Podcast Summary: Bulwark Takes

Episode: How the Hell Is Cory Mills in Congress?
Date: December 8, 2025
Host: Tim O (The Bulwark)
Guest: Roger Sullenberger (Investigative Reporter)

Overview

This explosive episode dives into the astonishing backstory of Republican Congressman Cory Mills of Florida. Host Tim O and reporter Roger Sullenberger peel back layers of scandal, conflict of interest, alleged criminal behavior, and wild personal history that—surprisingly—has kept Mills largely under the national radar until recently. The episode explores Sullenberger’s in-depth reporting on Mills, described as “George Santos with a gun,” focusing on ethics violations, political scandals, financial misconduct, and personal controversies that call into question how such a figure ends up in Congress.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Who Is Cory Mills?

[02:00–04:04]

• Mills, a relatively unknown but now notorious Republican from Florida, first elected in 2022 by a wide margin.
• Gained notoriety only recently due to allegations of assault, revenge porn, cyber stalking, and a string of ethics investigations.
• Despite attempts at censure and bad press, Mills remains a fixture in far-right circles, making Fox and Newsmax rounds.
• According to Sullenberger, Mills’s scandals span beyond the personal to “exhausting breadth”—including finances, national security, and politics.

Quote:
“He’s like George Santos, Matt Gaetz, Bob Menendez, Herschel Walker—all rolled into one person.”
—Roger Sullenberger [04:04]

2. From Local Race to National Problem

[07:41–08:52]

• Mills's district around Daytona Beach has shifted from Democratic to a strong Republican lean, but his scandals potentially put his seat in play.
• Speculation on whether his extreme baggage might render him politically vulnerable, given how scandalous the profile is.

3. The Arms Dealing Company and Congressional Conflicts

[08:52–13:01]

• Mills co-founded Pacem (a weapons and defense company) with his wife in 2014 and still maintains ownership.
• Direct Oversight: He sits on House Foreign Affairs (chairs the Oversight and Intelligence Subcommittee) and Armed Services, giving him direct authority over the very industry he profits from.
• Pacem does “direct commercial sales” of arms, including to Ukraine—while Mills vocally opposes US aid to Ukraine.

Quote:
“He has direct oversight of his own industry, of his own company. … If we cut the federal aid to Ukraine, that opens up a lane for businesses like his.”
—Roger Sullenberger [09:47]

• The company, however, is on the brink: $66 million in debt, with Mills personally liable, and has defaulted on loans and stopped paying employees.
• Mills has never disclosed this massive debt—a serious breach of Congressional ethics since he personally guaranteed foreign loans.

Quote:
“He is on the hook with his company for the 66 million... and has never disclosed that.”
—Roger Sullenberger [11:24]

4. Sex Scandals and Questionable Missions

[13:01–17:26]

• In Congress, Mills undertook a “covert exfiltration” in Afghanistan for a constituent, where he allegedly hired prostitutes nightly, to the discomfort and alarm of genuine military team members.

Quote:
“Covert exfil operation that turned also into a sex mission… Corey’s just hiring prostitutes, like, every night.”
—Tim O & Roger Sullenberger [13:30–14:15]

• His military record is reportedly embellished—he presents himself as a special ops figure, while in reality he served as an Army medic.
• Mills leveraged the Afghanistan operation for political and media clout, appearing as a Biden critic on Fox News and similar outlets.

5. Religious and Biographical Contradictions

[17:26–20:48]

• Mills converted to Islam in 2014 to marry an Iraqi refugee (now divorcing)—a detail he conceals while running as a MAGA Republican.
• The mosque where he was married is notorious for extremist links, making the story especially incendiary in GOP politics.
• Despite the facts, Mills publicly claims Protestant and Catholic affiliations.

Quote:
“The mosque was Anwar Al Awlaki's mosque. … The 9/11 hijackers attended that mosque, and the Fort Hood shooter has a connection to this mosque. … Allegedly a fundraiser for Hamas and alleged to be a co-conspirator in the ‘93 World Trade Center bombing.”
—Roger Sullenberger [19:30]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Mills’s political persona:
  “If you want to triangulate Corey Mills, if it’s possible … he is uniquely—the breadth of this story is astounding. … If you’re building a World of Warcraft character … he’s like Santos, Gaetz, Menendez—all of them, like up to one hundred.”
  —Roger Sullenberger [04:04]

• On business ethics:
  “He’s personally guaranteed it. … Unlimited guarantee. … This is who I owe money to. … He just happens to be indebted to a foreign lender in Canada to the tune right now of $66 million."
  —Roger Sullenberger [11:24]

• On the conflicting persona:
  "Fake Republican Congressman here who is, you know, embellishing his record as a liar, as an arms dealer while doing supposed oversight over his industry, has some sexual harassment and assault allegations, sleeping with Russian hookers on a covert trip to Afghanistan, and also may or may not be a secret Muslim who was married in Anwar Al Awlaki’s mosque.”
  —Tim O [20:48]

Timestamps for Important Segments

| Timestamp | Topic | |:-------------:|:--------------------------------------------------| | 02:00-04:04 | Introduction to Mills's character & "why significant" | | 04:04-06:10 | Sullenberger explains the scope of investigations | | 07:41-08:52 | Political implications of Mills's scandals | | 08:52-13:01 | Arms company, Congressional oversight, and debts | | 13:01-17:26 | Afghanistan mission, sex scandal, Fox News stardom | | 17:26-20:48 | Conversion to Islam, details of the marriage, GOP optics | | 20:48-21:45 | Recap; Mills as “fake Republican” and story wrap-up |

Overall Tone & Final Thoughts

The episode is a rapid-fire, incredulous, at-times darkly comic dissection of how someone with Mills’s baggage can evade accountability and maintain power within Congress. Both Tim O and Roger Sullenberger express disbelief and fatigue at the sheer scale of the misconduct revealed and muse over the implications for the GOP and American democracy.

For further details, listeners are directed to Sullenberger’s bombshell Substack reporting (link in show notes).