Live Coverage of Trump's Freedom 250 Rally

Summary

Podcast Summary: Bulwark Takes – Live Coverage of Trump's Freedom 250 Rally

Date: June 25, 2026
Hosts: Sam Stein, Will Sommer, Andrew Egger
Theme: Real-time commentary and analysis of Donald Trump’s "Freedom 250" rally, marking the kickoff of the America 250 celebrations for the U.S. semiquincentennial.

---

Episode Overview

The Bulwark team delivers a live, unscripted rundown and analysis of Donald Trump's "Freedom 250" rally in Washington, D.C., an event intended to launch the country’s 250th birthday festivities. The episode features the hosts’ live reactions to Trump's speech, observations on the crowd and the event's atmosphere, and their take on the political strategy behind the President’s remarks. The discussion alternates between real-time fact-checking, humorous asides, and reflective commentary on what the rally means for the present political and cultural moment.

---

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Setting the Scene and Entertainment Line-Up

• [00:00–02:52] The hosts begin by riffing on Lee Greenwood performing "God Bless the USA" and joking about last-minute performer changes—originally Milli Vanilli and Martina McBride were intended but dropped out.
  • Sam (A): “So folks might remember that this was not supposed to be Lee Greenwood up there. It was supposed to be Milli Vanilli, I believe, and some other people…they dropped out. And so now we're left with Lee Greenwood.” [02:07]
  • Will (C): “He said, now…isn't this army band, this military band, isn't this better than those libtards who we invited initially?” [02:53]

2. Trump’s Entry and Speech Style

• [03:10–06:11] The team watches Trump’s entrance, commenting on his mood and delivery.
  • Andrew (B): “We will see whether the President will let us have any good vibes or whether it will be the same…giant grievance fest, as with most of his speeches.” [01:44]
  • Notably, the hosts bet on whether Trump will stick to the teleprompter—spoiler: he largely does.

3. Substance and Spin: Speech Content Analysis

• [06:11–30:40] A vast portion of the conversation is dedicated to real-time analysis (and debunking) of Trump’s claims and themes:
  • Return to “Greatness”: Trump declares, “America is back…a short time ago, we were a dead country. We were dead. The hottest country anywhere in the world.” [05:11]
  • Economic Boasts and Fact-Checking:
    • Trump tosses out “truthiness” stats on investment, employment, and gas prices.
    • Andrew (B): “Even the things that just sound like the driest facts are frequently totally invented or at least…fudged by this guy…” [09:09]
  • “Greatest Hits” Grievances: While meant to be a patriotic occasion, the speech frequently veers into “campaign rally” territory, attacking the previous administration, touting border security, and referencing culture war issues.
  • Crowd and Atmosphere:
    • Noted presence of Trump “superfans” like the “brick suit guy”—regulars at Trump rallies.
    • Jared Poland (field reporter) observes people leaving during Trump’s speech, suggesting low engagement. [23:02]

4. Speech Tone and Delivery

• [30:40–32:06] Trump closes with “Make America great again” flourishes and thanks the crowd. The hosts are relieved the speech was just 30 minutes and relatively “on-script,” lacking Trump’s usual string of diversions and outbursts.
  • Sam (A): “I’m so happy right now. I thought…we were gonna have to do an hour and a half. And this was just 30 minutes. I’m…near tears. This was one of the best Trump speeches I’ve ever seen.” [31:23]
  • Andrew (B): “For once, he…sticks with what his people have to do. The problem is he would need to do that from now until November…which he’s not going to.” [31:52]

5. Cultural and Political Reflections

• [36:08–42:28] The team muses on the overall meaning of the event:
  • The blending of Trump’s campaign machinery and American national celebrations is called out as a sad sign of the times.
  • Will (C): “It is so weird to see the whole…Trump rally apparatus…just scooped up and plopped down on the National Mall, and we’re like, this is what it means to commemorate the anniversary of America now.” [40:31]
  • Sam (A): “This kind of sucks, right?…It’ll be nice to have…a little bit more kind of, like, ‘go USA’…But…it’s just not possible with this guy.” [40:59]
• Proposals are floated for “America 258” or celebrating other founding milestones in the future, to make up for what hosts consider a lost opportunity for unity at “America 250.” [41:53–42:52]

6. Inside Baseball: GOP Feuds & QAnon

• [43:30–46:25]
  • The hosts discuss Bill Cassidy confronting Trump over Iran (with video and commentary), and the general mood among Republican Senators, drawing out the tension between Trump and his own party.
  • Will previews an upcoming newsletter about White House staffers ironically leaning into QAnon memes, angering genuine QAnon followers. [47:34]

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the surreal event production:
  • “We didn't want to stop broadcasting with 1,500 songs yet to play. The Lee Greenwood is out there…” — Sam (A), [00:00]
• Fact-checking frustration:
  • “Even the things that just sound like the driest facts are frequently totally invented…” — Andrew (B), [09:09]
• On teleprompter discipline:
  • “He squashes his inst(incts). He sticks with what his people have to do…But…he’s not going to do that…” — Andrew (B), [31:52]
• Reflecting on cultural change:
  • “It is so weird to see…the whole…Trump rally apparatus…just scooped up and plopped down on the National Mall, and…this is how we commemorate the anniversary of America now.” — Will (C), [40:31]
• On lost national unity:
  • “This kind of sucks, right? Like, in a real world, it’ll be nice to have…a little bit more kind of, like, ‘go USA’…But…it’s just not possible with this guy.” — Sam (A), [40:59]
• Proposing a "do-over":
  • “We need to pick a new year…we just need to put all that energy…towards that.” — Will (C), [41:54]

---

Important Timestamps

• [03:10] Trump begins speaking.
• [05:11] “America is back”—Trump’s main thesis statement.
• [09:09] Fact-check of economic claims.
• [12:00] Discussion of Trump’s fixation on D.C. monuments and beautification.
• [16:46] “Golden age of America” pronouncement.
• [19:45] Trump pivots to energy policy (“Drill, baby, drill!”).
• [22:22] Return of culture war rhetoric—trans issues, DEI, etc.
• [30:37] Signature Trump rally sign-off—Make America Great Again sequence.
• [31:23] Hosts’ real-time relief at the short length and measured tone of the speech.
• [40:31] “Trump rally” as national identity—and the melancholy of political polarization.
• [41:54] “America 258” proposal as hope for future national unity.

