MAGA’s Moral Rot, Putin Hacks, and Woke Vaccines
Plus, behind the scenes at TPUSA's OSU circus.
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Trump Has Revealed MAGA’s Anti-Christian Nature
THE PAST FEW DAYS HAVE FEATURED the vice president of the United States lecturing the pope on morality and church doctrine; Sean Hannity making it official that he worships at the Church of Trump; Pete Hegseth quoting made-up verses from Pulp Fiction
🆕 OVERTIME Member Comment of The Week 🆕
John Murphy: The gerrymandering fights are going to get continually worse as the population rises. The more people a Representative represents, the more opportunities there are for them to pick their own constituency. I just don’t see how we solve this without increasing the size of the House of Representatives. Here in New Hampshire we have an enormous House, and while there are logistical problems to be sure, it’s broadly much better to have finer-grained representation. (4/21 Morning Shots)
Putin’s Propagandists Scramble to Respond to Celeb Critic
HIS APPROVAL RATINGS ARE SAGGING. His foreign war is floundering while economic woes multiply at home. His erstwhile loyal supporters are rebelling, and there are elections coming up. Donald Trump? Yes, but his role model in the Kremlin is having the same problems.
COME JOIN US IN CALIFORNIA!
May 21: Bulwark Live in Los Angeles at the The Novo featuring Tim, Sarah, and Sam
May 20: Bulwark Live in San Diego at the Balboa Theatre featuring Tim, Sarah, and Sam
Will Wins Wars. We’re Forgetting That.
THERE ARE SOME WHO TALK ABOUT military power as if it can be counted. Troops, aircraft, ships, budgets—these are the metrics that often dominate headlines and shape early judgments about who will win and who will lose in a war. When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, those measures drove a nea…
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Come join BILL KRISTOL and THOMAS JOSCELYN this Sunday at Noon ET as they talk about white supremacy on the right. Join on Substack or YouTube.
🚨OVERTIME🚨
Behind the scenes in Columbus… Earlier this week, there were a few details that did not make it into my story. There was the whole saga of… getting in.
TPUSA has a history of denying The Bulwark access to its events, dating back to our earliest days, so I took some precautions. Still, I didn’t hide my identity. I wore a Bulwark hat to the show! But I came registered as a citizen, since there was no press registration. Just… nobody asked.
Meeting up with my pal D.J. Byrnes (The Rooster) and heading into the venue in a line filled with very few students…. we stuck out. If they denied us entry, well, that would’ve been the story. But we got in, only to run right into Rep. Gary Click, a frequent statehouse subject of Byrnes’s reporting. Naturally, D.J. immediately turned on the camera and started asking questions.
I thought we’d gotten lucky until a TPUSA staffer quickly picked up on the fact that we were not your typical attendees. She got on the phone and shadowed us through the lobby while we milled around. We’re cooked, I thought.
D.J. ordered some popcorn for $6, as one does at the circus, and then we calmly made our way inside and picked a spot. We were prepared to be escorted out of the same auditorium (where my sister graduated) at any moment. Obviously, that didn’t happen.
Suspiciously, a guy who didn’t clap was positioned in our row. He didn’t stand, didn’t cheer, didn’t show emotion: he just stared straight ahead. We didn’t clap either, so perhaps he was writing a story, too. I kid.
And of course, since it was mentioned, the White Castle went on the expense report.
Tulsi Gabbard’s Dangerous War… Trump’s hatchet woman is weaponizing classified intelligence like never before, writes David Corn at Mother Jones.
A Ghastly Alliance, &c… Jay Nordlinger on North Koreans in the Ukraine war; the Donald Trump exemption; a mayor’s demagoguery; and more!
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Editorial photos provided by Getty Images. For full credits, please consult the article.
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BTW, if you live in Ohio take some time to read D.J. Barnes (The Rooster).
I'm an Iowa political reporter and I've never tried to cover a TP USA event before. But JD Vance is coming to Iowa next week for an event at Iowa State University, so I looked at the organization's press credential application. I was surprised to see them demand so much information about media outlets and the "media coverage plan." Is that how TP USA has always done things?