Podcast Summary: The Bulwark Podcast

Episode: Susan Glasser: Trump’s Industrial-Scale Lies

Date: February 25, 2026
Host: Tim Miller
Guest: Susan Glasser (staff writer, The New Yorker, co-author of The Divider)

Episode Overview

This episode features The New Yorker staff writer Susan Glasser joining host Tim Miller in the wake of former President Donald Trump's State of the Union address—the longest in U.S. history. The discussion critically dissects Trump’s performance, the content and tone of his speech, the media’s response, deeper issues of truth, democracy, and looming foreign policy challenges, especially regarding Iran and Ukraine. Throughout, Miller and Glasser explore the industrial scale of Trump’s public dishonesty, the normalization of authoritarian tactics, and the challenges for a reality-based political community.

Main Discussion Points & Insights

1. Trump’s State of the Union: Performance Over Policy

[01:41 – 05:16]

• Length and Tone:
  • The speech was the "longest state of the union in the Republic" (01:48).
  • Glasser: “It was long and it was wrong. That's my headline. No, I mean it's an hour and however many minutes of our life we won't get back.” (02:04)
• Spectacle Over Substance:
  • Trump leaned into award-giving and self-congratulation, with numerous medal ceremonies.
  • Miller jokingly suggests Trump might be happier as “permanent chairman of the board of the USO” just traveling the world giving and receiving awards. “Maybe he would not have run again if we had just given him his true job.” (03:20)
  • Glasser: “This is your Bob Hope theory of the case...if Bob Hope were a wannabe dictator.” (03:40)

2. Zeroing in on Speech Content: Policy Contradictions and Fearmongering

[05:16 – 09:21]

• Incoherent Policy Cases:
  • Glasser notes lack of clarity on handling the affordability crisis or on Iran. “I defy you to find a coherent case to the American people there.” (03:58)
• Populist Scare Tactics:
  • Trump’s speech oscillates between upbeat self-praise and painting Democrats as destroyers of America, especially using immigration as a wedge.
  • Glasser: “There was the cheery speech...America was brilliant to have elected me...And as a result...everything is actually going great...And then...the Democrats and illegal aliens are destroying everything that we hold near and dear speech.” (06:37)

3. Political Strategy & Effectiveness

[08:11 – 09:21]

• Tim Miller underscores the challenge of using fear and negative campaigning when the incumbent party controls government.
• “There's no evidence that this has ever worked in the midterms when...one party controls everything and then they say, well, look, the other party, remember how bad they were a couple years ago?” (08:11)
• Glasser: "Trump is not a persuader. I think we've learned that he just doesn't care about you enough to try to convince you of something." (09:21)

4. Vice President Vance: From Shitposter to Fraud Czar

[09:30 – 11:14]

• Trump named Vice President J.D. Vance as the administration’s “fraud czar”—per Miller, ironic since the Trump family and their associates have been involved in self-dealing and actual fraud.
• Glasser highlights Trump’s lack of self-awareness: “The world's largest, most powerful irony free zone.” (10:19)

5. Immigration, ICE, and Policy Omissions

[11:14 – 14:36]

• Despite anti-immigration rhetoric, there was notably little mention of ICE or deeply controversial MAHA policies.
• Glasser: “Maybe the American people don't like armed, masked goons beating up Americans for expressing their First Amendment rights.” (12:27)
• Discussion of why ICE and other divisive enforcement policies were strategically omitted.

6. Who Was the Speech For? Media and Base Reception

[14:36 – 17:55]

• Laura Ingraham’s Review: “It was a little bit Reagan-esque, especially toward the end. I think this could have been the best speech he has ever delivered.” (14:36)
• Both hosts agree Ingraham was likely damning with faint praise.
• National media (e.g., Tony Dokoupil, CBS) focused on spectacle and tone, glossed over the lies.
• Glasser: "It actually reads as delusional when two thirds of the country is upset at you for all the reasons that you claim don't exist." (23:04)

7. Industrial-Scale Lying and Media Complicity

[23:04 – 26:04]

• The CBS and broader media tendency to avoid direct fact-checking, allowing “industrial scale” dishonesty to go unchallenged.
• Glasser offers an editor's counterfactual of what objective news coverage would look like: “Trump has been given a pass on lying to the country on an industrial scale.” (23:04)

8. State of Political Norms: Should Congress Even Host Trump Again?

[28:23 – 31:56]

• Reflecting on the pointlessness and performative nature of the State of the Union, both discuss whether Democrats should even continue to invite Trump should they regain Congress.
• Miller: “Maybe we should just kill this tradition.” (30:14)
• Both agree Trump will simply find another stage if denied the congressional platform.