---

Overall Tone and Takeaways

The episode is a mix of resigned amusement and frustration, blending detailed, real-time fact-checking with irreverent humor (“Do you think that's because he confused the idea of asylum?” — Sam [27:01]). The hosts express relief that Trump’s speech is short and relatively measured, but view this as a rare win for “normal politics” that is unlikely to last. They also mourn the loss of a unifying national celebration.

Cultural commentary and deep dives into the inertia of Trump-era messaging, as well as the normalization of campaign content in what was ostensibly a national unity event, dominate the discussion. The hosts’ rapport balances snark, civic sadness, and political analysis, making the episode both sharp and accessible for listeners seeking insight into the current American political spectacle.

---

Transcript

[A]

Hey, everybody, it's me, Sam Stein with Will Summer and Andrew Egger. I know you've been waiting in the chat. I've been watching them people counting down the clock for us to appear, wondering why we're not around. Well, we didn't want to stop broadcasting with 1500 songs yet to play. The Lee Greenwood is out there performing God Bless America, and that just means the President is about to come on

[B]

My God Bless America.

[A]

Oh, sorry, what is it? God Bless usa.

[B]

Totally different song. The most patriotic anthem of all time, as the announcer just. Just put it. God Bless the USA producer.

[A]

Matt, can you just kick Andrew out already? Jesus. What. What a note to start on. Anyways, thanks for joining us, folks. Really appreciate it. We're going to be doing our best to both monitor the situation, allow you to hear from the performers and interject with commentary where we deem fit. So I sign on a little bit later than the other fellas. But, Andrew, why don't you explain what's been happening up to this point for those who are just tuning in.

[B]

Yeah. So this is, you know, I guess the second or third major piece of The President's America 250 celebration of the 250th anniversary of the country. We had the big UFC fight, which was really for the. For the sickos, for the super fans, for people who like Bloodsport. This is more. Or it was supposed to be more of the for everybody event. And I mean, Republican strategists have been talking about this event as like a pretty big deal for the President and for the midterms, you know, for a while.

[C]

It looks like Trump's coming on.

[A]

Look at him. Yeah, he's still got the song to perform there.

[B]

Did I keep talking or should I just let. Look at the guy.

[A]

Let's watch him stroll.

[B]

This is supposed to be the good vibes part, is my point. And we will see whether the President will let us have any good vibes or whether it will be the same. He's been in a kind of a grumpy mood it for a few days. He's been picking a lot of fights with a lot of people. We will see to what extent he can stick to the, you know, U.S.A. yeah. Stuff and to what extent he decides to turn this into yet another giant grievance fest, as with most of his speeches. So that'll be kind of interesting to see.

[A]

Oh, look at that embrace. All right, so folks might remember that this was not supposed to be Lean Greenwood up there. It was supposed to be Milli Vanilli I believe, and some other people. Young mc, who else was supposed to be there? Will.

[C]

Yeah. Martina McBride. Right. Oh, you can hear the other flyover maybe through my mic. And yeah, you know, we've got Milli Vanilli.

[A]

They were all kinds of music factory.

[C]

Yes. All the greats. And in this case, you know, they dropped out. And so now we're left with Lee Greenwood. And Trump said, well, you know, I'm just going to take over. You know, Ryan, the Secretary of Transportation, Duffy was out earlier. And he said, Sean Duffy.

[A]

That's the second time.

[C]

I know, I know.

[A]

Sean Duffy.

[C]

I thought I had it right. This coffee. He was up earlier and he was saying, you know, fill up your car with gas, go on a road trip. And he said, now, isn't this army band, this military band, isn't this better than those libtards who we invited initially? And so that's kind of where we're at.

[A]

All right, so Donald Trump's about to speak again. We're going to listen to him for a little bit and then we'll interject when we decide we just can't deal with anymore. Here we are, folks.

[D]

Thank you, President Washington, and a very big hello to America. Thank you. And 10 days from now, our country will celebrate one of the most monumental milestones in human history. We will mark 250 years of glorious American freedom. In 1776, our founding fathers met in Philadelphia and changed the world forever and ever with a thing called the Declaration of Independence. They proclaim the eternal truth that we are endowed by our creator with the rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. We all made and you know that free and equal by the hand of Almighty God. Those timeless American principles did not just win a revolution, but they built us into the greatest, strongest and most exceptional nation.

[C]

Do you think he's going to talk about the reflecting pool?

[B]

Yeah.

[D]

There has never been anything.

[A]

It's so close by, he'll just point over there.

[D]

Together, we are making it.

[B]

It's been a long, long time since he did a by the book teleprompter speech. I would not be shocked if this was the one he picked to do it. He never does anymore. So, I mean, I don't think it's going to happen, but it could happen.

[A]

I'll take the over.

[D]

Today. We have the largest economy on Earth. We have the strongest military on Earth. We have the most powerful technology on Earth. We have the greatest culture on Earth. And above all, we have the greatest people on Earth. Greatest.

[A]

And the greatest reflecting Pokemon.

[D]

Say it we stand on the edge of our 250th year of independence. I am thrilled to declare that America is back.

[A]

We're back.

[D]

As you know very well. A short time ago, we were a dead country. We were dead. The hottest country anywhere in the world. We're respected by everybody. Nobody's laughing at us anymore.

[B]

Except that's the guest. I can't believe we're not doing a drinking game with this. I mean the dead country, hottest country thing anywhere. Think of it, hottest country anywhere in the world. That would be the center square, Andrew.

[A]

I'm just going to note that he's already off the teleport

[D]

country in the world. But just like those.

[B]

Today is the day Donald Trump became president. Andrew Iger said that. Yeah.

[A]

I feel like this will be the speech he sticks to script.

[B]

I didn't say I have a feeling it will be. I wouldn't be shocked. Let's listen to the guy. Come on.

