Bulwark Takes: Breaking Down Trump's Moronic FOX Interview

Podcast: Bulwark Takes
Host: The Bulwark team (Will Saletan featured)
Date: April 12, 2026

Episode Overview

In this episode, Will Saletan from The Bulwark dissects Donald Trump’s recent phone interview with Maria Bartiromo on Fox News, focusing on Trump’s statements about the ongoing Iran war. The episode uses Trump’s own words to highlight his confusion, inconsistencies, and lack of understanding regarding major geopolitical issues—including Iran's nuclear program, regime change, the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, and impacts on oil prices and the global economy.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Trump’s Contradictory Narrative on Iran’s Nuclear Program

• Trump claims the U.S. had to attack Iran “to stop them from getting nuclear weapons,” yet he then says the U.S. already obliterated their nuclear sites the previous year.
• Will Saletan exposes the contradiction:
  • “We already wiped out their nuclear program. But now, now we had to go back in again… to stop Iran’s nuclear program, which we had already obliterated. He can’t even get his story straight.” (02:25)

2. Regime Change Confusion

• Trump asserts “we have had regime change,” suggesting new, smarter leaders in Iran.
• Saletan highlights the ignorance:
  • “Dude, the new supreme Leader of Iran is literally another Khomeini. He’s the son of the previous Ayatollah Khomeini. This so-called new regime is the same damn regime we had before.” (03:45)

3. Misunderstanding of Military Strategy and Asymmetric Warfare

• Trump says Iran only has mines left as a threat after the U.S. supposedly destroyed everything else.
• Saletan sarcastically notes:
  • “Turns out… their whole military is gone, but they can still drop a mine into the Strait of Hormuz… Who could have imagined that. Well, every single military planner, that’s who.” (05:30)
• He calls out Trump’s inability to grasp asymmetric warfare, something even junior military strategists understand.

4. Strait of Hormuz: Open or Closed?

• Trump’s statements flip-flop:
  • First, he says Iran will open the strait “automatically” because otherwise “they make no money.” (06:28)
  • Then, he discusses a “complete blockade”—demonstrating his lack of understanding that Iran can selectively allow passage or charge tolls. (06:53)
• Saletan’s commentary:
  • “Our genius president was too dumb to figure that out.” (07:04)

5. Negotiation Delusions and Setting Himself up for Failure

• Trump proclaims:
  • “I predict they come back and they give us everything we want. And I tell my people, I want everything. I don’t want 90%. I don’t want 95%. I told them I want everything.” (07:39)
• Saletan:
  • “If you wanted to make sure… you come out of a negotiation looking like the loser, the surest way… is to tell everybody up front if you don’t get a hundred percent… that’s not good enough.” (07:50)

6. Boasting About Destruction While Losing Leverage

• Trump repeatedly brags: “We’ve wiped out their whole country, essentially… But we’ve pretty much maxed out.” (08:24)
• Saletan points out:
  • “He’s basically telling our adversary, we can’t hit you any harder than we already have. Right. And then he’s surprised when the Iranian negotiators say, okay, well, if you’re maxed out, then we’re not giving you what you want.” (08:46)

7. Trump’s Obsession with Media and Domestic Approval

• Trump digresses from war topics to media approval ratings:
  • “Our military is a 94% approval rating now. Well, Congress has a 14%. The media has a 12%. When I started, the media had a 92% approval rating…” (09:53)
• Saletan critiques:
  • “We’re in a war, and now we’re in a negotiation to end the war. But what he wants to talk about is… driving down the media’s approval rating.” (10:10)

8. Utter Distraction: Renaming the Gulf of Mexico

• Bartiromo asks a real economic question; Trump instead boasts:
  • “Well, I can tell you that it used to be called the Gulf of Mexico. That’s what I can tell you now. It’s called the Gulf of America because of me.” (10:44)
• He spins a long, delusional story about renaming the Gulf:
  • “Google Map… did it. It’s now the Gulf of America, which I’m very… honored by.” (11:28)
• Saletan’s exasperation:
  • “There is a war and an economic crisis, and this guy, instead of doing his job, cannot stop talking about this.” (10:59)

9. Shrugging Off Gas Price Consequences

• Bartiromo asks about oil prices before midterms:
  • Trump: “I hope so. I mean, I think so. It could be. It could be, or the same, or maybe a little bit higher, but it should be around the same.” (12:19)
• Saletan calls out the lack of real answers or strategy:
  • “He says, hey, it’s just a little detour, a journey. This… operation will… be over soon. Right. And… you’re still going to be paying $4 or $5 or $6 for gas right through the midterms.” (12:26)

10. Trump’s Misplaced Pride in Media Harm

• Trump brags:
  • “The media had a 92% approval rating. Now they’re down to 14%. Wow. And I’m very proud of it, because they’re very dishonest.” (09:53)
• Saletan:
  • “Have you noticed that the media’s approval rating is way, way down? That’s something, right? So congratulations, Mr. President. You do. You do win the Nobel Prize in stupidity.” (13:08, closing section)

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• Will Saletan:

  • “We have all the advantages except one thing. We have the world’s dumbest president.” (00:47)
  • “He can’t even get his story straight.” (02:25)
  • “This so-called new regime is the same damn regime we had before.” (03:45)
  • “This moron president… is so determined to brag about all the damage he’s done that he’s basically telling our adversary, we can’t hit you any harder than we already have.” (08:46)
  • “There is a war and an economic crisis, and this guy, instead of doing his job, cannot stop talking about this.” (10:59)
  • “You do win the Nobel Prize in stupidity.” (13:08)

• Donald Trump (as quoted/cut from Fox interview):

  • “We knocked out with the B2 bombers… Had we not knocked that out, they would have had a nuclear weapon within one month…” (01:59)
  • “We have had regime change…” (03:20)
  • “They have one thing they can do… drop a mine… it’s extortion and they’re extorting the world.” (05:01)
  • “It used to be called the Gulf of Mexico… now it’s called the Gulf of America because of me.” (10:44)
  • “When I started, the media had a 92% approval rating. Now they’re down to 14%. Wow. And I’m very proud of it, because they’re very dishonest.” (09:53)

Notable Timestamps

• 00:47 – Introduction to Trump’s interview on Fox and framing of the critique
• 01:46 – Trump’s rationale for attacking Iran and nuclear site claims
• 03:20 – Trump’s regime change assertion & miscues about Iran’s leadership
• 05:01 – Bizarre logic about Iran’s lingering threat with mines
• 06:28 – Misstatements about the automatic reopening of the Strait of Hormuz
• 07:39 – Negotiation bluster: “I want everything.”
• 08:24 – Trump’s maximum pressure boast and Saletan’s analysis on lost leverage
• 09:53 – Distracted by media approval ratings mid-discussion on military
• 10:44 – The “Gulf of America” name change anecdote
• 12:19 – Dodging on oil price forecasts
• 13:08 – Closing critique: “Nobel Prize in stupidity”

Summary

This episode sharply critiques Trump’s recent Fox News interview as a showcase of confusion, ignorance, and misplaced priorities by the president during a major international crisis. Through pointed analysis and Trump’s own contradictory statements, The Bulwark highlights the risks of unstable leadership at a time of global danger, blending grave concern with biting satire. For listeners who missed the episode, this breakdown captures the essence of the discussion: a presidency overwhelmed by self-promotion, strategic blunders, and incoherence at the highest stakes.