Secret Podcast Preview: The Founders Never Imagined a President This Corrupt, Weak and Stupid

Donald Trump is expected to drop his $10 billion lawsuit against the Justice Department and IRS in exchange for the creation of a $1.7 billion taxpayer-funded commission. This fund would compensate individuals and entities alleging harm from the 'Biden administration's weaponization of the legal system,' specifically including the nearly 1600 individuals charged in connection with the January 6th Capitol attack. Trump would have the authority to remove commission members without cause, and the commission would not be obligated to disclose its procedures, decision-making, or the identities of recipients, ensuring a lack of transparency and direct control.

Reading from ABC News report detailing the settlement terms, including the fund's purpose, Trump's control over the commission, and the lack of transparency.

JVL argues that a liberal society, built on the assumption of a certain level of virtue, cannot pre-legislate against every form of corruption, especially when political actors lack that virtue. He posits that the founders believed self-governance required a virtuous society, and without it, the system begins to break down. The proposed 'slush fund' is seen as an example of corruption so widespread and novel that existing laws are insufficient, and attempts to create new laws would only lead to new forms of exploitation, akin to 'band-aids' on a fundamentally broken system.

JVL's discussion on the 'inshitification' piece and the founders' views on virtue and self-government, stating, 'if people don't have revulsion about this... it really does mean that the whole system has sort of started breaking apart.'

The hosts engage in a core debate about how to address systemic corruption. Sarah Longwell emphasizes the need for political power and effective public persuasion, arguing that linking Trump's corruption (like the 'ballroom' and 'slush fund') to voters' everyday economic pain points (gas prices, inflation) is the most effective way to drive down his approval and build a mandate for change. JVL, while acknowledging the need for political power, expresses deep skepticism about the efficacy of persuasion and the ability of legal or judicial reforms (like Supreme Court expansion) to fundamentally fix the problem in a deeply polarized environment.

Sarah's 'Home of the Brave' campaign strategy linking Trump's focus on his ballroom to voter economic concerns (00:21:07) and JVL's skepticism about persuasion and the challenges of court expansion (00:11:00, 00:27:22).