The Bulwark

The Bulwark

Home
Shows
Newsletters
Special Projects
Events
Founders
Store
Archive
About

Share this post

The Bulwark
The Bulwark
Just How Authoritarian Are Americans?
Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More
User's avatar
Discover more from The Bulwark
The Bulwark is home to Sarah Longwell, Tim Miller, Bill Kristol, JVL, Sam Stein, and more. We are the largest pro-democracy bundle on Substack for news and analysis on politics and culture—supported by a community built on good-faith.
Over 819,000 subscribers
Already have an account? Sign in
Overtime

Just How Authoritarian Are Americans?

Plus: Jack Smith’s Hard Choices

Jim Swift's avatar
Jim Swift
Nov 12, 2024
137

Share this post

The Bulwark
The Bulwark
Just How Authoritarian Are Americans?
Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More
5
Share

Recently in The Bulwark:

  • BILL KRISTOL & ANDREW EGGER: Stop Handwringing, Start Fighting

  • JVL: is off today.

Overtime is for everyone. If you’re a subscriber: thank you. If you’re not, there’s no better time to subscribe to Bulwark+ than today. If you like today’s issue, you can share this newsletter with someone you think would value it.


WILL SALETAN: Just How Authoritarian Are Americans?

A Trump supporter displays a bejeweled “Make America Great Again” necklace at a campaign event in Macon, Georgia, on November 3, 2024. (Photo by Elijah Nouvelage / AFP via Getty Images)

DONALD TRUMP SENT A MOB to overturn the 2020 election. He called for the termination of all constitutional provisions that prevented his immediate reinstatement. He made it clear that if he regained the presidency, he would extend his abuse of the office.

Kamala Harris warned voters repeatedly that Trump would try to rule (as he half-jokingly affirmed) like a dictator. But they re-elected him anyway.

This raises serious questions about our country. Did Trump’s voters back him because of his authoritarian inclinations or in spite of them? To what extent has the United States become hospitable to one-man rule? How many Americans condone or outright prefer an autocratic style of leadership? And how much of Trump’s majority coalition will support him as he expands and abuses his power?

READ THE REST.

WILL SELBER: Veterans’ Issues Aren’t Just for Veterans

IN JULY, I RETIRED FROM THE AIR FORCE, ending twenty years of service. My days of combat with the Taliban and associated terrorist groups were over; my days of combat with the Department of Veterans Affairs had begun. The way veterans are treated in America is not only a moral abomination but a rotting sore in the body politic. It’s easy to reduce the problems America’s veterans face to statistics (which are alarming). But now I’ve experienced them myself.

READ THE REST.


🎥 PODCASTS AND VIDEOS 🎧

  • Bulwark Podcast with Tim Miller:

    • Bill Kristol: A Pro-Putin America First [YouTube]

    • James Carville: We Are the Opposition [YouTube]

  • Bulwark+ Live: MAGA Calls for Unity [YouTube]

  • The Bulwark Goes to Hollywood: The Christmas Movie Industrial Complex

  • The Secret Podcast: Where Do We Go From Here? 🔐 [YouTube Preview]

Did you know? Bulwark+ members can listen to an ad-free version of these podcasts on the player of their choice.
Learn more at Bulwark+ Podcast FAQ.
📣Bulwark+ members can now listen to ad-free podcasts on Spotify! Learn more here.
Our 🎥YouTube offerings are the free-versions of shows, and they do have ads.
✍️Also: Did you know that every podcast has a transcript for B+ members? Yes! If you’re more a reader than a listener/viewer, open any podcast and the transcript button is beneath the player.

CATHY YOUNG: Russian Media Lukewarm on the Return of the Trump

DONALD TRUMP’S ELECTION VICTORY has been the subject of days of discussion in both the official Russian media and in the independent media now located almost entirely abroad—and the reactions are sometimes surprising, sometimes thought-provoking and sometimes . . . well, bonkers.

READ THE REST.

KIM WEHLE: Jack Smith’s Hard Choices

IN JUST OVER TWO MONTHS, Donald J. Trump will control the entire executive branch of the national government. His allies will control at least one house of Congress, likely both. The Supreme Court is tilted in his direction. Aware of this, Special Counsel Jack Smith now must decide how to wind up what is in all likelihood the last (and first) prosecution of a former president for violations of federal criminal law.

READ THE REST.


🚨OVERTIME🚨

Happy Veterans Day… I hope you’re taking some time to rest up this holiday and reflect on its meaning.

🎵On the Jukebox…🎵 ‘Holes’ by Mercury Rev.

‘I Didn’t Do an About-Face on Pete Buttigieg. Buttigieg Did an About-Face on Me.’… The onetime McKinsey consultant was mocked for his friendliness to corporations. Then he became Transportation secretary. (Politico)

Reddit sleuths… track down the band behind the internet’s most mysterious song (The Verge).

Trump Win… Makes McMahon Pardon Likely (DMV Wrestling News)

What happens next… with the criminal cases against the president-elect? (Kim Wehle’s Simple Politics)

Meanwhile, in Indiana… 19-year-old elected Scott County coroner

Tech support questions? Email members@thebulwark.com. Questions for me? Respond to this message.

—30—

Editorial photos provided by Getty Images. For full credits, please consult the article.

Marcy G.'s avatar
Wisley Lau's avatar
Mombeka's avatar
Larry Apple's avatar
Aram Zucker-Scharff's avatar
137 Likes∙
5 Restacks
137

Share this post

The Bulwark
The Bulwark
Just How Authoritarian Are Americans?
Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More
5
Share
The American Age Is Over
Emergency Triad: The United States commits imperial suicide.
Apr 3 • 
Jonathan V. Last
5,345

Share this post

The Bulwark
The Bulwark
The American Age Is Over
Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More
1,469
How to Think (and Act) Like a Dissident Movement
AOC, solidarity, and people power.
Mar 24 • 
Jonathan V. Last
4,114

Share this post

The Bulwark
The Bulwark
How to Think (and Act) Like a Dissident Movement
Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More
1,170
“How Can You Look at Yourself in the Mirror?”
George is furious.
Apr 3 • 
Sarah Longwell
2,112

Share this post

The Bulwark
The Bulwark
“How Can You Look at Yourself in the Mirror?”
Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More
349
49:37

Ready for more?

© 2025 Bulwark Media
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start writingGet the app
Substack is the home for great culture

Share

Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More