The Next Level

The Secret Podcast is a special bonus just for paid members of The Bulwark. If you like this preview, become a member at thebulwark.com, on YouTube, or through Apple Podcasts.JVL and Bill Kristol look at the increasingly messy fight to succeed Trump, from JD Vance and Don Jr. to Tucker Carlson, as Trump keeps the possibility of a third term hanging over the party. Plus, the war with Iran is getting worse, Pete Hegseth’s damage to the military is becoming harder to ignore, and 25 years after 9/11, they consider the unsettling question of what terrorism can set in motion long after an attack is over.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

Today Sarah and JVL try to figure out who’s worse: John Fetterman or Susan Collins. (Give us your answer in the comments.) Also, the Big Orange Arch is coming. And we chew over Doug Sosnik’s recommendations for the Democratic party. It’s a big show.Weight Loss by Hims offers access to affordable FDA-approved GLP-1 medications, including the Wegovy® pill and Wegovy® pen, with personalized treatment plans and ongoing support. Get started at https://www.hims.com/thenextlevelPlus: it’s almost Book Week!Don’t let Teddy Cancun and High Life Clarence win. Order a copy of Sarah’s book now. (If you haven’t already, I mean.)How to Eat an Elephant drops on Tuesday and the Best Friends really want to get it to #1 on the NYT best seller list. To do that, we have to unseat... a biography of Clarence Thomas by Ted Effing Cruz.Buy it on Bookshop.org: https://bookshop.org/p/books/how-to-eat-an-elephant-one-voter-at-a-time-sarah-longwell/6a0996cb43d2ef5b?ean=9781250464170&bkshp-astro=tBuy it on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/How-Eat-Elephant-Voter-Time/dp/125046417XBecome a Bulwark member to keep watching the full conversation, plus get access to all our members-only shows and segments.Show notes:See Bill Kristol and Doug Sosnik’s conversation: https://conversationswithbillkristol.org/conversation/doug-sosnik-on-two-very-different-elections-2026-and-2028/

Full episodes of The Secret Podcast are a special perk just for paid members of the Bulwark. We put almost every video out for free, because we don't think you can save the country from behind a paywall. This is one of the rare things we do reserve just for members. Come ride with us.- Full episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/py-SBnizZ3U- Full episode on Substack: https://www.thebulwark.com/p/mark-cuban-thinks-he-could-run-asJVL is out this week, so Tim and Sarah discuss Mark Cuban’s comments that he could run for president as a Republican (and why Tim isn’t buying it), and Sarah’s conversation with the New York Times discussing her book, and what Democratic voters REALLY want right now. They also discuss the race Rob Sand is running for governor in Iowa. Behind the paywall: Kamala Harris’s 2028 strategy, Hasan Piker discourse, and a fun mailbag segment.Show notes:Read Sarah's conversation with the New York Times:https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/28/opinion/democrats-fighters-trump-republicans.htmlCome hang with the gang—Sarah, Tim, JVL, Sam and friends—during our Bulwark LIVE: Good Fight Tour this October. Tickets are on sale now at: https://thebulwark.com/EventsLet's be together.

The Secret Podcast with JVL and Sarah is exclusively for paid members of the Bulwark on YouTube, Substack and Apple Podcasts.---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/eventsOur shows have a habit of selling out. Don’t wait to grab your seats.

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.

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/thetriadGet $30 off your first order and free croissants for life at https://Wildgrain.com/THENEXTLEVEL.

Sarah and JVL have a It’s a super-sized, instant classic:The Trump administration is using ChatGPT for everything.Why are Cornyn and Tillis even bothering with their fake protest of Todd Blanche?The Dem Senate map is looking . . . possible?Trump has raised $800 million from “donors” since coming back to office.And JVL finally explains why he’s obsessed with 60 Minutes investigative reporter Ross Douthat.Plus: Emo JVL needs your advice in the comments!Ready to reach your goals? Visit https://hims.com/thenextlevel to get a personalized, affordable plan that gets you.Full episodes of the Secret Podcast are available to paid members of the Bulwark through Substack, YouTube or Apple Podcasts. Come ride with us!

Paid members of the Bulwark get access to FULL episodes of the Secret Podcast. You can join via Apple Podcasts, Substack and YouTube.Big show today: It’s the dawn of Streamer JVL? Plus: Some questions for Tom Homan about shooting January 6 insurrectionists; Haley Stevens and authenticity; and the Mitch McConnell conspiracy theory. Also, a conversation about raising good men.But the big topic is the Department of Defense suddenly removing the names of four dead soldiers from the Iran war casualty list because they were killed after Trump declared a ceasefire in April—because there are now apparently two distinct Iran wars. Even though neither of them is, for legal purposes, a “war.”This episode is sponsored by The New York Times.