[D]

We have reclaimed our sovereignty. Reclaimed. Regained our liberty. Restored our prosperity.

[C]

I know you really want to listen to this, Andrew. You know, just to run down a couple of the people in the front row. You got brick suit, the guys who. You can't see him here, but brick suit who dresses in a brick suit like the wall. Got the front row Joes. There's real campaign rally vibes.

[A]

Who is the tenor that they had performed? Do you remember his name?

[D]

The conflict?

[C]

I don't. He's like a Trump crony.

[A]

Do you think that's like a, an embarrassing thing for a tenor to be like, hey, that's the, the Trump guy in the tenor community.

[D]

You think they make fun of him? Have a nuc weapon. That's.

[C]

I could imagine the tenor community being very pro Trump. So that might actually be quite position of envy.

[D]

You think the tenor community, no name.

[A]

Why?

[C]

Maybe the older Italian, a gener.

[A]

A generational divide in the tenor community.

[C]

There are some young guys who say

[D]

I don't like Trump has been obliterated. And for the first time, if you're

[A]

a tener out there in the comment section, I'd love your inputs.

[D]

We are finally going to have peace in the Middle East. We're going to have peace in the Middle East.

[B]

The fun thing about the front row Joe's being there and the bricksuit guy and all these guys, they were just at Trump's rally in Pennsylvania yesterday or two days ago, whenever.

[E]

That.

[B]

No, yesterday. They are literally double barrel Trump speeches. They cannot get enough of this guy. They really, really love hearing him.

[A]

Yeah, the commenter, the Commenters want to

[D]

hear him a little bit more as

[A]

far as I could tell.

[D]

Let's listen for a little bit.50 cents a gallon for gasoline and even lower than that. Just like it was before we took the nuclear weapon away from Iran and it will be away from Iran for a very long time. Forever really. In my first term, I rebuilt our military and created the greatest economy in the history of the world. We had the greatest economy in history and now we are going to blow that away. We are doing better, much better than even the first term. America's 250th year is set for an economic boom the lights of which no nation has ever seen before. No nation has ever been in the place that we are right now. In four long years of the last administration, which was a total disaster, they got less than $1 trillion of new investment in our country. That's less than 1 trillion in four years. In my first 11 months we secured commit for 19.1 year new investment from.

[A]

This is not a celebratory moment or speech, but I'll just note that we did have a tenor in the comments section who said sadly, yeah, most of

[E]

us

[D]

all time record high since the election and more Americans are working today than at any time in the history of our country. Thank you.

[B]

Can I just say it's weird how even the things that just sound like the driest facts are frequently totally invented or at least like completely fudged by this guy because again, I just listened to him speak in Pennsylvania yesterday. He rolled out that exact same statistic. But yesterday he said the first 11 months had $18 trillion of investment brought in and then we just got the latest numbers and. And for 12 months it was 19.1 trillion.

[D]

But we just now said in the

[B]

first 11 months 19.1 trillion. So he's just free associating numbers out there all the time you're not pegged to. Even when he's on the teleprompter. Like he just pulls different things together. It really is amazing how truthy it all is. Like how much truthiness it all has, how little he cares to get even.

[D]

Even the small dry things happen before. But only life could have happened in

[A]

the last 24 hours.

[D]

We made in America and we're setting records in automobile construction. Our country is strong again. Our country is wealthy again. And our country is safe again. In January 2025, we inherited the worst, most dangerous, most wide open and insecure border in history. And we have quickly turned it into the strongest, most secure border in the history of our country. For the past 13 months, zero illegal aliens have been admitted into the United States. Zero. We are removing murderers, gang members, drug dealers and dangerous criminals by the thousands.

[A]

Happy 250.

[B]

They really did tack on like 90 seconds of like, pro America filler on the front. And now he's on the same speech he was given, the same normal rally stick that he was doing literally yesterday in Pennsylvania. I mean, it's nuts.

[D]

With the help of our law enforcement heroes, in 2025, we achieved the largest drop in the murder rate ever recorded to the lowest level in 125 years. That's the year 1900. We cut the flow of fentanyl across our border by will he bring up

[C]

his save America act switcheroo, his housing

[A]

bill, you know, shakedown Bill Cassidy from the stage. What do you think? The band members behind him are washing

[C]

D.C. they are thinking make the most neutral face.

[D]

Beautiful cities anywhere in the United States.

[A]

I wish I didn't have to wear this uniform right now.

[B]

It's hot.

[D]

For many years, our country was ruled by politicians who let America and its capital fall into decline and total disrepair.

[B]

All right. Yeah, here we go.

[D]

The city named in a general George Washington was turned into a national disgrace. But not anymore. Today, the homeless encampments are gone. The graffiti is gone. Since I took office, more than 50 monuments and memorials have been repaired and beautified. Dozens of statues have been cleaned. And they look so nice. 22 fountains have been fixed. Give me the pool station. The statue of Christopher Columbus is clean and fountain. That fountain is flowing and it looks so beautiful. I just looked at it coming over. It is so beautiful.

[A]

He did not go to unit station.

[D]

There's no more. Why would you go to Union? It's all over it. The water is cascading at Meridian Hill Park.

[A]

Yes. Malcolm X Park.

[D]

I am personally, along with Doug and some of my friends, renovating Lafayette Square at the front door of the White House. And it's going to be beautiful.

[C]

And this is interesting, what he's cooking up, putting the fences there.

[B]

Yeah.

[D]

And the reflecting pool that you heard so much about, which is so incredible. It's been gruesomely vandalized by thugs, bad people. But soon we'll be looking as beautiful as it looked just two weeks ago. In fact, I looked at it just a little while ago. It looks perfect already, but we're fixing it.

[B]

Oh, my gosh. Dallas Middleton just confessed in the YouTube comments. He says we did it. I think he's saying he's the one who he's the one who went down there with the knife and gouged the 300 foot, 350 foot long trench in the bottom of the reflecting room.

[A]

Why are you writing out our commenters?

[B]

He's putting it out there. Sorry, Dallas, I didn't mean to blow

[D]

your dignity and pride. Under our leadership, America will also be a nation that dares to dream and to build again. We want to build again and dream again. The American dream is alive again. That's something that nobody thought they'd be saying when you went through that last four years of incompetence.

