GOP Governors Are Putting Trump First and You LAST

Summary

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Podcast Summary: Bulwark Takes – GOP Governors Are Putting Trump First and You LAST

Date: August 19, 2025
Host: Tim Miller, The Bulwark

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Overview

In this episode, Tim Miller delivers a scathing critique of Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry’s decision to send 135 Louisiana National Guard troops to Washington, D.C., joining other red-state governors in a gesture portrayed as supporting national security. Miller argues that this move is politically motivated, prioritizing Donald Trump’s interests over the needs of Louisiana citizens, and he examines the local and national implications of diverting state resources for partisan theater.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Governor Landry’s Decision and Statement

• Governor Landry announced the deployment of 135 Louisiana National Guard members to D.C., justified as “assisting in President Trump’s mission of restoring safety and peace.”
• The official rationale cites protecting federal buildings and monuments, invoking “law and order.”
• Miller is outraged by what he calls “an affront to the soldiers,” “an insult to citizens,” and “fakocta mission.”
  • Quote:

    “All this does is serve, you know, Donald Trump's desire to militarize the nation's capital and to gain power for himself. It does absolutely nothing for the citizens of Louisiana or any of these other states.”
    – Tim Miller (01:18)

2. Crime Statistics & Misplaced Priorities

• Miller challenges the notion that D.C.'s crime justifies this deployment, noting Louisiana’s own cities suffer higher crime rates:
  • Homicide rates in New Orleans, Baton Rouge, and Shreveport surpass those in D.C.
• “If we were concerned, as Jeff Landry said, by the need for more safety and peace in our cities... then send them to Shreveport.” (03:11)
• Points out the absurdity of assigning unarmed Louisiana National Guardsmen to protect places like Georgetown Cupcake or Union Station in D.C.

Memorable Moment:

• Quote:

  "It's absurd and, like, it should be laughed out of the room as a suggestion that we should spend our resources and our manpower protecting, you know, Dupont Circle. Insane. Insane."
  – Tim Miller (03:37)

3. Direct Threats at Home Ignored

• Highlights serious recent security concerns in Louisiana, like the largest jailbreak in the country in a century at the Orleans Justice Center, with violent criminals still at large (04:28).
• Notes a terrorist attack occurred on Bourbon Street this year, not in D.C.
  • Critiques the state’s lack of National Guard deployment in response to actual local emergencies.

Notable Quote:

• "Why are we sending 135 National Guardsmen who ostensibly should be called into duty to help protect in those situations across the country to sit outside Union Station doing nothing?" (09:20)

4. Hurricane Season and Emergency Preparedness

• Louisiana National Guard plays a vital role in disaster response, which is especially relevant during hurricane season.
• Miller questions the wisdom of dispatching a significant number of Guardsmen out of state when hurricanes are looming.
• “There’s an Atlantic hurricane that’s developing right now… why would we send over a hundred National Guardsmen across the country during hurricane season for totally uncritical duties?” (10:28)

5. Impact on Guardsmen and Local Communities

• Emphasizes that National Guard members are ordinary citizens with families, jobs, and community obligations.
• The deployment disrupts their lives — especially during “back to school” in Louisiana.

Quote:

"It is fucking offensive to the people that are volunteering to work in this... to be called into duty when there are actual emergencies like the terrorist attack that we had this year in January right here in Louisiana and... hurricanes, which we will probably have to deal with in the weeks and months ahead."
– Tim Miller (11:22)

6. Political Theater and Critique of Motivations

• Miller sees the move as a “military stage play” for Trump and Landry’s political gain, not public safety.
• Calls for citizens to voice opposition to such political stunts.

