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Mona Charen: A Moment of Truth Jan 29, 2025

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Trump is trying to seize powers he doesn't have—like unilaterally rewriting laws and deciding on his own how he wants to spend money Congress appropriated for a particular purpose. Will the Supreme Court stop him? And if it rules against him, will he obey the court's orders? Plus, the money angle behind RFK, Jr.'s conspiracies, and Elon's attempt at a mass buyout is not about making the government leaner and meaner. He's trying to replace good, smart people with lackeys and flunkies, like Tucker Carlson's son. Mona Charen joins Tim Miller.
Mona Charen joins Tim Miller.
show notes

Chris Hayes and Alex Kantrowitz: Trying To Break the Whole Thing Jan 28, 2025

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The directives putting a pause on federal grants and the firing of career DOJ prosecutors is about trying to make the entirety of the federal government the tool of the man occupying the presidency. And it's all illegal and unconstitutional. Meanwhile, Trump is exactly the kind of broken sociopath who can dominate the war for attention—the defining resource of our time. Plus, a rundown on DeepSeek, the new Chinese AI model, and why Bitcoin fans aren't more angry about the worthless, scammy Trump and Melania coins.
Chris Hayes and Alex Kantrowitz join Tim Miller.
show notes

Bill Kristol: Trump Loves Fraud Jan 27, 2025

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Gullible Republicans have really been proving what they're made of recently, including Susan Collins, who claims Trump wants to root out corruption, even though his whole life has been a fraud—the water, the university, and "The Apprentice," just for starters. Meanwhile, the presidents of Mexico and Colombia are showing that they're not going to bend over in service of Trump's vanity. Plus, JD's Johnny-come-lately Catholicism, and the tech titans's clash with DEI may be helping the US lose the lead in AI.
Bill Kristol joins Tim Miller.
show notes:
Colombian President Gustavo Petro's statement on Twitter (hit translate post)
Timothée Chalamet on SNL

David French: Vengeance and Rage Jan 24, 2025

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Trump launched his first week back in office signaling to loyal followers that they are free to break the law on his behalf, while telling political opponents—including John Bolton and Mike Pompeo—that he'll put their lives at risk. Meanwhile, an office full of white faces is not evidence of a meritocracy, a shortage of VA nurses or prosecutors at the DOJ is not government efficiency, and Putin is different from the man he was during Trump's first term. Plus, the dangers of the word "invasion" in the immigration context.
David French joins Tim Miller for the weekend pod.
show notes:

John Mulaney's 'horse in the hospital' skit
Tweet from Dan Crenshaw that Tim referenced
David's latest newsletter (gifted)
Tim's playlist

Sam Stein and Adrian Carrasquillo: We Are in a Simulation Jan 23, 2025

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Emotionally-stunted video game boys, who are also government contractors and/or quasi government officials, are fighting on Twitter, a POTUS who went all the way to SCOTUS to get immunity for presidents now would like the last president investigated, and America's premiere scientific research institution, the NIH, can't tell us about the bird flu—a widespread and potentially deadly virus that could mutate into a human pandemic. Meanwhile, the assault on immigration has stepped up, with raids now permitted at churches and schools. And DHS is targeting anyone who can be deported, regardless of whether or not they're a security threat.
Adrian Carrasquillo and Sam Stein join Tim Miller.
show notes
https://x.com/arelisrhdz/status/1881397640849678362

Stephanie Ruhle: Unlimited Money and No Rules Jan 22, 2025

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All those CEOs cartwheeled down to Mar-a-Lago and then dutifully lined up at Trump's inauguration because they were fed up with social justice warriors and labor having more power—even if their bottom lines were never harmed in the process. Now, they want their next adrenaline rush and more government money without any pesky regulations hampering their highfalutin space-exploration dreams. But they may just pine for those DEI training sessions after the coming populist economic backlash.
Stephanie Ruhle joins Tim Miller.

Tom Nichols: A Farce and a Sham Jan 21, 2025

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Trump tried to pencil out literal words in the Constitution and then freed 1,500 violent insurrectionists—while the media attempted to normalize it all. Meanwhile, much attention is being paid to Elon's salute, and not enough to the facts that he has an office at the White House, he's a government contractor, and paid a quarter of a billion dollars to get Trump elected. Plus, other Trump executive orders were pissy and petty, the 80s can no longer be called the decade of greed after Monday's Hunger Games vibe, and the Democrats are going to have a hard time resisting a risky 'eat the rich' path.
Tom Nichols joins Tim Miller.
show notes

Tom's piece from Monday on the police responding to Jan 6
Tweets about the price of eggs v attending the inauguration, which Tom referenced
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Bill Kristol: Resist the Nihilism Jan 20, 2025

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Trump wants us to believe that nothing matters, so we'll brush off all his corruption and grifting as though everybody does it. That's what aspiring authoritarians always do, including the guy who didn't place his hand on a Bible when he was sworn in today. Meanwhile, Trump just launched probably the biggest scam in the history of the presidency with his memecoin—ordinary people will lose real money, nothing like the small-ball amounts he scoops up with his shoes, mugs, and digital baseball cards. Plus, Biden's pardons, Trump's Day One executive orders, and seizing the means of content production with TikTok.
Bill Kristol joins Tim Miller.
show notes:

Mark Hertling on the challenges of executing "shock and awe"

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Ron Brownstein: Don't Take the Bait Jan 17, 2025

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Trump governed as a wartime president against blue America, so expect him to keep stirring up culture battles—but the Dems have to avoid getting drawn into them. Kamala and the party were undone in '24 by looking like they cared more about niche issues than putting food on the table. Meanwhile, Biden has left Trump a lot of room to consolidate a bigger coalition than he's ever had. Plus, for Republicans shrugging off climate change and threatening to withhold fire aid to California, here's a news flash: extreme weather is coming to a neighborhood near you.
Ron Brownstein joins Tim Miller for the weekend
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Melissa Murray and John Avlon: The Dark Legal Clouds Ahead Jan 16, 2025

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Pam Bondi is likely to sail to confirmation—even if she's an election denier and pretends she was born yesterday—because she meets the simple qualifications of being a lawyer and former prosecutor, and because she's not a frat paddle come to life i.e. Matt Gaetz. But the fact that she wasn't able to clearly state that the U.S. is her client, not Donald Trump, is a giant red flag. Ditto for his personal lawyers also coming on board. Plus, the ominous removal of Mike Turner from the House intelligence committee, how Biden's farewell address stacked up, and what the locked-up shampoo bottles at CVS say about blue-state governance.
Melissa Murray and John Avlon join Tim.
show notes

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