The Bulwark Podcast

Episode: Sam Stein: A Bunch of Violent Keystone Cops

Release Date: October 9, 2025
Host: Tim Miller
Guest: Sam Stein (Managing Editor, The Bulwark)

Episode Overview

This episode dives into the chaotic state of American politics, with a primary focus on the administration's aggressive tactics in Chicago and other cities, government propaganda efforts, escalating political polarization, and ongoing international crises. Tim Miller and Sam Stein dissect these topics with their characteristic blend of sharp analysis and dark humor. They also touch on recent media antics (including Candace Owens’s bizarre seance, the civil war rhetoric of Tucker Carlson, and Candace’s online clash with Dinesh D’Souza), the current status of the Israel-Gaza ceasefire, and close with reflections on Democratic politics, notably Katie Porter's meltdown and the need for strong leadership.

Key Topics and Discussion Points

1. Escalation in Chicago and Federal Overreach

[01:37–07:04]

• Dramatic tactics by federal authorities: Recent ICE and DHS operations include Black Hawk helicopters, masked men banging on citizens’ doors, pepper-balling a priest, and publicizing the raids through social media.
• Administration’s motives: Sam Stein argues that, “It is invested in creating chaos because that chaos allows it to justify further amplifying their operations or ICE operations particularly.” [02:28, Sam Stein]
• Political benefit in chaos: The hosts warn that the current administration is incentivized to escalate tension, not resolve it.
• Redirection of resources: “The amount of resources that are being redirected right now…from within DHS, from within FBI, within DOJ…everything is being refocused towards their plans in Chicago, Portland…towards all immigration stuff.” [05:31, Tim Miller]
• Implications: Law enforcement agents are being pulled off cyber, corruption, and national security cases to prioritize immigration crackdowns.

2. ICE/Administration Propaganda Machine & Social Media Warfare

[07:04–12:00]

• Sophisticated PR efforts: The administration crafts slick videos, often set to pop culture tracks (e.g., using Zach Bryan’s “Revival” for propaganda), and collaborates with right-wing influencers by giving them access to raids for content creation.

  “They’ve collaborated with conservative influencers…putting on the roof of the Portland ICE facility so that they can…run Videos of those scrums and then take those videos…out to more mainstream conservative publications, mostly Fox News…” [09:09, Sam Stein]

• Glorification and desensitization: The government’s material oftentimes presents disturbing imagery with intentionally incongruous, upbeat music and a narrative that these operations are noble and highbrow.
• Noteworthy instance: Benny Johnson, a conservative influencer, participated in a raid and then created AI videos depicting violence against immigrants:

  “He did an AI video where he's like beating up immigrants. And they're like a lot of these shirtless, oiled up, tattooed men that he gets to beat up, which is again, totally straight, like totally heterosexual.” [11:19, Tim Miller]

3. Political Theater & Reality Disconnect in Portland, Chicago, Etc.

[12:00–16:35]

• Trump’s hyperbole: The former president claimed Portland “doesn’t even have stores anymore,” and that new businesses don’t bother putting up windows—laughably out of touch with reality.

  “They don't even have stores anymore in Portland. What does he think? I mean, I don't know.” [14:13, Sam Stein]

• Field reports: Personal accounts and videos from Portland residents and people on the ground sharply contradict administration talking points, reinforcing the narrative that manufactured crisis serves the administration’s goals.
• Keystone Cops analogy: The incompetence and overblown nature of the operations is likened to “Keystone Cops”:

  “…they are, to a degree, Keystone Cops.” [16:30, Sam Stein]

4. Comey Prosecution & Trump’s Social Media Mishap

[18:10–25:52]

• Vindictive prosecution: Jim Comey pleads not guilty to charges widely seen as politically motivated.
• Trump’s Truth Social DM blunder: Trump accidentally posts, instead of privately DM’ing, an incriminating message to Attorney General Pam Bondi:

  “‘Pam, you must prosecute Comey...’”
  “I was wrong. Pundit accountability. It was an errant DM. On September 20, Trump meant to send a private message...” [19:00, Tim Miller]

• Discussion of absurdity: The hosts marvel at Trump’s incompetence and the fact that such brazen coordination of political retribution is being attempted via social media, rather than conventional backchannels.

5. Israel-Gaza Ceasefire & International Politics

[27:56–36:43]

• Ceasefire optimism and skepticism: Both Stein and Miller cautiously praise the ceasefire, focusing on the humanitarian aspect (hostage release), but question its durability given the self-interest and duplicity of all sides.

  “It is a human rights catastrophe that has been unfolding for two years now. And anything that can bring it to an end, you should applaud.” [27:58, Sam Stein]

• Political calculus: Trump’s desire for a Nobel Peace Prize is highlighted as a motivator for seeking deals:

  “We're really lucky that Donald Trump wants a peace prize and not world domination.” [35:10, Tim Miller]

• Continued trauma: The hosts note forthcoming public reckoning with the consequences (returning hostages, likely revelations of abuses, devastation in Gaza).

