Author: The Bulwark

The president of the United States is putting his Jan 6 accomplices in charge of the Justice Department and the FBI, and clearing out any officials who would be willing to investigate the administration. It's anti-democratic, it's a coup, and it's allowing Elon and his 20-something DOGE buddies to act with impunity as they illegally access classified information and the Treasury's payment system. Meanwhile, the White House can't even get its messaging straight on the tariffs as they sabotage our relationship with allies in the process. Plus, the ethnic scapegoating continues and the Dems at the DNC go all Portlandia when they need to be fighting the aspiring authoritarians. 

Will Saletan and Scott Lincicome join Tim Miller.
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Tim's interview with J.J. McCullough on Canada's retaliatory tariffs

While Republican senators worked to protect Kash Patel from answering some ver-wee hard questions at his confirmation hearing, not one of them had the audacity to suggest that he is the best person to lead the FBI. Meanwhile, the new administration is clearing out some of the most seasoned and effective veterans at the bureau who will be needed during a crisis. Plus, Elon is trying to get our private financial records at the Treasury Department, and Paramount is so worried that mean Mr. Trump would block a merger deal that it's ready to settle his frivolous, written-in-crayon lawsuit against "60 Minutes." Also, Tim makes an earnest plea to Sen. Bill Cassidy from the heart of New Orleans. 

Andrew Weissmann joins Tim Miller for the weekend pod.
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Weissmann's and Mary McCord's podcast, "Main Justice"
Weissmann's Substack page
Tim's playlist

Republican senators don't care that Trump's nominees are lying—like Kash pretending he didn't know a Nazi-adjacent podcaster whose show he's been on eight times—because the confirmation process to them is all a game and truth is irrelevant. And nominees are also mad-flipping on their signatures issues: RFK, Jr. on vaccines, Tulsi on Edward Snowden, and Kash on the Jan 6 cop beaters. Meanwhile, RFK knows embarrassingly little about the programs he'd be administering, Democrats should try combat on for size, and the Fox hosts/reality show stars turned in quite a performance after the first plane crash in 16 years. 

Tommy Vietor joins Tim Miller.

Trump is trying to seize powers he doesn't have—like unilaterally rewriting laws and deciding on his own how he wants to spend money Congress appropriated for a particular purpose. Will the Supreme Court stop him? And if it rules against him, will he obey the court's orders? Plus, the money angle behind RFK, Jr.'s conspiracies, and Elon's attempt at a mass buyout is not about making the government leaner and meaner. He's trying to replace good, smart people with lackeys and flunkies, like Tucker Carlson's son. Mona Charen joins Tim Miller.

Mona Charen joins Tim Miller.
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The directives putting a pause on federal grants and the firing of career DOJ prosecutors is about trying to make the entirety of the federal government the tool of the man occupying the presidency. And it's all illegal and unconstitutional. Meanwhile, Trump is exactly the kind of broken sociopath who can dominate the war for attention—the defining resource of our time. Plus, a rundown on DeepSeek, the new Chinese AI model, and why Bitcoin fans aren't more angry about the worthless, scammy Trump and Melania coins. 

Chris Hayes and Alex Kantrowitz join Tim Miller.
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Gullible Republicans have really been proving what they're made of recently, including Susan Collins, who claims Trump wants to root out corruption, even though his whole life has been a fraud—the water, the university, and "The Apprentice," just for starters. Meanwhile, the presidents of Mexico and Colombia are showing that they're not going to bend over in service of Trump's vanity. Plus, JD's Johnny-come-lately Catholicism, and the tech titans's clash with DEI may be helping the US lose the lead in AI. 

Bill Kristol joins Tim Miller.
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Colombian President Gustavo Petro's statement on Twitter (hit translate post)
Timothée Chalamet on SNL

Trump launched his first week back in office signaling to loyal followers that they are free to break the law on his behalf, while telling political opponents—including John Bolton and Mike Pompeo—that he'll put their lives at risk. Meanwhile, an office full of white faces is not evidence of a meritocracy, a shortage of VA nurses or prosecutors at the DOJ is not government efficiency, and Putin is different from the man he was during Trump's first term. Plus, the dangers of the word "invasion" in the immigration context.
David French joins Tim Miller for the weekend pod.

show notes:

John Mulaney's 'horse in the hospital' skit
Tweet from Dan Crenshaw that Tim referenced
David's latest newsletter (gifted)
Tim's playlist

Emotionally-stunted video game boys, who are also government contractors and/or quasi government officials, are fighting on Twitter, a POTUS who went all the way to SCOTUS to get immunity for presidents now would like the last president investigated, and America's premiere scientific research institution, the NIH, can't tell us about the bird flu—a widespread and potentially deadly virus that could mutate into a human pandemic. Meanwhile, the assault on immigration has stepped up, with raids now permitted at churches and schools. And DHS is targeting anyone who can be deported, regardless of whether or not they're a security threat. 

Adrian Carrasquillo and Sam Stein join Tim Miller.

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https://x.com/arelisrhdz/status/1881397640849678362

All those CEOs cartwheeled down to Mar-a-Lago and then dutifully lined up at Trump's inauguration because they were fed up with social justice warriors and labor having more power—even if their bottom lines were never harmed in the process. Now, they want their next adrenaline rush and more government money without any pesky regulations hampering their highfalutin space-exploration dreams. But they may just pine for those DEI training sessions after the coming populist economic backlash.

Stephanie Ruhle joins Tim Miller.

Trump tried to pencil out literal words in the Constitution and then freed 1,500 violent insurrectionists—while the media attempted to normalize it all. Meanwhile, much attention is being paid to Elon's salute, and not enough to the facts that he has an office at the White House, he's a government contractor, and paid a quarter of a billion dollars to get Trump elected. Plus, other Trump executive orders were pissy and petty, the 80s can no longer be called the decade of greed after Monday's Hunger Games vibe, and the Democrats are going to have a hard time resisting a risky 'eat the rich' path.

Tom Nichols joins Tim Miller.

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