[A]

Sleepy Joe.

[D]

For the 100th anniversary of our founding in 1876, American completed the Washington Monument and the work began on the Statue of Liberty. For our 150th year, we built.

[A]

Does he think we built the Statue of Liberty?

[D]

Remember that Colonial Williamsburg said the work. We built the National Air and Space Museum and renovated the United States capitol. For our 250th anniversary, we are likewise building new monuments to American greatness to serve every future president and First Lady. We're building the most beautiful ballroom anywhere in the world. Right at the White House.

[A]

Right at the White House.

[D]

It's going to be completed very soon. And just across the bridge in front of Arlington Cemetery.

[B]

Building the monuments to serve every future president is kind of a funny way to put that. Right

[D]

triumphal arc not to serve like

[C]

the people of D.C. the only person, the kind of person who matter is a president, maybe a First Lady. I suppose, frankly, America, it is. You know, it's crazy how much of this, like if you're in Idaho or whatever, and it's like, look, we got the fountain working. Oh, is the fountain on the Mall? No, it's in Northwest D.C.

[B]

oh, it

[C]

means nothing to me. Thank you.

[A]

Right. It's like, thank God they did the Marine.

[C]

And they're doing this by taxing the other national park with that money that was meant for that. He's taxing the rest of the country.

[D]

Revolution.

[C]

I mean, I'll take it. We live here, but.

[B]

Which is, by the way, the reason why other presidents have not done so much of this stuff in the past. It's like they were worried about political blowback from guys like, from, from populists like Donald Trump. But he has like this immunity because he, you know, none of his base is going to accuse him of becoming a DC insider. It's like an only Nixon could go to China thing.

[D]

Great civilization.

[B]

Fixing the monuments in D.C. wallow and

[D]

aging ruins of the past. They built new cities. They created new monuments, and they forged towering legacies that still inspire the world after hundreds and even thousands of years. As America turns 250 years, 250 years old, young by comparison to some, but superior to any nation that's ever been built, no matter how many years it took. We are the inheritors of these incredible traditions. We are the ones who are carrying forward the light of Western civilization because this is the very beginning of the golden age of America. We're in the golden age. There's never been an age like this. There's never been an age like this.

[A]

I don't deserve that.

[C]

There's never been. When he says it a couple times

[D]

a time to lift our sights, expand our ambitions, and raise our expectations of what America can be, we will leave our children nothing less than the richest inheritance, most advanced civilization and highest standard.

[A]

Oh.

[D]

Oh, come. Esther's yet to come.

[A]

We're back. And T and T for trying to fuck with our live streams to be

[D]

joined tonight by our great speaker of the House, Mike Johnson. Mike, thank you.

[A]

They got into it today.

[D]

It's been great. Attorney General Todd Blanche. Todd, thank you.

[B]

I do wonder if he'll shout out

[D]

any of the interior who works with me so hard on the monuments and fountains. He loves it like I do. Doug Burgum. Doug, thank you very much.

[A]

You think he'll accidentally say Ryan Duffy?

[D]

Those prices are tumbling down. They're tumbling down.

[C]

We inherited very similar names.

[D]

Brooke Rollins. Thank you, Brooke. Secretary of Labor Keith Sonderling.

[A]

Who?

[D]

Secretary of State.

[B]

It's just an amazing thing, by the way, to say. Yeah. The prices of agricultural products, they're just in freefall. They're so much cheaper than they were.

[D]

Our wonderful Secretary of Education, Linda McMahon. Secretary of Homeland Security, Mark Wayne Mullen from Oklahoma.

[A]

Great state. One or three times.

[D]

National Intelligence, Bill Pulte. FBI Director. Cash.

[B]

Not a big cheer for Bill Pulte.

[A]

Oh, Cash is there.

[D]

That's good.

[C]

Not a lot of beanstalk fans out there.

[D]

CMS Administrator. And he's doing a fantastic job. Dr. Mehmet Oz. Ambassador Monica Crowley. Thank you.

[E]

Geez Louise.

[C]

They really made everyone come to this.

[D]

And countless members, so many members of Congress. I will not go over the names and senators. We appreciate that you're here. This is a very special night. Thank you all very much. The Senate and the House. As you know, over the past few weeks, America has been proudly hosting the 2026 FIFA World Cup. And it's setting.

[B]

What's the big deal? He says it sounds like they only have their three. Thank you press ladies screaming.

[D]

I would say it's not our primary sports, but it's happening. And I want to just congratulate my friend FIFA president Johnny Infantino. He's been fantastic to deal with.

[B]

Democracy24 says, why am I watching this? We don't know either. Long live democracy 24. But we're glad you're here with us.

[C]

Can I get a report from Jared Poland? Our man on the ground reports that the crowd is pretty light.

[A]

Okay.

[E]

Thank you, Jared.

[A]

Thank you, Jared.

[D]

They're doing great. Every day of my administration. We're delivering one historic victory after the next for the American people. We're unleashing American energy dominance and drill, baby, drill. You remember during the campaign. Drill, baby, drill. And America is now the largest producer of oil and gas on Earth.

[C]

Larger Wilkins earlier. Cash Patel girlfriend.

[B]

She did okay.

[A]

Yeah, I heard. She did good. I'm happy for her. She's a sensation.

[D]

On drug prices, we are delivering the largest reduction in drug price history with price differences of 400, 500 and even 600%.

[A]

Who would think that this is indistinguishable from a campaign?

[D]

Somebody said you were a genius. 4005-006007-00800%. Nobody's seen anything like it.

[B]

Say a bigger number.

[D]

The highest drug price.

[B]

Why stop at 800?

[D]

And now it'd be even cooler if

[B]

you would say 900.

[A]

They're paying you to take their drugs.

[D]

You think that was easy? It was. For decades, Americans paid the highest prices. Think of that. There's never been a time where we. When I took.

[C]

You know. To your point, Andrew, I do think it's possible that Trump is kind of keeping his powder dry for the big July 4th speech here. That he's going to really go nuts.

