The Next Level

The Secret Podcast with JVL and Sarah is exclusively for paid members of the Bulwark on YouTube, Substack and Apple Podcasts.
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Sarah and JVL did a BIG show today. Sample awesome:
Sen. Darlene Graham says that voters in South Carolina don’t care about Taiwan—they care about boys playing girls sports.
Spoiler: There are exactly zero (0) boys in South Carolina playing girls sports.
Top CIA analyst Julia Curlee served Trump, Biden, and then Trump again honorably. Then she was fired because some MAGA influencers discovered she was trans.
What duty do civil servants owe the country which elected Trump for the second time?
Is Jon Ossoff the one we’ve been waiting for? Sarah has him in her Big Four. And you’ll never guess who the other three are.
People hate Data Centers. So where is the juice for Democrats?
JVL can’t stop/won’t stop beating on tankies and greens.
And the birth of a new feature: Pickleball talk!
We want to hear from you about any/all of this. Let’s ride.

Sarah, Tim, Sam and JVL are coming to South Carolina, North Carolina, and Atlanta in October for Bulwark LIVE. We’re bringing lots of friends.

Tickets are on sale now: https://thebulwark.com/events

Our shows have a habit of selling out. Don’t wait to grab your seats.

Tim, JVL, and Andrew Egger discuss:
-(Yet another) story of a former Trump voter seeing a loved one run into the immigration policies he voted for.
-The faux outrage from MAGA-world at Sen. Jon Ossoff pointing out that Donald Trump and Natalie Harp travel together a lot.
-Karoline Leavitt leaving the White House, and who might come next.
-The Florida primary, and how Trump's hand-picked candidate MIGHT fumble the state away this fall.
-Pete Hegseth traveling to Iowa. Is HE running?
-Andrew breaks down the latest weird trend on right wing twitter: Postpartum Depression truthers.
-Tim welcomes Nancy Mace to the YouTube content game.
For Bulwark+ Subscribers: The pre-sale for this fall’s Good Fight tour is ON. We’re heading to Charlotte, Columbia, and Atlanta in October. Get your tickets HERE, or first, become a subscriber HERE.
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Full episodes of The Secret Podcast are available only to paid members of The Bulwark. You can join on Substack, YouTube or Apple Podcasts!
Lots of stuff this week.
(1) There are still balcony seats left for the Best Friends Show in NYC on September 8. Come sell out the 92nd Street Y with us! You can get tickets here.

If we sell this show out, JVL will do something nuts.
(2) Sarah, Tim, Sam and I are coming to South Carolina, North Carolina, and Atlanta in October. We’re bringing friends. Tickets go on sale August 21, but Bulwark+ members get access to an exclusive presale on August 18—so join!
(3) Then there’s the news:

Trump is trying to put his name on the Kennedy Center again. Grandpa is so thirsty.

Karoline Leavitt is taking her talent for baldfaced lying to the private sector. Who will be the lucky news organization to buy the privilege of having her lie to its audience? And what lucky liar will inherit her spot behind the podium?

JVL loses his mind over the revelation that after DHS agents murdered Alex Pretti, the federal government launched far-reaching investigations against . . . liberal activist groups in Minnesota. This story will take your hate-fire to 11.

Sarah was always right about the Wisconsin Democratic primary.
Why don’t progressives say a little prayer of thanksgiving for winning a big race in Minnesota with Peggy Flanagan while not having to defend Francesca Hong? Take the W.

Also: JVL has some nice things to say about Bernie while Sarah is totally getting there on AOC.

(4) And then there’s the feelings talk. JVL has a lot of them. About Flash and mortality and his gratitude to all of you guys.
(Also: (5) We have news about Rebecca taking us home.)
This isn’t an Instant Classic level show, but it’s a good one. Top quintile for sure.

Tim, Sarah, and JVL are BACK TOGETHER after a month apart. They discuss:
-Bill Cassidy’s pathetic, weepy floor speech before casting the deciding vote to confirm Todd Blanche as Attorney General.
-What Tucker Carlson is up to these days…from interviewing Hunter Biden, to a monologue that sounds a LOT like the prelude to a presidential campaign.
-DSA-aligned Wisconsin gubernatorial candidate Francesca Hong, and the stakes of experimenting with a DSA-aligned candidate in a swing state like Wisconsin.
-Democrats like AOC saying that ‘Woke 1 was crazy,’ and how much of an ‘apology’ Democrats owe for ‘Woke 1.’
-Sarah is raring to talk about the WNBA and its growing role in America’s culture wars.
Read JVL's criminally neglected Triad newsletter.

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Full episodes of The Secret Podcast are available exclusively to paid members of The Bulwark. Join on Substack, Apple Podcast or YouTube!
JVL and Tim did a GIANT show this week.

Uncanny Callista Gingrich.

Thom Tillis publishes his burn book.

Tucker’s running for president.

Burrito discourse.

And more!

Seriously: Instant classic. This one goes in the vault.
Read JVL’s Triad newsletter: https://www.thebulwark.com/s/thetriad
Get $30 off your first order and free croissants for life at https://Wildgrain.com/THENEXTLEVEL.