Podcast Summary: Bulwark Takes – "Trump’s Outrageous and Illegal 'Flag Burning' Order"

Date: August 26, 2025
Host: Tim Miller (A), with Jonathan V. Last (C)
Episode Theme:
A sharp, humorous, and critical look at Donald Trump’s recent executive order threatening jail for flag burning. Tim Miller and Jonathan V. Last dissect the legal, cultural, and political fallout, probing the authoritarian impulses, the reactions of Trump’s supporters (notably the “manosphere” and libertarian types), and the broader implications for free speech and American civil liberties.

Main Theme & Purpose

The episode focuses on President Trump's announcement of an executive order to jail anyone who burns the American flag for one year. The hosts break down why this matter, question the legality and logic, and examine the spectrum of reactions from Trump’s base and libertarians to ordinary Americans. It’s a discussion not just about flag burning, but about free speech, creeping authoritarianism, and the culture wars playing out in real time.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Initial Reactions to Trump’s Flag Order

• Tim Miller opens by contextualizing the issue: “Trump playing the hits from 1988. …It’s like a tangible thing that people can understand. A lot of the Trump authoritarian or illiberalism stuff…gets really sort of high minded. …This is something even the smooth brained among us can understand.” (00:20)
• Trump’s statement—“You burn a flag, you get one year in jail”—is described as an “ad lib” with no legal basis, but nonetheless amplified by his press office.
  • “[That] one year in jail thing seems to have been an ad lib. It’s not actually in the executive order. …But Trump just said it because he was talking. And so immediately the White House, like, press office rushed out, ‘Yeah, yeah, yeah, you’ll go to jail for a year if you burn a flag.’” — Jonathan V. Last (01:15)

2. Law, Precedent, and Authoritarianism

• Tim questions if “this is how lawmaking works in the country? The president just decides what the sentencing rules are for things…?” (01:39)
• JBL lampoons how everything is now driven by Trump’s whims: “Donald Trump says that Roger Clemens and Pete Rose should be in the hall of fame… And then everybody just runs around to accommodate him because we're living in an authoritarian state.” (01:58)

3. The Power and Point of Small Acts of Resistance

• Small acts of defiance, such as a veteran burning a flag outside the White House, are highlighted as meaningful symbolic gestures—even if the act itself is “silly in the grand scheme of things.”
  • “It’s important for them to stand on their own principles of a free country and be like, ‘f you. No, I’m not going to do. What are you going to do? Raid my home like John Bolton?’” — Tim Miller (02:20)

4. Flag Burning: Emotion versus Principle

• The hosts admit flag burning doesn’t animate them personally but acknowledge it’s an obvious, visceral flashpoint.
  • “Flag burning has never really animated me…watching clips…when in Iran, Iranians burning the American flag, I was not pro Iran…I looked at that and be like, ‘OK, whatever.’” — JBL (04:09)
  • Tim recalls a college concert where a flag was burned: “I was maybe a little bit embarrassed being a Republican in the room…but I was kind of just like, ‘This is annoying. I'm not here for this.’” (04:38)

5. Legal Capture & Uneven Application: Who Gets Punished?

• When the protester was detained, JBL points out it's selective enforcement:
  • “He was handed over to the Park Service and charged...with starting a fire in a public park. ...We use the rules…to prevent people from just doing unauthorized [things].” (05:51)
  • Tim: “That should be a fine, though, not handcuffing.” (06:11)
  • JBL: “Everything is who, whom, right?...That’s how America works now.” (06:36)

6. Manosphere and Libertarian Reaction

• The episode’s centerpiece is the reaction from “manosphere”/libertarian internet personalities (via a Barstool Sports segment).
  • Host Kirk and his crew are live-processed:
    • Kirk: “I'm not going to burn a flag, but like that's what America is about.” (08:58)
    • Co-host: “That's freedom of speech.” (09:01)
    • Kirk: “Maybe I will burn a flag. I'll go to jail for a year.” (09:05)
    • “I need gas cheaper and food cheaper...Is anybody doing this, by the way, really? Is there an epidemic of this going on?” (09:47)
  • Tim notes, “You can feel it in his brain. He's like, I'm a free speech guy. This is wrong.…You can see him trying to find a Trump rationalization in his head.” (11:25)