[D]

What you're looking for at prices.

[A]

So he's doing another one on July 4th, too.

[D]

I believe it's happening. We passed the largest ever invest somebody. Is this.

[B]

Is this on script or off script? Which is a good question because it's like. Seems insane, but this is actually pretty much just his normal rally script. Like going from thing to thing to thing to thing to thing. All these. He has hit all these beats a million times.

[D]

How good is our.

[B]

For the most part. I mean, he's making little digressions, but. And who knows how long it'll last. But that's. That's what's happening.

[D]

Iran was essentially finished in one hour. Venezuela was finished.

[A]

And did he just say one week of rain was finished?

[D]

We don't want to be carried away. Recruitment for Every branch of our armed forces, so importantly is setting records. Eighteen months ago, we had shortages, and now we have waiting lists. We couldn't get people to join military. None of them, none of the branches. They were all dying to get people. They couldn't. Then the thing happened on November 5th. It's called a great election victory. And from that moment on, now you can't even get into the military. We have waiting lists to get into the military and to become policemen and to become firemen. It's really fantastic what's happened. The spirit in this country is like from a different planet from what it was a year and a half ago. In a flawless and breathtaking operation earlier this year, America's armed forces captured the outlaw dictator of Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro, and brought him back to face American justice. One of the great military raids in history, if you remember. And here at home, we abolish DEI across the entire federal government. We don't want dei. And we got critical race.

[A]

We got another dispatch from Jared Poland.

[D]

And I signed.

[A]

People are already heading for the exits while Trump is speaking.

[D]

And we are beginning process of abolishing federal.

[A]

Well, that's a little of education strong. Well, let's be honest with our reporting here, but I actually understand it because

[D]

we're sending education incredibly bad traffic downtown.

[A]

I would also flood for the exit.

[D]

Transgender mutilization of children.

[B]

Somebody asked will we hear transgender mutilization?

[D]

You know, we should have done this.

[A]

We should have done it. We should have done a drinking game

[D]

that there are only two.

[A]

This is just the greatest hits we could have predict this and female. See, I wanted people understand in the comments. We have folks who watch every day, every single Trump speech just like this. And all their job is

[D]

350 years every day.

[A]

They watch Trump 100 years old, same exact speech all the time, and they become basically, you know, well attuned to exactly what he says. So for them, this is just absolutely the same exact that they hear all the time. I guess for some people who are tuning in and seeing this for the first time, it seems very weird. But to me, this is totally normal.

[B]

It is really. There's something remarkable about how little his message changes, no matter what the venue is.

[A]

You know, I was wondering that too. It's like you have this weave, but the weave also has familiarity, right?

[B]

Well, it's like he has a big word bank, right? Or a big, like concept bank. He has like 500 different grievances floating around up there, and he free associates between them and, you know, sometimes new ones get added and old ones drop off. And obviously he wasn't talking about the reflecting pool six months ago, but he's talking about it a lot now. But. And the speeches are written to accommodate a lot of this stuff too. And honestly, it seems to be at least the case that this is why they are written the way that they are. His speeches never have like an overarching point, really. They are just a piling up of accomplishments so that he can pick any time to go kind of wandering away and come wandering back. And that's just kind of what people expect. That's what they sign up for. And so that's, that's the way it works. But. But even it doesn't matter if he's trying to talk to a bunch of foreign dignitaries about America standing in the world or if he's doing a random rally on supposedly affordability or supposedly, you know, this, that, this issue or that issue or the other issue, or whether he's here at America250 supposedly giving a speech that's supposed to gesture toward being the president for the whole country. Like, in theory, none of that matters because he's gonna get up and he's gonna do what he's gonna do and. And there's no real way around it. That's just what's always, always, always going to happen. Despite what I might have said, you know, 20 minutes ago about the possibility of it being different.

[A]

Do you have a favorite weave moment,

[B]

like from tonight or in my life in history?

[A]

I have one.

[B]

Let's hear yours first.

[A]

When he started talking about Arnold Palmer's penis, if you like fireworks, that was a moment.

[B]

Yeah, that really was something. The things that obsess me tend to be not any specific individual one, but the way you see specific misconceptions about things lodge in his brain and he just comes back to them again and again. Like during the first term, when it really stuck in his head, somebody said something about needing transparency at the southern border. And he got it in his mind that that meant that the border wall that we were going to construct was actually going to be a see through wall, as he kept putting it. Transparent, transparent wall. Important because they'd be throwing the big bags of drugs over the wall. And if you were standing on the other side of the wall and a giant bag of drugs came and landed on your head, it would be really bad news for you. So that's a good one. The one that he has said in 500 million speeches, but which also began as one of these misconceptions, was the idea that everybody around the world was emptying out their lunatic asylums and sending up all of their mental patients over the southern border, which has.

[A]

Do you think that that's because he confused the idea of asylum?

[B]

That is, it makes a lot of sense that that would be the case since the idea of asylum is frequently talked about, you know, with, with respect to the southern border. I obviously, I don't know, like they're

[A]

seeking asylum and he thinks they're seeking like another mental assignment.

[B]

That is, that is the, that is the very plausible thing that has been suggested by a lot of people about that one.

[A]

That would be ridiculous. All right, can we get.

[C]

Let's get back to the chicken on the prez.

[D]

Together we stand on the shoulders of incomparable heroes such as George Washington Thomas.

[C]

Going to talk about the statues going up around town.

[D]

John Adams, Abraham Lincoln, Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, John Paul Jones, John Hancock. At Lexington in Concord, Brooklyn and Saratoga, Trenton in Yorktown and at Independence hall in Philadelphia. These real life legends and American icons poured out their blood, sweat and tears and risked everything they had to purchase and to.

[A]

He's going to be wrapping up. It's going to be a quickie and

[D]

glorious inheritance of any people ever to be on this earth. They all lived by the oath that Patrick Henry made immortal. Give me liberty or give me death. For 250 years, every generation of Americans have taken up the same call to freedom. From the storied alleys of Boston to the streets of Philadelphia, from the golden fields of Michigan to the gleaming shores of California and from Texas to Florida to right here in now beautiful and extremely safe Washington D.C. our American answers. Our American ancestors fought and won the most vicious battles. They explored and settled the most.

