Dysfunction, Despair, and Donald
Plus: The U.S.-Saudi Unhappy Marriage.
Recently in The Bulwark:
SONNY BUNCH: āDumb Moneyā Review and Hollywood Waits, and Watches
ATMA š§: How True Do 'Emotional Truths' Need to Be? š
SECRET POD š§: Longreads. š
You can support The Bulwark by subscribing to Bulwark+ or just by sharing this newsletter with someone you think would value it.
A.B. Stoddard: Dysfunction, Despair, and Donald.
LAST WEEK, WHEN AN MSNBC anchor played a clip of House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, a fellow Republican, Rep. Matt Gaetz, said, āI couldnāt tell if you cut away to Kevin McCarthy or a commercial for low T.ā
Itās remarkable: McCarthy is not only Gaetzās āleaderā atop the House GOP conference, but he is third in line from the presidency. This kind of casual slagging from a member of the same party doesnāt ever happen to a speaker of the House, but for McCarthy it was just another day ending in y.
š„ PODCASTS AND VIDEOS š§
Bulwark+ members can listen to an ad-free version of these podcasts on the player of their choice. Learn more at Bulwark+ Podcast FAQ.
GISELLE DONNELLY: The U.S.-Saudi Unhappy Marriage.
THIS WEEK THE NEW YORK TIMES confirmed that the Biden administration is considering accepting a deal that Saudi Arabia has been dangling for some months: In return for Riyadhās normalization of relations with Israel, the United States would offer the Saudis formal security guarantees. The pact, says the paper, would take ātreaties in East Asiaāāthat is, Japan and South Koreaāas their model. This is a questionable idea.
EVE TUSHNET: Meet Me in the Middle of the Air.
WHEN I WAS A CHILD, THE MAKERS OF PUBLIC CULTURE in this country conspired to persuade me that people canāt fly. They did this by showing me flying people. After school Iād watch The Greatest American Hero on ABC, whose theme song (āBelieve it or notāIām walking on air!ā) taught me that walking on air was incredible. Virginia Hamiltonās beloved collection of black folktales, The People Could Fly, taught me that flying was a vanished gift of other peopleās ancestors. And every kid knew the advertising slogan for the 1978 Superman film, which promised the impossible: āYouāll believe a man can fly!ā
šØOVERTIMEšØ
It started at an IHOPā¦ With a chance meeting, eventually it ended in marriage. It might end up with Bob Menendez in jail for corruption. Read the charges. I cannot police the left since I am not the left, but I do hope that weāll see calls for Menendez to resign from Democrats. (Theyāre starting!) I know theyāre wary of doing the right thing after Al Franken, but itāll pay off! Menendez did step down from his committee chairmanship. Especially since heās almost certainly going to jail: there were fingerprints and DNA on the literal bribes!
šµOn the Jukeboxā¦ šµ- The Revivalists - Good Old Days1.
Happy Friday! To all those at the Texas Tribune Festival with our colleagues on various panels there. Hope the event(s) are fun and have a great weekend!
This meal just cost us $78 at Reagan National airport... This is why Americans think the economy is terrible.
Speaking of people who like nice thingsā¦ Justice Clarence Thomas is in the news again.
Meanwhile, in Missouriā¦ A convicted sex offender escaped from custody in the hospital. Thankfully, he was quickly caught.
And in Arizonaā¦ Some heavy hitters, including my former boss Jon Kyl, have lined up behind Chris Christie.
The joys of cobblerā¦ Our friend and former TWS colleague Haley Byrd Wilt has this lovely personal Substack about life, parenthood, and cooking. Check it out!
The American Face of Authoritarian Propagandaā¦ For Viktor OrbĆ”n and Vladimir Putin, Tucker Carlson fulfills a need.
Finding a way to mix guns and legal potā¦ Arkansas has a state solution, but a federal one is still very much needed.
WH COS Jeff Zients on Fast Politicsā¦ Joining our friend Molly Jong-Fast to talk about whatās going on in the West Wing and the 2024 election.
Remember when pundits said Ukraine had nothing to worry aboutā¦ If Republicans won?
Russian Admiralsā¦ On the defensive! Hereās a missile hitting the Russia Black Sea Fleet HQ. A direct hit! Adm. James Stavridis says āif true [that an Admiral was killed] it would likely be the highest ranking naval officer killed in combat since WWII.ā
The missing F-35ā¦ 911 call is something to behold.
The man Amazon erasedā¦ An interesting tale about what our IoT future beholds. (Original post by the guy who got his Alexa turned off.)
Trump fires his āmost competent attorneyā¦ā What will this mean for his many civil and criminal defense(s)? Iāve stopped reading into the ever-revolving door of his changing counsels.
Š¢Š°ŠŗŠµŃ ŠŠ°ŃŠ»ŃŠ¾Š½ ŃŠµŠ³Š¾Š“Š½Ń Š²ŠµŃŠµŃŠ¾Š¼ā¦ Did not have Tucker being simulcast in Russian on my bingo card. Maybe Laura Ingraham can teach him?
Coming soon to the high courtā¦ Drag shows and the First Amendment, courtesy of Lone Star judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, a favorite of The Federalist Society for favorable rulings and his district.
Tech support questions? Email members@thebulwark.com. Questions for me? Respond to this message.
Editorial photos provided by Getty Images. For full credits, please consult the article.
A positive anthem to lean on despite all the negativity. See? Weāre not all doom and gloom. Just mostly.
