Bulwark Takes — GOP Scrambles After MASSIVE Minneapolis Blowback

Date: February 5, 2026
Host: Tim O (Tim Miller)
Guest: Andrew Egger (Morning Shots Newsletter)

Overview

In this episode, Tim O from The Bulwark and Andrew Egger break down the political fallout and strategic landscape following the controversial ICE operations in Minneapolis and the corresponding congressional wrangling over Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding. The conversation provides insight into the rare offensive position Democrats have carved out on immigration and law enforcement funding, internal GOP unease, and the nuances of what constitutes a legislative "win" in the current climate.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Democratic Leadership: Accusations of Ineffectiveness vs. Recent Wins

• Background: Contrary to common criticism labeling Democratic leadership as feckless or ineffective, Tim argues they've notched underappreciated victories during the government funding conflicts.
  • "You hear mostly complaints about the Democratic leadership. How feckless they are... But just as a kind of a minor strategic win, it was a minor strategic win."
    — Tim O [01:48]
• Current Situation: The recent shutdown negotiations allowed Dems to secure wins, particularly concerning non-DHS appropriations and specific domestic funding restorations.

2. The DHS/ICE Funding Standoff

• Partial Shutdown Explained:
  • Congress agreed to fund everything except DHS for the next two weeks, avoiding a total shutdown while forcing a focused debate on ICE conduct.
    • "DHS is going to have two weeks of funding after which point it expires again... and we are actually going to hash out what to do about ICE."
      — Andrew Egger [04:24]
• Democratic Position: This move allows Democrats to concentrate their negotiating power—rather than shutting down the whole government—on curbing ICE's worst abuses.

3. What Democrats Are Demanding

• Policy Goals:
  • End ICE operations with anonymous, masked, and unbadged agents.
  • Mandate body cameras for DHS/ICE/Border Patrol.
  • Require independent investigation for alleged misconduct.
  • Establish transparent professional conduct rules.
  • Most critically, end "broad sweeps" as seen in Minneapolis, e.g. stop-and-frisk based on racial profiling and warrantless entry into homes/vehicles.
    • "If you wanted to go down the list of, like, the worst constitutional outrages... that's the kind of stuff that they're targeting right now."
      — Andrew Egger [07:31]

4. Republican Squeamishness Post-Minneapolis

• GOP Backpedaling:
  • Some Republicans are publicly uncomfortable with ICE's extreme tactics post-Minneapolis, giving Democrats leverage.
    • "Democrats are realizing that...there is actually a certain amount of real Republican squeamishness about the way that ICE has been behaving... particularly with this Minneapolis stuff."
      — Andrew Egger [06:31]
  • Already, administrative changes (like requiring body cameras) and changes in local ICE leadership are occurring in response to the blowback.

5. The Limits and Leverage of Legislative Power

• Negotiation Strategy:
  • Democrats likely won’t achieve full-scale reforms or abolition of ICE given Republican control, but incremental change through funding leverage is possible and meaningful.
    • "Incremental progress is a good thing, right? I mean, it is actually good to be able to force the other side to give you policy wins by using these different procedural levers."
      — Andrew Egger [13:46]
• Debate Over Maximalist vs. Incrementalist Approaches:
  • Some progressives push for total defunding or abolition, arguing reforms like body cams are inadequate.
    • Tim O: "What's the old meme on leftist Twitter? Republicans want to do war crimes. Democrats, you know, want more lawyers to monitor the war crimes."
      [12:03]
  • Egger acknowledges this but emphasizes tangible improvements for affected people, even if systemic overhaul isn’t achievable now.
    • "If you're in there to legislate, I think you should use your legislative powers to try to make things better... even if the only thing you actually have the ability to do is do that in small ways for now."
      — Andrew Egger [14:28]

6. Political Terrain and Uncertain Outcomes

• Democratic Optimism, GOP Disarray:
  • Democrats have managed, for now, to isolate the fight to DHS—potentially a political advantage.
  • Outcome is still uncertain; Republicans could stall or water down reforms, or the standoff could persist.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Legislative Realism:
  "You are not going to abolish ICE under Republican-controlled House, Senate and presidency. Sorry, it's just not gonna happen."
  — Andrew Egger [13:34]

• On Incrementalism:
  "Corporate centrist sellout cuck Andrew Egger just wants things to get a little better for people. You just want things to get better. God."
  — Tim O [15:24] (mocking tone, reflecting Twitter-style ideological purity policing)

• On the Underappreciated Nature of This Win:
  "It's good, I think, to get out in the ether the perspective that some progress is being made because there's plenty of catastrophizing happening on this YouTube channel."
  — Tim O [15:35]

• On Still-Open Risks:
  "If people want to be mad, they could still fuck it up and it could still happen, right?... In two weeks we could be furious by the way all this has gone, but I do think there's a real opportunity here that shouldn't be discounted."
  — Andrew Egger [15:47]

Important Timestamps and Topics

• 01:30 — Show proper begins: Framing the debate on DHS/Democratic strategy
• 02:47 — Details of the partial shutdown deal and ICE funding context
• 04:24 — How the current funding negotiations differ from past shutdowns
• 06:24 — List of Democratic reform demands regarding ICE and DHS
• 08:32 — Republican response and internal divisions
• 11:54 — Progressive/left-wing critique of incrementalist approach
• 13:25–15:47 — Debate over legislative realism and incremental progress

Tone & Style

The episode is analytical, occasionally wry, and forthright. Tim O mixes earnest analysis with self-deprecating humor and light roasting of his guests, while Andrew Egger provides detailed explanations and a measured defense of incremental legislative tactics over maximalist posturing. The discussion is candid about both shortcomings and successes of Democratic leadership, and maintains a skeptical but constructive perspective on whether genuine reform is achievable.

Summary

This episode offers an incisive and timely look into how Democrats might convert a GOP overreach—in this case, ICE's controversial actions in Minneapolis—into a rare offensive opportunity on immigration and law enforcement policy. With sharp analysis and healthy skepticism, Tim O and Andrew Egger dissect the legislative chess match, weighing the real value of incremental victories against the pressures of activist maximalism and the hard realities of divided government. The episode concludes with a note of cautious optimism—acknowledging both the risks ahead and the unique leverage Democrats currently hold.