[B]

Like how he got halfway through the word ancestors there and he's like, all right, I'm taking another running start at it.

[C]

Our beautiful answers.

[D]

The Americans, they love our country. They look down on us now. They love our people.

[C]

They do look down on us.

[D]

The mighty Rockies tame the Wild west and turned this continent into industrial powerhouses like nobody has ever seen. We laid down the railroads, raised up the skyscrapers, built the great highways, invented the airplane, won two world wars, defeated fascism and communism. We're going to have to do that again. And led humanity into space. And we did it all in the span of just 250 years. Now we are expanding the glory of American freedom into horizons. Really into a horizon.

[B]

Struggles with that one that is also a trump tick that I love when he kind of word and then he says, you know, really? And then he says the same word again. It's like a clarification. I've just always thought that was kind of cute.

[D]

We are one people, one nation, marching into one magnificent future under his heart

[C]

is really not in it. When it gets into the patriotism, it

[B]

never is on the prompter. And Paul Revere or whoever cares, it's amazing.

[D]

We are more determined than ever to remember these phrases. You've heard them many times before. We will make America.

[A]

Here we go again. It's over, folks.

[D]

Make America wealthy again. We will make America healthy again. We will make America strong again. We will make America proud again. We will make America safe again. And we will make America great again. Thank you very much. Happy birthday, America. Thank you. Wow.

[A]

Okay. All right. Hey, guys, we can turn that down a little bit. That was awesome. I'm so happy. I'm so happy right now. I thought. I honestly thought we were gonna have to do an hour and a half.

[B]

Half.

[A]

And this was just 30 minutes. And I'm so. I can't tell you how happy I am. I'm like, near tears. This was one of the best Trump speeches I've ever seen.

[B]

You know what, Sam? He stuck on the prompter. He was on the prompter. That speech. He had a couple of little diversions, but he did not do the performative thing that he often does. Prompter. And then he's like, andrew, you're not

[A]

gonna get credit for this one.

[B]

I'm not. I'm not saying credit. I'm just saying that's a good Trump speech. Is like.

[A]

It was.

[B]

For once, he. He squashes his inst. He sticks with what his people have to do. The problem is he would need to do that from now until November for it to have a good effect for him. But. And he's not going to do that, but like, Mr. Trump, play the harp,

[A]

Please play the harp.

[C]

Give it a little.

[A]

Come on.

[C]

I couldn't resist. If I was doing it, I'd say if I.

[A]

If I pass that harp, I'd be like, how does it sound?

[C]

Oh, they're back.

[A]

Oh, it's ymca. They yell ymca. Can we get a little sound here?

[B]

Just a little sound, please.

[A]

Gotta get that YMCA One moment from

[C]

earlier that I want to raise before we wrap up is that we're not wrapping up.

[A]

We got. Because we got an ad to play to pay the bills. And then after that, we gotta do a little commentary, but go ahead. And then we'll do an ad.

[C]

I was just gonna say before the. The speeches started, the band was playing, they were like a medley of songs. And one of them was this song I hadn't heard of before, Brooks and Dunn, I think it's called. Like, this is America. Ain't it America? And they're like, these kids, one kid might be president. One kid might dream of just making rent. And this kid, he'll probably end up in prison. And people were like, like, this is America. Like, that's America. And people loved it. But I, I was quite struck by that song.

[A]

That sounds about right.

[B]

All right, this kid, this kid might, might go to prison or he might become president, depending how the 2024 election plays out.

[A]

Who knows, maybe both on. Hold on. Quick, quick programming note, everyone who's watching, stick with us. We are going to play an ad because we gotta pay them bills. You're not, you're not subscribing enough that we can go ad free. So either subscribe more or we gotta play these ads. We're coming back on the other side to talk a little bit more about this, so stick with us. But before we do that, quick word from our sponsors takes a Sponsored by Zocdoc. Now, we all know health issues don't follow a 9 to 5 schedule. And with Zocdoc having no time to book a doctor's appointment, well, that's actually no problem at all. So when you don't have any time for yourself until 11pm Been there. Or you cut your finger making a midnight snack, definitely been there. Or you tweak your back on the dance floor at a wedding. And I actually recently was there a couple weeks ago at a wedding, decided I was going to dance with my wife, tweaked my back. Really happened to me. Go to Zocdoc anytime, 247 and find a doctor. You love to make your health plan happen. Yeah, it even happens way after hours. ZocDoc is a free app and website that helps you find and book high quality in network doctors so you can find someone who you love. We're talking about booking in network appointments with more than 150,000 providers across all 50 states. Whether you're looking for, I don't know, dermatology, dentistry, primary care, eye care, or one of the 200 plus specialists offered on Zocdoc. You can easily search by specialty or by symptom to build the care team that's right for you. And that's what I do. I go to zocdoc when I'm blowing out my back on the wedding dance floor or when I'm cutting My fingers making that midnight snack. It's easy, it's reliable, you can navigate it by specialty. It gives you ease of mind, let's put it that way. So stop putting off all those doctor's appointments and go to zocdoc.com bulwarktakes to find and instantly book a doctor who you love today. That's z o c doc.com bulwarktakes zocdoc.com bulwarktakes thanks to ZocDoc for sponsoring this message. You know, the sickos in the comments are like, why not, why not the pocket hose ad? You guys, I can't, I can't just chill for pocket hoes all the time. Sometimes you gotta talk about the doc. Look, I, I injured myself on that dance floor. I was doing what that guy has done there, why I'm sitting, getting my

[C]

black blown out at the swe.

[A]

I was just doing the Trump dance and I got my black. No, I didn't do that. But check out Zach doc, folks. All right, so here we have the military band, the sickos in the crowd who've stuck around to hear them, and then. Yeah, well, I don't know. What'd you guys think? I. I guess it was, it was the least offensive. Well, it was, it was pretty offensive still. But it could have been so much worse. I was anticipating so much worse.

