Bulwark Takes — Ep. "A Conservative Finally Says It: Trump Is Incredibly Corrupt"

Host: Tim Miller
Airdate: February 8, 2026

Overview

In this episode, Tim Miller of The Bulwark dives into a new and unusually candid series by Andy McCarthy in National Review chronicling the immense scale of Donald Trump's post-presidential corruption — specifically, how his alleged crypto enterprise with UAE partners and controversial pardons vastly outpaces the corruption scandals pinned on Hunter Biden or the Clintons. Miller highlights the political and cultural significance of this critique coming from a conservative mainstay, the National Review, and unpacks the details of the exposé, calling out the rare, honest appraisal of Trump within right-wing media.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The National Review's Complicated History with Trump

• Background: Miller introduces National Review’s anti-Trump stance in 2016 ("Against Trump" cover), and its rapid retreat as the GOP base embraced Trump.
  • "[They] started to get in line … The National Review, that's not really been the case [staying 'Never Trump']." (02:12)
• Editor Rich Lowry's posturing (“tough guy Trump stuff”) and the magazine's reluctance to fully oppose Trump once he secured the party.

Andy McCarthy’s Groundbreaking Series on Trump’s Corruption

• Article Focus: McCarthy, a long-time National Review contributor, exposes Trump's elaborate crypto corruption, focusing on:

  • The formation of a Trump-affiliated crypto business, in partnership with Steve Witkoff, before Trump’s return to the White House (06:00)
  • UAE’s $2.5B investment into the business just before Trump retakes office
  • Key actors: Chinese-born billionaire and Binance founder Changpeng Zhao ("CZ"), Trump envoy Steve Witkoff, UAE’s Sheikh Tanoon

• Key Mechanisms of Corruption:

  • Trump aides leverage official diplomatic roles for personal business negotiations (07:00)
  • Foreign actors (UAE, CZ) receive pardons, policy favors, and control of lucrative US assets in exchange for investments and support
  • The legal requirement for China to divest TikTok overruled in a deal funneling ownership to Trump's UAE allies and donors (08:32)

“To Be Sure” — Right-wing Media’s Usual Rationalization, Bluntly Overridden

• Miller discusses the predictable “to be sure” paragraph in right-leaning exposés, which typically minimizes Republican wrongdoing by pivoting to Democratic scandals (09:12).
  • “In journalism, they call that a to be sure graph … like, Trump did something we don't really approve of. But to be sure, it's not any worse than whatever some liberal did …" (09:14)
• This time, McCarthy subverts the tradition:
  • "You'd have to add two digits to the sum of Biden abuses … to get near what Trump has raked in … just from the UAE." — Andy McCarthy (11:13)
• Miller praises McCarthy for his candor, finally breaking the right-wing tradition of rationalization:
  • "Kudos to you, Andy, for just putting it that bluntly for the readers. It is true. We've all been desperate for this." (11:26)

Explaining the Trump Crypto Enterprise

• Initial scammy ventures of meme coins (i.e. "shitcoins") likened to Trump's previous business scams (12:22).
  • “He knew how to take a fake product, put his name on it and get dupes to pay him for it … and that's basically what a meme coin is.” (13:06)
• The operation graduates to more serious “stablecoins” deserving of large, foreign institutional investment — crucially enabled by CZ's Binance technical team, after Trump secures his pardon.
• The exchange of favors:
  • “The corrupt guy, Chinese national that was pardoned, put money directly into Trump's crypto company. … His Hong Kong based experts helped them create a new type of cryptocurrency that would allow them to make even more money.” (14:32)
  • UAE and China reap tech and policy benefits; the Trump family gains lavish profits and expanded international influence.

The Scale of Corruption Compared to Previous Scandals

• Miller (drawing from McCarthy): The sums and international reach of Trump’s self-dealing “dwarf” anything attributed to the Bidens or Clintons (11:13, 15:37).
  • “A truly mind-blowing level of corruption … basically has the Trump family enriching themselves by doing favors for Chinese national criminals, the UAE, and with one degree of separation, China itself." (15:34, 15:43)

Political and Media Significance

• Miller argues this level of honesty is rare and meaningful in right-wing media:
  • "It is a notable difference from where we've been … now you have more and more people even within [Trump's] own coalition willing to dip their toe into the water and … that's important progress." (16:29)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the National Review’s past opposition to Trump:
  “In 2016, they published what we thought would be influential at the time, a magazine cover called Against Trump. ... But the National Review … realized that many of their readers … did not share their opposition to Donald Trump. They started to get in line.” — Tim Miller (01:29-02:12)

• On the right-wing’s “to be sure” rationalization:
  “In journalism, they call that a to be sure graph ... usually would go something like, Trump did something that we don't really approve of. But to be sure, it's not any worse than whatever some liberal did ...” — Tim Miller (09:14)

• On the scale of Trump corruption:
  “You'd have to add two digits to the sum of Biden abuses ... to get near what Trump has raked in ... just from the UAE.” — Andy McCarthy, as quoted by Miller (11:13)

• On moving from meme coins to stablecoins:
  “He knew how to take a fake product, put his name on it and get dupes to pay him for it ... and that's basically what a meme coin is.” — Tim Miller (13:06)

• On the broader ramifications:
  “A truly mind-blowing level of corruption … basically has the Trump family enriching themselves by doing favors for Chinese national criminals, the UAE, and with one degree of separation, China itself.” — Tim Miller (15:34-15:43)

• On the significance of right-wing media admitting the truth:
  “It is a notable difference from where we've been … now you have more and more people even within [Trump's] own coalition willing to dip their toe into the water and … that's important progress.” — Tim Miller (16:29)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [02:00] – National Review’s history with Trump; intro to Andy McCarthy’s article series
• [06:00] – First article details: Trump, crypto, Witkoff, UAE, and foreign influence
• [08:30] – UAE/China receive tech & legal favors; TikTok deal background
• [09:50] – The "to be sure" paragraph tradition and McCarthy's break from it
• [11:13] – Stark quantification: Trump corruption dwarfs Biden/Clinton
• [12:20] – Explaining Trump's crypto business model and transition to stablecoins
• [14:30] – How Binance/CZ enabled stablecoin grift
• [15:34] – The sweeping international implications of the corruption
• [16:29] – Why this matters in media and conservative politics

Conclusion

Tim Miller brings a concise but in-depth analysis of why Andy McCarthy’s National Review series is a watershed moment for conservative media’s reckoning with Trump. He emphasizes the vast scale and international reach of Trump’s business and policy self-dealing while president and how, for perhaps the first time, a major right-wing outlet is laying it out with clarity and without equivocation.

Miller highlights the broader significance: growing dissent within conservative ranks, the potential for change in the movement, and how National Review’s admission—albeit belated and partial—reflects real cracks in Trump’s grip and the institutional culture of denial.

Listen to the full Bulwark Takes feed for continuing coverage and analysis.