Quote:

"Sending people to D.C. for show because Jeff Landry wants Daddy Trump to pat him on the head. That is fucking offensive. That is offensive, Jeff Landry."
– Tim Miller (12:45)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On priorities:
  “If Mississippi had a major hurricane or a terrorist attack, sure. Like, send the National Guard in from Louisiana to help... But sending people to D.C. for show because Jeff Landry wants Daddy Trump to pat him on the head. That is fucking offensive.” (11:42–12:45)

• On the disruption of Guardsmen’s lives:
  “We’re taking away from their businesses, we’re taking them away from their families during back to school to send them to sit outside the Georgetown cupcake. This is ridiculous.” (10:56)

• On political posturing:
  “If Donald Trump wants to dress up FBI agents and DEA agents and whatever and have them run around DC, I’m against that, too, but that’s his problem. There’s no reason that people from Louisiana and other states... should be sent to get involved in this because... the governors... want to make their orange daddy happy. It’s BS.” (14:13)

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Important Timestamps

• 00:02–01:18: Miller introduces the story, quotes Gov. Landry’s statement, and sets the tone for outrage.
• 02:33–03:37: Breakdown of local vs. D.C. crime, pointing out logical inconsistencies.
• 04:28–06:00: Criticism of failure to deploy state resources to real emergencies, such as jailbreaks and recent terrorist attacks.
• 07:07–10:28: Analysis of National Guard’s core responsibilities, the urgency of hurricane season.
• 10:34–12:45: Impact on Guardsmen’s families, local economies, and assertion that the deployment is performative.
• 13:29–15:02: Final summary and call to action for citizens to contact their governors.

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Tone & Closing Thoughts

Miller adopts a sharp, frustrated, and witty tone throughout, delivering cutting barbs at both Gov. Landry and Trump while remaining deeply concerned for Louisiana’s practical needs and its National Guard members. He ends with a personal appeal for civic engagement, encouraging listeners to protest these political maneuvers:

"Write and call your governors and let them know that you’re pissed because they need to hear about it." (14:56)

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Summary Takeaway

Tim Miller argues forcefully that deploying the Louisiana National Guard to D.C. isn’t about public safety but political spectacle — and comes at real cost to Louisiana’s security and its citizen-soldiers. He urges listeners to reject these displays of loyalty to Trump and demand their leaders prioritize local needs over national theatrics.

Transcript

[A]

Hey, everybody, Tim Miller from the Bulwark here. I want to ask you to indulge.

[B]

Me as I focus on a Louisiana angle of a national news story and a national outrage, because yesterday my governor, Jeff Landry, announced He was sending 135 Louisiana National Guard troops to Washington D.C. to keep our streets safe in the nation's capital. Apparently, he's joined by a bunch of other red state governors who are doing this. This decision to send National Guard troops from other states to D.C. and is an outrage. It does not do anything to advance public safety. It is an affront to the soldiers that are being sent there to work on this facoctim mission. It is an insult to the citizens of the states that they're being sent from where there are real issues that could be addressed by the National Guard or by other resources provided by the state. This does nothing to help public safety. All this does is serve, you know, Donald Trump's desire to militarize the nation's capital and to gain power for himself. It does absolutely nothing for the citizens of Louisiana or any of these other states. I want to walk through what Jeff Landry's statement was and then explain how ridiculous it is. On a point by point basis, he writes this. I approve the deployment of 135 Louisiana National Guard soldiers to Washington D.C. to assist in President Trump's mission of restoring safety and peace in our nation's capital. We are a nation of law and order. Our capital is a reflection of our nation's respect, beauty and standards. We cannot allow our cities to be overcome by violence and lawlessness. I am proud to support this mission to return sanity and safety to Washington D.C. and cities all across our country, including right here in Louisiana. Louisiana National Guard said in a statement that as directed by the President of the United States, it was sending 135 members to D.C. to quote from protect federal buildings, national monuments and other federal properties.

[A]

What? What? Why would Louisiana National Guard soldiers be needed to protect national monuments, the Washington Monument, and federal buildings? This is absolutely preposterous and offensive. And no matter what your political leanings are, if you live in Louisiana or one of the other states where National.

[B]

Guard troops are being sent to d, you should be offended and insulted. Let me just go through a couple of these things.

