? .

    Amanda Carpenter joins Tim Miller.
    show notes

    • Amanda on the shakedown of elite institutions
    • Protect Democracy's 'Democracy Atlas'
    • JVL on making good trouble
    • "Bulwark Take" with Jason Furman on E.J. Antoni
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    1 h
  • Bill Kristol: The Lawless Administration

    Bill Kristol: The Lawless Administration
    Aug 11 2025
    Crime is down in D.C., but Trump is using the pretext of an attempted carjacking of "Big Balls," the former 19-year-old DOGE employee, to take over the city's police department and deploy the National Guard. It's a threat to other blue cities, and an ominous sign ahead of 2026 and 2028. Meanwhile, the DOJ has appointed 'a special attorney' and empaneled grand juries to investigate Trump enemies Adam Schiff and Tish James. Plus, it's odd how JD never seems to defend Trump on Epstein, and Putin has already scored a psychological victory by the promise of being welcomed to the United States as an equal—rather than the war criminal he is.

    Bill Kristol joins Tim Miller.
    show notes

    • Cathy's piece on the upcoming Alaska summit

    • Bill in "Morning Shots" on how Vance keeps drawing attention to the Epstein matter
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    49 m
  • Lis Smith: Dems Need to Burn Down the Party Establishment

    Lis Smith: Dems Need to Burn Down the Party Establishment
    Aug 8 2025
    There's a direct line between when the Democratic Party got nationalized and when it started getting wiped out in red states. Dems need to embrace heterodoxy in their candidates—running in New York City is not the same as running in Nebraska. And the party has to exorcise itself of people like Andrew Cuomo. Plus, the administration has upped the cruelty quotient by denying retirement benefits to longtime trans members of the Air Force, the FBI gets deployed to advance the Republicans redistricting, and avoiding the scam PACs preying on Democrats.

    show notes

    • Tim's interview with Andry on Substack or YouTube
    • Lis's book, "Any Given Tuesday"
    • Stanford's Adam Bonica on Mothership Strategies
    • Cook Political Report's 2026 House rankings
    • Tim's playlist
    Más Menos
    51 m
  • Anne Applebaum: What USAID's Absence Looks Like on the Ground

    Anne Applebaum: What USAID's Absence Looks Like on the Ground
    Aug 7 2025
    The United States, through USAID, not only supplied a big chunk of the world's humanitarian aid, it also provided almost all of the logistical support for other aid organizations to deliver relief as well. Now in Sudan, where the state has disintegrated and millions of people are trying to flee anarchy and civil war, virtually no Western organization is there to provide food and shelter. And no American is working on trying to end the conflict. Plus, Tim Cook joins the CEO suck-up to Trump, a top, well-regarded FBI official who was trying to hold the line under Kash has been pushed out, and Putin may be trying to pause Ukraine's punishing air war on Russia—but he's not showing any sign that he wants peace.

    Anne Applebaum joins Tim Miller.
    show notes

    • Anne's piece on Sudan, “The Most Nihilistic Conflict on Earth”
    • Anne's wildflower garden
    • The NYT on the continuing purge at the FBI
    • Anne's "Autocracy, Inc.," out in paperback Aug. 25
    • "The Director," book recommendation from Anne

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    51 m
  • Zerlina Maxwell and Josh Barro: We Are in a Bad Place

    Zerlina Maxwell and Josh Barro: We Are in a Bad Place
    Aug 6 2025
    Gerrymandering has always been partisan, but what's happening in Texas is straight-up racial politics. Republicans are targeting and trying to disenfranchise black voters while betting that Latino voters will stick with them. And because Trump hasn't had a lot of luck making the furor over Epstein and Ghislaine go away, JD is stepping in to host a totally 100% aboveboard damage control session at his house—with the top officials at the DOJ. Plus, the U.S. had almost zero job growth in May and June, the economy is slowing, and prices are ticking up.

    Josh Barro and Zerlina Maxwell join Tim Miller.

    show notes:

    • Tim, Sam, and Will Sommer on the MAGA girl meltdown
    • Zerlina's book, "The End of White Politics"
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    1 h y 11 m
  • Chuck Todd: Is the Economy the Biggest Political Threat to Trump?

    Chuck Todd: Is the Economy the Biggest Political Threat to Trump?
    Aug 5 2025
    Voters in the seven swing states that elected Trump in 2024 thought he'd make the economy better. His perceived strength on the economy is the cornerstone Jenga piece of the whole Trump Tower. And he keeps making the economy worse. Meanwhile, Democratic voters are highly engaged—but just not with the party, whose brand is struggling. Plus, Republicans are still trying to steal the House, and how a stronger, re-imagined local news media can help restore trust in national news.

    Chuck Todd joins Tim Miller.
    show notes

    • Chuck's Sunday Night with Chuck Todd on the Noosphere app
    • The Chuck Toddcast
    • "The Stranger," Chuck's book about Obama
    Más Menos
    55 m
  • Bill Kristol: This Is So Third World

    Bill Kristol: This Is So Third World
    Aug 4 2025
    The boss only wants to hear good news: that's the takeaway from Trump's high-profile firing over the weak job numbers. So if a government worker has something bad to report, they now know they'll have to lie to keep their jobs. And this isn't only about key information on the economy—it's also about hurricane forecasts, intel threats, and potential military mishaps. Meanwhile, the Texas redistricting stand-off is fraying the fabric of our democracy. Plus, Fox's own producers think Jeanine Pirro is a reckless maniac, direction from the top was the only way Ghislaine Maxwell could have been moved to a 'Club Fed' prison, and Democrats debate how much to work with Republicans who don't keep their word.

    Bill Kristol joins Tim Miller.
    show notes

    • Today's 'Morning Shots'
    • The 'Bulwark Takes' Apple feed
    • Tim on 'Pod Save America' on Friday
    • Some of the victims' testimony from Maxwell's trial

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    57 m
  • Dan Osborn: Connecting with Working People

    Dan Osborn: Connecting with Working People
    Aug 1 2025
    Osborn, the populist independent who ran a surprisingly close campaign for a Senate seat in Nebraska last year, is back for another run in the 2026 midterms. A steamfitter and union member, he says he naturally connects with other workers drawing paychecks who are feeling the squeeze. And he likes to point out that his opponent last time took money from corporate donors; but this time, his opponent is a corporate donor—incumbent Pete Ricketts, one of the wealthiest members of Congress. Plus, the pain from tariffs on Main Street, the inhumanity of masked ICE agents, and the peril for Democrats if they can't figure out how to talk to Trump voters.

    Dan Osborn joins Tim Miller for the weekend pod.
    show notes

    • Tucker talking about home ownership and the American dream

    • Tim's playlist

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    55 m