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Trump Wants to Invent a Fake Reality (w/ Anne Applebaum) | The Bulwark Podcast
Hungarian PoliticsViktor OrbanAuthoritarianism

Trump Wants to Invent a Fake Reality (w/ Anne Applebaum) | The Bulwark Podcast

Anne Applebaum details how Hungary's Viktor Orban employs 'post-reality' politics and disinformation to maintain power, a model increasingly adopted by the American far-right, while critiquing Trump's chaotic foreign policy and the breakdown of international relations.

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This is Beyond Mere Incompetence (w/ Robert Kagan) | The Bulwark Podcast
US Foreign PolicyGeopoliticsIran Conflict

This is Beyond Mere Incompetence (w/ Robert Kagan) | The Bulwark Podcast

Robert Kagan details how the ongoing US military action in Iran, initiated under the Trump administration, is dismantling the post-WWII global order, isolating the US, and empowering rivals like China and Russia.

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Trump’s Alternate Reality War Speech | The Bulwark Podcast
Donald TrumpForeign PolicyIran War

Trump’s Alternate Reality War Speech | The Bulwark Podcast

Tim Miller and Susan Glasser dissect Donald Trump's 'alternate reality' war speech, exposing its lack of a coherent plan, the administration's dysfunction, and the severe global consequences of his 'magical thinking' approach to foreign policy.

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Tim Miller, Sam Stein, JVL and Mark Hertling React to Trump's Iran Address
US foreign policyIran conflictGeopolitics

Tim Miller, Sam Stein, JVL and Mark Hertling React to Trump's Iran Address

A panel of analysts dissects a recent presidential address on Iran, framing it as an incoherent, contradictory, and strategically damaging 'Truth Social rant' with severe economic and geopolitical consequences.

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Did Trump Just Reveal an Attack on a US Aircraft Carrier?
Donald TrumpPolitical RhetoricUS Military

Did Trump Just Reveal an Attack on a US Aircraft Carrier?

The host unpacks Donald Trump's recent public appearances, highlighting a pattern of bizarre, potentially revealing, and often fabricated statements, including a possible accidental disclosure of an attack on a US aircraft carrier.

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The 5 Most Unhinged Things Trump Said in One Cabinet Meeting
Trump administrationCabinet meetingsPolitical commentary

The 5 Most Unhinged Things Trump Said in One Cabinet Meeting

Hosts Sam Stein and Andrew Egger dissect a recent Trump cabinet meeting, ranking the five most 'unhinged' and factually dubious statements made by the former president and his allies, from Sharpie rants to alarming claims about nuclear weapons and NATO.

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Former General Gives Brutally Honest Iran War Assessment | Command Post
Iran WarGeopoliticsMilitary Strategy

Former General Gives Brutally Honest Iran War Assessment | Command Post

General Mark Hertling and Ben Parker dissect the ongoing Iran war, highlighting the critical mismatch between US kinetic military objectives and Iran's asymmetric political and economic warfare, emphasizing the lack of a clear US end state.

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Putin, Bone Saw, and Gnomes: Inside Trump’s ‘Peace’ Board (w/ Michael Weiss) | The Bulwark Podcast
US Foreign PolicyTrump AdministrationIran Conflict

Putin, Bone Saw, and Gnomes: Inside Trump’s ‘Peace’ Board (w/ Michael Weiss) | The Bulwark Podcast

This episode dissects the Trump administration's chaotic foreign policy, from a Supreme Court ruling against his tariffs to the perplexing 'Board of Peace' and the precarious state of US-European alliances amid escalating tensions with Iran and Russia.

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Colbert Calls Out FCC and His Own Network Over Talarico Censorship
Political CensorshipFCC RegulationsLate Night Television

Colbert Calls Out FCC and His Own Network Over Talarico Censorship

This episode dissects recent political controversies, from media censorship of a Texas Senate candidate to shifting conservative ideologies and federal immigration enforcement tactics, revealing underlying power struggles and citizen resistance.

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America's New Defense Strategy is Nonsense | Shield of the Republic
US National Defense StrategyGeopoliticsForeign Policy

America's New Defense Strategy is Nonsense | Shield of the Republic

This episode dissects the US's 'unserious' National Defense Strategy, Trump's 'tacoing' on Greenland, and the implications of China's military purge and potential action against Iran, highlighting a world increasingly defined by disorder and US fatigue.

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Retired General: Minneapolis Exposes Leadership Crisis Among ICE and CBP
Military LawNational GuardInsurrection Act

Retired General: Minneapolis Exposes Leadership Crisis Among ICE and CBP

Retired General Mark Hertling dissects the critical legal distinctions between military and law enforcement roles, arguing that the deployment of untrained ICE and Border Patrol agents in Minneapolis exposed severe leadership failures and risked escalating civil unrest.

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Europe Is Planning for a Post-America World (w/ Fiona Hill) | The Bulwark Podcast
GeopoliticsUS Foreign PolicyRussia

Europe Is Planning for a Post-America World (w/ Fiona Hill) | The Bulwark Podcast

Fiona Hill details how Europe is actively preparing for a post-America world, driven by US unreliability and Trump's disruptive foreign policy, leading to a "rupture" in global alliances and potential nuclear proliferation.