[A]

Crime, this notion that the D.C. crime.

[B]

Is so bad that we need to.

[A]

Send Louisiana troops there. The homicide rate is higher in New Orleans than it is in Washington, D.C.

[B]

The homicide rate is higher in Baton.

[A]

Rouge than it is in Washington, D.C. the homicide rate is higher in Shreveport.

[B]

Than it is in Washington, D.C. if.

[A]

We were concerned, as Jeff Landry said, by the need for more safety and peace in our cities and we really needed military troops in the streets to help with that, which I'm quite suspect it will do.

[B]

Then send him to Shreveport. Get Mike Johnson to sign off on it. That's his district.

[A]

Send Louisiana National Guard troops up to Shreveport and start roaming those streets.

[B]

Or send them around Tiger Stadium. Go Tigers. To protect people tailgating this fall.

[A]

Like, is absurd to think that Louisiana.

[B]

National Guard troops who are going to.

[A]

Be unarmed will do. Bet will do more for safety and.

[B]

Security standing outside the Georgetown cupcake and outside Union Station and outside the Lincoln Memorial than they would do standing guard outside similarly important monuments and buildings and areas that we prize right here in Louisiana. It's absurd and, like, it should be laughed out of the room as a suggestion that we should spend our resources and our manpower protecting, you know, Dupont Circle. Insane. Insane.

[A]

Also, we're talking to crime. I just like to throw this out as you're trying to think about, well, if you're the governor of the state.

[B]

Of Louisiana, you're trying to figure out where to prioritize your resources when it.

[A]

Comes to crime prevention.

[B]

Some of you outside the state might not know this.

[A]

The Orleans justice center had the largest jailbreak in America in a century. Just a couple months ago. Ten people, murderers, violent criminals got out of our prison. There were no National Guard troops guarding that prison. One of the two main orchestrators of that, Derrick Groves, is still on the lam. So the guy that organized one of the largest jailbreaks in American history right here in Louisiana is out there somewhere. And we're using our resources of restoring safety and peace and law and order to guard M Street in Georgetown, in Washington, D.C. instead. Again, it makes no sense. There are so many priorities here that when it comes to crime and law and order that Governor Landry should be focused on, why would we waste resources or time or even a second thinking about protecting the National Mall? It's ridiculous. And obviously the National Guard doesn't do, you know, search of jailbreak coordinators. Right. You know, it's not csi, Louisiana National Guard, but, like, there are things that the National Guard actually does that might be useful here in Louisiana.

[C]

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[A]

Let's start with this. Governor Jeff Landry himself announced earlier this year that he's placing the Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness under the Louisiana National Guard. So let's talk about Homeland security. We had a terrorist attack in Louisiana this year. Not in Washington, not on 14th street, outside Le Diplomat. There was not a terrorist attack this year. There was one on Bourbon Street. Now, I'm not personally, I'm not for Louisiana National Guard troops guarding Bourbon Street. I prefer to live in a free country where we don't have dudes in military fatigues monitoring public gathering places. But if you're the kind of person who, who thinks we do need that, we need National Guard troops, we need other federal agents, and we need more police gathering in places of public interest that are subject to crime, that are subject to terrorist attacks. Well, why wouldn't you start on the place where we had a terrorist attack this year? Governors of office. Homeland Security wasn't really on the ball on that one when a guy killed 15 people on Bourbon street because the bollards were removed, allowing the car to get into an area that had been protecting pedestrians. Bollards were down because they were, you know, setting shit up for the Super Bowl. So where was Jeff Landry on that? Like the National Guard supposed to, by his own words, be focused on homeland Security initiatives. We had a terrorist attack here this Year. Why are we sending 135 National Guardsmen who ostensibly should be called into duty to help protect in those situations across the country to sit outside Union Station doing nothing? I mean, again, I think that these guys should be able to live their lives. National Guard is a volunteer time. It's not a full time thing in most of these cases, but if we're going to have National Guardsmen sit outside somewhere, probably Bourbon Street, a better bet if they're Louisiana National Guardsmen. Here's another thing the Louisiana National Guard works on. I mentioned, emergency preparedness. The Louisiana National Guard provides critical support during hurricanes, assisting with search and rescue, distributing supplies and providing security and other vital services. They work with local and state agencies and often collaborate with other National Guard units from across the nation utilizing the Emergency Management Assistance Compact. So we're in hurricane season. I know that the head of FEMA did not realize that there was such a thing as a hurricane season, but you would think that Jeff Landry, who is from Louisiana would know about hurricane season. We're in hurricane season right now. Louisiana National Guard provides critical support when hurricanes hit.