7. Where Libertarian Rhetoric Meets Trumpian Practice

• JBL raises doubts about the sincerity of libertarian “cover stories”:
  • “We’re gonna see how many of these people really believe in any of the libertarian stuff or whether…the Von Mises caucus wasn’t really about economics.” (10:32)
  • Tim quips, “I think melanin probably. I think Melanin a lot.” (11:21)

8. Security Theater and Authoritarian Logic

• JBL: “If you read the entire text of the executive order, it’s less about jingoistic patriotism and much more about security. …It’s all dressing things up…‘flag burning is a national security thing’…like with the Bolton raid, ‘making America safe.’” (13:02)
• Tim and JBL connect this “security” rationale to left-wing “words are violence” — but note that Trump’s escalation is enforced with actual violence and state power.
  • Tim: “It’s kind of like the mockable stuff on the woke left…people are, like, words are violence.” (13:53)
  • JBL: “Backstopping the left words-are-violent stuff was always just…cancellation. Backstopping this stuff is violence.” (14:14)

9. Broader Warnings about Fascism

• JBL concludes: “This is how it always is. Fascist movements are taking power.” (14:32)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Trump playing the hits from 1988. ...This is something even the smooth brained among us can understand.” — Tim Miller (00:20)
• “You get one year in jail. No early exits, no nothing.” — Trump clip, recited by Tim Miller (01:03)
• “He says Cracker Barrel should go back to its old logo...Everybody just runs around to accommodate him because we're living in an authoritarian state.” — JBL (01:58)
• “It’s important for them to stand on their own principles of a free country.” — Tim Miller (02:20)
• “Everything is who, whom, right?...That’s how America works now.” — JBL (06:36)
• “That's what America is about. That's freedom of speech.” — Barstool co-host (09:01)
• “Is anyone even doing this?...Was this a problem that needed to be addressed?” — Tim Miller (09:58)
• “We’re gonna see how many of these people really believe in any of the libertarian stuff or whether the libertarian stuff was always just cover...” — JBL (10:32)
• “It’s all dressing things up...If somebody burns a flag, that's a national security thing.” — JBL (13:02)
• “Backstopping this stuff is violence.” — JBL (14:29)
• “This is how it always is. Fascist movements are taking power.” — JBL (14:56)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 00:00–01:11 – Opening and Trump’s “one year in jail” for flag burning order
• 01:11–02:20 – Legal reality vs. Trump’s claims, the machinery of authoritarianism
• 02:20–03:47 – Symbolic patriotic gestures and veteran’s protest outside White House
• 04:09–05:17 – Emotional and cultural reactions to flag burning
• 05:28–06:36 – Legal enforcement and selective justice
• 06:45–11:10 – Manosphere/Barstool/Libertarian live reactions and conflicted responses
• 11:10–13:53 – Discussion on libertarian principles vs. practice, the Von Mises caucus, and implications
• 13:53–14:56 – Security theater, “words as violence,” and connections to the rise of fascism

Conclusion

This episode of Bulwark Takes serves as both analysis and satire, exposing the absurdities and dangers in Trump’s authoritarian posturing about flag burning. Miller and Last argue that the order is not just a flashback to culture wars past; it’s a tangible instance of illiberal rule, selective enforcement, and the way authoritarian claims filter down to and challenge even Trump’s “libertarian” and “manosphere” supporters. Ultimately, the show urges listeners to recognize the real stakes behind these “silly” issues, warning of a pattern in which arbitrary power and violence are backstopping supposed patriotic and security measures.