[C]

Yeah, I mean, I, I think it was interesting. You know, we didn't get. I feel like there wasn't too much in terms of direct political attacks. He wasn't like, Bill Cassidy, usob, you know, I'm coming for you. You know, it's so, Yeah, I mean, I do think that this is a, you know, he had promised that this would be better than the Martina McBride, etc thing. He said, you know, with the number one star in the world, me. And it turned out, you know, I don't know. I don't think he delivered that performance runs.

[A]

No, he didn't deliver that performance, but it was better than Milli Vanilli.

[B]

Just to put it in the context of the Cassidy thing that you just mentioned, Will. I mean, Trump has been having like a furious few days. He was at the Senate lunch today and this is what Will was just referencing in a shouting match behind closed doors with Republican senators over the stuff that he wanted done over his agenda. He has been really mad about this reflecting pool stuff. The negotiations in Iran have not been going so great. I mean, I really do think it is possible that it was a strategic choice. Like we need to really drill into this guy. Please, Mr. President, sir, stay on your prompter as much as possible tonight. Because if he had gotten ahead of steam free associating like he so often does at a rally, we probably would have gotten some real fireworks, you know, about the way that all of the Republicans in the country are betraying him and all these sorts of things. So we got the more boring version of the speech. We got probably the more politically useful version of the piece for the President, to be honest, despite how crazy it is to think that, like, that would be a politically winning speech for him, but compared to an alternative speech he might have gotten. I'm sure there are a lot of speech writers, a lot of comm. Staffers in the White House who are breathing a little bit of a sigh of relief, like, okay, we got through that. We did not blow up any feuds bigger than they already are. All of our fire. We focused on the Democrats the way we like it and got through it.

[A]

Yeah. People are saying, well, you're grading him on a curve. To which I reply, yes, we are.

[E]

We are.

[A]

I'm sorry. I was anticipating an hour and a half of meandering nonsense. We got 30 minutes. I call that a victory. We will show you video of people leaving early because we have it from our intrepid reporter on the ground, Jared Poland. So let's pull it up if we can.

[D]

They're doing great administration. We're delivering one historic victory after the next for the American people. We're unleashing American energy dominance and drill, baby, drill. You remember during the campaign, Drill, baby, drill. And America is now the largest producer of oil and gas on earth. Saudi Arabia by far, combined.

[B]

You just really like the military.

[C]

I want to hear Sweet Caroline again.

[A]

Yeah. Now I will say the crowd, we were sort of discussing this before the show. You know, a couple thousand people there, maybe a little bit more, maybe a little less. I'm not like, we don't have an official number. I am not that impressed by the crowd. I. I just think, you know, this is the big kickoff event, and like, you were touting you as yourself, as the greatest showman on earth. That's. That's pretty weak sauce. Maybe they know that there's like 16 straight days of this, and there's like a 40 minute fireworks display coming on the 4th, which, by the way, is nuts. I'm so upset about that. 40 minutes of fireworks is insane. Insane. I know. 10:30, like, I. I just. I can't play fireworks.

[C]

Don't bring the kids.

[A]

People don't understand. 40 minutes of fireworks is totally unnecessary. Over the top. My dog's gonna be a lunatic during it. My kids will be, you know, abruptly woken up wondering what the hell's going on anyways. Maybe people are just waiting for the big one on July 4th, but do we even know it's, like, the next, like, event coming here? Do we. Do we have any idea? Is it all downhill from here?

[C]

Well, I mean, now I think they're kicking off the. The great American state fair, as you said, and so, you know, they'll have the. You know, we had our man Jared on the ground, was checking out the booth. You know, the famous booths. Well, I was gonna say the famous state of Prageru is there. It's one of these things, like, I don't recall that being a nonpartisan, patriotic cause. So, Yeah, I mean, that's. I'll definitely be getting down there, but.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Yeah, but you're a sicko.

[B]

It is so weird to see the whole, like, CPAC Trump rally apparatus with all of its merch and all of its recurring characters, and the people who go to everyone, like, all just scooped up and plopped down on the National Mall, and we're like, this is what it means to commemorate the anniversary of America now. This is what it means to celebrate the country. It's just one big Trump rally with all of its goofballs and all of its merch salesmen and just all this stuff. That's what the country is from the point of view of the president.

[E]

It.

[A]

Yeah. And if I got. If I have to be a little bit sort of sappy about it, I suppose I'll do it now, which is like, this kind of sucks, right? Like, in a real world, it'll be nice to have, you know, a little bit more kind of, like, go USA that type of. But it's just not possible with this guy. And, you know, they'll say, well, you know, the artist could have come, and they would. You know, they were bullied into not coming. But no, they. They didn't want to come because the administration is toxic. So it just sort of sucks to not be able to, like, have.

[D]

You know.

[A]

What sucks? It's just the inability to sort of unplug from politics is what really sucks, I think. And even, like, you know, there's just nothing that. That he doesn't sully, I suppose, in that sense. Can I.

[C]

Can I issue a proposal? You know, as I talked about here, I'm a passionate fan of the bicentennial. I was really looking forward to this. So this has Been blown for my generation, obviously. But we have a plan.

[A]

I have a plan.

[C]

I think the next normal president, whether it be a Democrat or Republican, we're just going to make it it America 258. America 253. We need to pick a new year, and we're going to be like, you know, there's no rule that we can't celebrate America 256 or whatever. Like, we just need to put all that energy that we have pent up because no one wants to get in on this Trump thing, put it towards that.

[A]

It's an interesting idea. It doesn't have the same panache.

[C]

You know, I think, yeah, I think if we all just work together, you

[A]

know, we all were 258. I don't know.

[B]

Nobody. Nobody dreams big enough around here. Look, have to be other anniversary, other things coming up from the founding period that there will be a 250th anniversary to commemorate of. We need to take a page out of Trump's book here. The kind of guy who's like, okay, my birthday's June 14th. What can I do about this? And you open up your calendar and you're like, flag days on June 14, guys. Guess what, everybody? Flag Day is a major holiday that we all celebrate now so that I can have a birthday bath.

[A]

Okay, okay, okay.

[B]

Approaching the camera with that level of opportunism and shamelessness.