9. Media Capture, Corporate Power, and Authoritarian Control

[31:56 – 38:53]

• The hosts discuss ongoing corporate media consolidations (Netflix, CBS, TikTok) and the Trump administration’s direct involvement in shaping ownership, suppression, and influence.
• Glasser: “It's called media capture...a hallmark of almost every modern authoritarian government...Trump is a mapper of power...it's the billionaires. It's the people at the top, and he controls them.” (34:37)
• Discussion of Susan Rice's comments on corporate accountability and the challenge for Democrats not to become what they oppose.

10. Free Speech Under Threat

[42:17 – 46:24]

• Glasser and Miller detail the multi-front assault on free speech within the Trump administration—from DOJ investigations of political dissent, to targeting protesters and threatening public figures (e.g., Susan Rice).
• Glasser: “You can't have the kind of sweeping executive power that Donald Trump is claiming for himself without silencing dissent. And that's why the First Amendment is frankly the best insurance policy that the founders gave us against tyranny.” (43:21)

11. Foreign Policy: UN, Ukraine, and Iran

[50:51 – 63:00]

• Trump administration abstains from a simple UN resolution affirming Ukraine's sovereignty—“America is taking the side of countries in Europe led by right-wing authoritarians supportive of Russia. Period. Full stop.” (54:25)
• Iran “Drums of War”:
  • Trump’s paradoxical rhetoric on Iran—claiming to have “obliterated” their nuclear program while also calling for preemptive war.
  • U.S. deploys half its global air power to the region—experts fear actual hostilities may be imminent.
  • Glasser: “It's almost a sort of one of these postmodern leaps of faith required here...to even be able to parse the argument...It's very, very hard, even for those of us who are used to, let's just say, ambiguities in American foreign policy, that one is a hard circle to square.” (57:17–58:07)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Trump’s Performance:
  • Glasser: “It was long and it was wrong. That’s my headline.” (02:04)
  • Miller (regarding medals): “Taking awards for himself, receiving awards and giving awards. Maybe he would not have run again if we had just given him his true job.” (03:20)
  • Glasser: “The world’s largest, most powerful irony free zone.” (10:19)
• On Industrial-Scale Lies:
  • Glasser: “Trump has been given a pass on lying to the country on an industrial scale.” (23:04)
• On Free Speech:
  • Glasser: “You can't have the kind of sweeping executive power that Donald Trump is claiming for himself without silencing dissent...the First Amendment is the best insurance policy...against tyranny. It really is.” (43:21)
• On Foreign Policy:
  • Glasser: “America is taking the side of...right-wing authoritarians supportive of Russia. Period. Full stop.” (54:25)
  • Glasser (re: Iran): “It’s almost a sort of one of these postmodern leaps of faith...I obliterated Iran's nuclear program. And also we might need to launch a war tomorrow to obliterate Iran's nuclear program.” (57:17)
• On Media & Authoritarian Tactics:
  • Glasser: “It’s called media capture...a hallmark of almost every modern authoritarian government.” (34:37)

Key Timestamps for Important Segments

• [01:41] – Show intro; Susan Glasser’s initial impressions of Trump’s State of the Union
• [03:40] – “Bob Hope theory” – spectacle and craving for ceremonies
• [06:30] – Analysis of anti-immigration segment as a midterm electoral strategy
• [09:30] – J.D. Vance named “Fraud Czar”; “Irony free zone” and corruption
• [12:27] – Omission of ICE/enforcement rhetoric; reading political vulnerabilities
• [14:36] – Conservative media reaction; Ingraham's “best speech ever” comment
• [23:04] – Media avoidance of direct fact-checking; industrial-scale lying
• [31:56] – Media capture: Trump’s influence over megacorporations
• [42:17] – DOJ attacks on free speech; relevance to authoritarian playbook
• [50:51] – U.S. abstains on Ukraine UN vote; significance explained
• [56:15] – Iran crisis escalation; what Trump’s rhetoric and deployments mean

Conclusion

This episode provides a comprehensive indictment of the Trump administration's approach to truth, governance, media, democracy, and foreign policy. Glasser and Miller cut through political theater to argue that America faces real, urgent threats to its institutions—notably a normalization of flagrant lying, creeping authoritarian tactics, and the erosion of democratic guardrails. They urge vigilance, clear-eyed analysis, and strategic thinking in the face of “industrial-scale lies” and unstable leadership on the world stage.