6. US Military Action in Venezuela/Caribbean & Congressional Abdication

[37:16–42:29]

• Questionable military actions: The administration is conducting military strikes in the Caribbean (purportedly targeting drug shipments) with scant oversight and unclear objectives.
• Thin justification: No evidence of Venezuelan fentanyl trade; the strikes may be thin cover for possible regime change efforts.

  “The thing to me that is the most alarming about all this is like, this is an illegal war about nothing. Like, the war is about nothing. We are bombing boats out of the Caribbean with no real objective.” [38:12, Tim Miller]

• Congressional neglect: Only a handful of legislators challenge the Pentagon’s unilateral actions, with Sam Stein lamenting, "your job as a member of the Congress is oversight...and to just basically abdicate that...have some dignity." [40:50, Sam Stein]

7. Candace Owens’ Seance, Right-Wing Media, & Tucker Carlson’s Civil War Talk

[42:39–53:24]

• Candace Owens’s surreal moment: Owens claims to have communed with Charlie Kirk’s spirit, predicting “international consequences,” provoking both ridicule and concern about the state of right-wing media.

  “Had a vivid dream this weekend, and Charlie came to me and he told me that he was betrayed...it is soon going to be revealed that...there is nothing and no one that is going to stop the truth from coming out. And it is going to have international consequences. Take that to the bank.” [43:01, Candace Owens]

• Dinesh D’Souza’s bizarre analogy: D’Souza gets owned by Owens in an exchange involving a comparison of watching a “freak show” to seeing a farmer have sex with a sheep:

  “It’s like driving on the highway and seeing a farmer having sex with a sheep. Okay, you lose me a little bit.” [54:45, Tim Miller]

• Tucker Carlson's dangerous narrative:

  "Why is America moving towards civil war? ...Diversity...is without question our weakness and has always been." [46:33, Tucker Carlson]

• Critical response: Miller and Stein emphasize the corrosive impact of mainstreaming civil war rhetoric and the basic falsity (“fundamentally wrong”) and cynicism of anti-diversity arguments.

8. Democratic Politics & Katie Porter’s Meltdown

[57:05–63:21]

• Katie Porter debacle: Audio is played of gubernatorial candidate Katie Porter prematurely ending a Sacramento TV interview when pressed on outreach to Trump voters:

  “Not with seven follow ups to every single question you ask… I want to have a pleasant, positive conversation…” [58:32, Katie Porter]

• Analysis: Hosts criticize Porter’s inability to handle basic media scrutiny, emphasizing the political gift her self-sabotage represents for Democrats looking for a stronger candidate.
• Dan Pfeiffer for governor?: Miller pushes the idea that other, better-suited leaders (like Dan Pfeiffer) should step up in Porter’s wake.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On chaos as a strategy:
  “The administration doesn’t want to calm the tensions. It wants to make things more tense…it is invested in creating chaos.” — Sam Stein [02:28]
• On ICE propaganda:
  “Never seen a government put this much attention into the PR elements of what they are doing.” — Sam Stein [09:09]
• On the administration’s priorities:
  “They just want to put everybody on immigration cases and that’s their priority.” — Sam Stein [06:17]
• On Trump’s DM blunder:
  “I was giving Trump the benefit of the doubt here, actually. Stupider than I realized.” — Tim Miller [20:44]
• On the ceasefire deal:
  “It’s not that complicated actually… It’s where everyone suspected we would end up… In a way, it makes me really sad again to think what was lost.” — Sam Stein [33:22]
• On America’s civil war talk:
  “If you feel like you need to say ‘actually’, you don’t really believe it.” — Tim Miller [47:51]
• On the proliferation of right-wing influencers:
  “Candace Owens is just too powerful now…These people have incredible online followings…The real power brokers in conservative media are just even further out.” — Sam Stein [45:05]
• On Katie Porter:
  “A leader does not deal with follow up questions from down-market local news anchors from Sacramento. I am a leader.” — Tim Miller [59:14]

Timestamps for Important Segments

• Chicago and aggressive ICE tactics: 01:37–07:04
• ICE propaganda machine: 07:04–12:00
• Political theater in cities/Keystone Cops: 12:00–16:35
• Comey prosecution/Trump DM blunder: 18:10–25:52
• Israel-Gaza ceasefire: 27:56–36:43
• US military action in Venezuela/Caribbean: 37:16–42:29
• Candace Owens, Dinesh, right-wing media: 42:39–53:24
• Tucker Carlson’s civil war rhetoric: 46:33–53:24
• Katie Porter interview meltdown: 57:05–63:21

Tone and Takeaway

The episode is bracing, darkly comic, and relentless in critiquing both the substance and the politics of contemporary America. Miller and Stein juxtapose absurdities (Candace’s spiritual visions, Trump’s direct-message follies) with profound anxieties about authoritarian drift, information warfare, the dangers of hate-driven narratives, and a political environment where bombast and “owning the libs” take precedence over real problem-solving or leadership.

For listeners seeking a clear-eyed, irreverent take on American politics in 2025—with both gallows humor and genuine alarm—this episode is essential.