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Retired General Breaks Down Trump’s Davos Speech | Command Post
Donald TrumpDavos SpeechGreenland

Retired General Breaks Down Trump’s Davos Speech | Command Post

Retired General Mark Hertling and Ben Parker dissect former President Trump's Davos speech, revealing critical misinterpretations of military strategy, international relations, and domestic troop deployment.

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Putin Won Davos Without Even Showing Up (w/ Caolan Robertson)
Ukraine WarGeopoliticsEuropean Security

Putin Won Davos Without Even Showing Up (w/ Caolan Robertson)

While Kyiv faces a catastrophic winter and European leaders gather in Davos, the focus has shifted from Ukraine to Trump's potential actions, inadvertently benefiting Russia and weakening NATO.

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TNL LIVE: Sundowning Trump Stumbles Through Press Event | The Next Level
Donald TrumpPress ConferenceInternational Relations

TNL LIVE: Sundowning Trump Stumbles Through Press Event | The Next Level

The hosts dissect a chaotic, hours-long Trump press conference, revealing it as a desperate attempt to boost declining poll numbers and a dangerous display of unseriousness that accelerates the unraveling of the U.S.-led world order.

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The Worst Interview of the Trump Administration So Far
Trump administrationGreenland acquisitionForeign policy

The Worst Interview of the Trump Administration So Far

The host dissects Treasury Secretary Scott Bessant's 'embarrassing' attempts to justify former President Trump's threats against Europe over Greenland, highlighting the administration's aggressive and illogical foreign policy stance.

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Trump's Greenland Text Is Publicly Embarrassing America
US Foreign PolicyInternational RelationsDonald Trump

Trump's Greenland Text Is Publicly Embarrassing America

President Trump's bizarre text to Norway's Prime Minister, demanding Greenland and linking it to his unreceived Nobel Peace Prize, exposed a 'mob boss' approach to international relations that is driving Europe towards China and dismantling the American-led world order.

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Trump’s Polls Are Slipping—So Why Does He Feel More Dangerous Than Ever?
US PoliticsPresidential Approval RatingsEconomic Sentiment

Trump’s Polls Are Slipping—So Why Does He Feel More Dangerous Than Ever?

Despite consistently low approval ratings, Donald Trump's administration is accelerating its authoritarian and isolationist policies, alienating allies and potentially solidifying an 'iron wall of opposition' among swing voters.

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BREAKING: Trump Threatens Europe Over Greenland; Europe Responds
US Foreign PolicyGeopoliticsNATO

BREAKING: Trump Threatens Europe Over Greenland; Europe Responds

President Trump issued an ultimatum to Europe and Denmark over Greenland, threatening tariffs if Denmark does not agree to sell the territory to the United States, escalating a geopolitical standoff.

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Why is Trump Fighting NATO Instead of Putin? | Command Post
Ukraine WarRussia-Ukraine ConflictNATO

Why is Trump Fighting NATO Instead of Putin? | Command Post

Military experts dissect how US policy, particularly regarding Ukraine and Greenland, is inadvertently aiding Putin's strategic goals by dividing NATO and creating global power vacuums.

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Taking Greenland Would Trigger a NATO Crisis (w/ Mark Hertling) | The Bulwark Podcast
US Foreign PolicyMilitary StrategyLaw Enforcement Accountability

Taking Greenland Would Trigger a NATO Crisis (w/ Mark Hertling) | The Bulwark Podcast

Retired US Army Lieutenant General Mark Hertling dissects the geopolitical absurdities of potential US military interventions in Greenland and Iran, highlighting the erosion of alliances and the critical need for comprehensive strategic planning.

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Is the Minneapolis Killing an Inflection Point for Trump? | Bulwark on Sunday
Minneapolis ICE shootingTrump administrationPolitical radicalization

Is the Minneapolis Killing an Inflection Point for Trump? | Bulwark on Sunday

This episode dissects recent political events, arguing they reveal an accelerating radicalization of the Trump administration, characterized by a blatant disregard for law, institutional norms, and international alliances.

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Sen. Gallego: Republicans Know the Venezuela Invasion Is Nuts
US Foreign PolicyVenezuelaGreenland

Sen. Gallego: Republicans Know the Venezuela Invasion Is Nuts

Senator Ruben Gallego, an Iraq War veteran, offers a scathing critique of US foreign policy, arguing that interventions in Venezuela and the pursuit of Greenland are driven by presidential ego and oil interests, while warning of ongoing, subtle threats to democracy at home.

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Sen. Mark Warner: Trump Is Talking About Invading U.S. Allies
US Foreign PolicyVenezuela CrisisInternational Law

Sen. Mark Warner: Trump Is Talking About Invading U.S. Allies

Senator Mark Warner critically assesses the US operation in Venezuela, highlighting its dangerous precedents for international law and US alliances, and expresses alarm over the administration's 'imperialist whim' extending to potential actions against allies like Greenland.

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