[A]

Okay. The power America. Here we go. Here we go. Constitution was what, 17, 87.

[B]

89. Right.

[A]

When it was finally ratified, Operation 89 signed in 87. I think you're right. Yeah. All right, let's do that. Let's do that.

[B]

It's the only time to wait, though.

[A]

But I can't do math. So that would be 13 years from now. Yeah, that's a long time to wait. And we'll have Don Jr. In office then.

[D]

Yeah,

[C]

I will say I saw someone who was interviewed going to this event, said, you know, I only hope I can live long enough to see President Baron trust Trump. So, you know, don't rule it out.

[A]

Don't get ideas back to Cassidy for a second. So we can just, you know, prolong this a little bit more. Were you surprised by how it went down, Andrew, where Old Bill stood up to Trump? In that event, we have some video to play about it. Let's play the video about him on ABC where he says he's not gonna get bullied.

[E]

American people just need to know what's going on with Iran. And I don't think there's been Sufficient information shared with Congress are with the American people. So. So that was my message.

[A]

How was that received by the President? Did this turn into a shouting match?

[E]

Well, voices were raised.

[A]

Any regrets on anything you said?

[E]

No. I'm not going to be bullied when I'm trying to get answers from the American people. This is not about me. It's not about the crest of the. It's about the American people knowing what's going on. And right now there's just like it seems we're being told different things by different people. He may be right. I just think there needs to be more kind of let's be open about it. And I'm not really bullied into silence when I'm sticking up for the American people.

[B]

Yeah, it's less that he's not going to be bullied and more that he can't be bullied anymore because he has nothing left to lose. Right. Donald Trump already won his primary, raised up a challenger against him and beat him. So Cassidy's career is over against his own will. But this has been a self defeating thing for Trump because he has created more resistance that he now is consistently barking his shins on in his own Republican Senate conference. And it's not just Cassidy, it's guys like John Cornyn. The funny moment from the There are a couple funny things about this conference lunch today. First of all, John Thune did not set it up. This was not a thing that the Senate Majority leader wanted to have happen because he, he is a bit of a, he's a pro. It's his job to keep things running smoothly. He would not have taken this moment of maximum presidential grouchiness to bring the president in and put him in a room with his conference. It was Senator Rick Scott, who wants to be majority leader someday but does not have the political instincts to do it, who's like, let's just all get together and talk it out. I think we can get over the hump here. Did not work out. I do think another funny moment from this meeting was Trump was grouching about why this war powers resolution had passed yesterday where a number of Republicans, including Cassidy, crossed the aisle, voted with Democrats to disapprove of ongoing hostilities in the war with Iran. And Trump is just kind of grumbling and raking them over the coals. And he says he doesn't understand how Republicans could have voted to pass this thing. And Cassidy got up and this is the beginning of their argument. And he basically said, well, is that a rhetorical question or do you actually wanna know why we voted for this thing, which I know a lot of people have their grumps with. Bill Cassidy. He famously waved Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Through as HHS secretary. He will wear that around his neck as his sort of political epitaph for the rest of his that he did that and then got kicked to the curb by the president anyway. But I think that's great. I wish I had been in the room to see that moment. I think the more of these guys are standing up to him, at the very least, Trump is. His blood pressure is spiking over and he's losing sleep, and I have a hard time being mad about that.

[A]

We're going to get an indication of how serious Bill Cassidy's concerns are tonight because Bill Cassidy was sent down to the White House or went down to the White House to get a briefing on Iran after he threw this fit against Trump. Got it from Steve Wyckoff. He has since tweeted as of 9 minutes ago. I want to thank Vice President Vance and Special Envoy Witkoff for a thorough briefing this afternoon on Iran. I appreciate the quick invitation to the White House to address many of my concerns. And just so happens that the Senate's going to take another vote on the Iran War Powers Resolution tonight, which Republican leaders need to flip. What, one vote to get that thing to 4,949. In which case Trump will not feel so angry. So Bill Cassidy, I fully expect, will do an old flip and being Trump's good graces. And I think this is all theater, but I'm happy to be proven wrong. I'm happy to be proven wrong. All right, before we call it a day, will you got a false slide coming out tomorrow? I've got a sneak peek. Do you want to tease it at all or no?

[C]

Yeah, you know, I think it's going to be an exciting one. It's about the rising tide of anger among the QAnon community of Donald Trump. People may have noticed the White House, it was like, really quite bizarre in the Pentagon. All these people were tweeting like Q style. And so they were. It was all about out the quantum computing executive order. So they had like fake little queue posts or they would say, like, trust the plan, Quantum computers rule and all this stuff. And so they. So. But the QAnon people are basically like, hey, it's a culture, not a costume. Don't pretend to be QAnon if you're not really with us. And so there's a lot of anger. And one funny thing. I'll Just say it right now.

[A]

The.

[C]

Basically, there's this one White House social media staffer who's been, like, super into it, and he's been tweeting like, QAnon.

[B]

LOL.

[C]

Love QAnon. And then the QAnon people, look, they know how to sleuth, right? There's their digital soldiers. And what they did is they looked up, oh, what does this guy think about QAnon? And five years ago, he was like, Lock up every QAnon lunatic in an asylum. And they're like, see, you're. You're a fake Q head.

[A]

Oh, my God. Excited for it? Yeah. All right, well, folks know where to get it. You guys subscribe to the Bulwark for False flag for morning shots, which Andrew spearheads for, really, any of the good shit we have. I put a tweet thread today. Today we had a lot of good on our site. I mean, like, insanely good stuff. Jonathan cone was down in Little Haiti in Florida talking about, you know, elderly caregivers who are going to lose their TPS status. And, like, that's real. And Will writes about QAnon.

[D]

Not real.

[A]

On the other hand. On the other hand, we got this nonsense from Will. No, we have a lot of great stuff on the blog. People should subscribe. And the other thing is, is we watch this stuff for the love of the game first and foremost, but also for you, our viewers. We love you guys. Thank you so much. Andrew, Will, thank you both, folks. Thank you for coming with us and enjoying this journey. Hope it was satisfactory. We'll talk to you guys soon. Have a good night, everyone.