[B]

There's an Atlantic hurricane that's developing right now. No imminent threat to the Gulf.

[A]

But why would, why would we send over a hundred National Guardsmen across the country during hurricane season for totally uncritical duties? You know, like what are they going to do exactly? They're going to guard our monuments again, Maybe they should be at home helping prepare in case we have another big hurricane this year. That seems to be something that should be much higher in the priority of the Governor of Louisiana than worrying about whether there are dudes in fatigues roaming the National Mall. Also, I just want to reiterate, people in the National Guard are real people with real jobs. They work in other industries in Louisiana. We're taking away from their businesses, we're taking them away from their families during back to school to send them to sit outside the Georgetown cupcake. This is ridiculous. It is fucking offensive to the people that are volunteering to work in this net in the National Guard to protect us and to be called into duty when there are actual emergencies like the terrorist attack that we had this year in January right here in Louisiana and like, and they fall out from hurricanes, which we will probably have to deal with in the weeks and months ahead. Let them be with their families, let them work their day jobs if there's no actual imminent need for them to, to do anything else. Right. Like again, if Mississippi had a major hurricane or a terrorist attack, sure. Like send the National Guard in from Louisiana to help, you know, obviously everybody. You know, we want to help our neighbors. You care about people from other states. I'm not totally myopic about this, but sending people to D.C. for show because Jeff Landry wants Daddy Trump to pat him on the head. That is fucking offensive. That is offensive. Jeff Landry.

[B]

You go to D.C. and put on fatigues and march around the mall like a tough guy.

[A]

Send your family to D.C. why are you sending other Louisianans who are volunteering to serve the state and the country on a fakocta mission to advance your political career, which is going nowhere, by the way. I mean, you're the governor, so it's. It's ending there. The whole thing is.

[B]

Is offensive. And I feel like people are beaten down by what is happening out there, and it's just, you know, they roll their eyes at this sort of stuff, and it's typical politics and all that.

[A]

But, like, this isn't typical politics. These are real people's lives that have been upended to go sit outside DC and be characters in this military stage.

[B]

Play that Donald Trump and Jeff Landry are putting on, all right?

[A]

And they're people that provide real value.

[B]

To Louisiana in their private lives, whether it be their contributions to the economy, whether it be their families, their churches, their schools, or communities are being taken away from that.

[A]

And the other thing they do is they're here in case there are actual.

[B]

Emergencies where they need to call in to help. And we've had plenty of those.

[A]

So.

[B]

This is nasty business. It is not based on any actual threat. It's not based on any actual need. If Donald Trump wants to dress up FBI agents and DEA agents and whatever and have them run around dc, I'm against that, too, but that's his problem. There's no reason that people from Louisiana and other states around the country should be sent to get involved in this because, you know, the governors of the states want to make their orange daddy happy. It's BS should speak out about it. If you live in Louisiana, if you live in one of the other states that they're sending their National Guard troops, write and call your governors and let them know that you're pissed because they need to hear about it.

[A]

Subscribe to the feed. Much more to come today. I'm on up. I'm back.

[B]

I'm in Louisiana. I'm in my hole and I'm fired up. So you got more videos to come.

[A]

Stick around.

[B]

Tell your friends, go Tigers. We'll see you all soon.