The Next Level – Episode 1061: "Secret Podcast: Did Stephen Miller Just Pull Off a Palace Coup?"

Hosted by: Sarah Longwell, Tim Miller, and Jonathan V. Last (JVL)
Date: March 6, 2026

Episode Overview

In this lively and candid episode of The Next Level, Sarah Longwell and Jonathan V. Last (JVL) break down an eventful week in politics, highlighted by the stunning ouster of Kristi Noem. The conversation weaves through the dramatic circumstances of Noem's firing, the possible masterminding of her downfall by Stephen Miller, speculation about her replacement, and the broader dysfunction within the Trump administration. The second half dives into America’s foreign policy debacles—particularly with Iran—and the challenges of strategy, logistics, and political will.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Kristi Noem’s Spectacular Firing (01:41–13:53)

• The Firing-by-Tweet: JVL exults in schadenfreude over Kristi Noem's humiliating and very public firing, which happened while she was still on stage giving a speech—apparently unaware of her dismissal.

  • Quote: "Kristi Noem has just gotten fired in one of the most humiliating ways possible." (01:41 – JVL)

• Why Was She Really Fired?:

  • Sarah notes the actual reason appears not to be corruption or policy failures, but her implying under oath that Trump approved her controversial spending.
  • JVL compares Trump to a "mob boss"—not upset by corruption, but by being cut out of the profits.
    • Quote: "It’s not the corruption. It’s when you don’t get your peace." (04:10 – Sarah)

• Stephen Miller’s “Palace Coup” Theory (05:13–08:07):

  • JVL presents a theory: Stephen Miller orchestrated the hit on Noem, engineering her ouster to ensure even greater loyalty and pliability in her replacement.
  • Sarah is open to the theory, noting the unusual behavior of Senator Kennedy during the hearings, suggesting it was all a "setup."
  • Quote: “This was a Stephen Miller op to get rid of her because she’d become problematic...for his continued project of getting rid of every brown person in America.” (06:25 – JVL)

• Ruthless Trumpworld Loyalty: The panel underscores the Mafia-like culture—loyalty to Trump supersedes legality and policy; the only real sin is making money off Trump without him getting a cut (05:10–05:50).

Notable Moment:

• “This was, you know, some R on R violence. And when he came for her, it was a setup...it was about Miller.” (07:10 – Sarah)

2. Markwayne Mullin as Noem’s Replacement (08:45–13:39)

• Who is Markwayne Mullin?

  • Sarah is unimpressed: “He’s extremely dumb, like Tuberville dumb.”
  • Mullin is known for his love of right-wing media, and for hiding during January 6, only to later defend the attackers.
  • Both doubt Mullin will be an improvement in either competence or loyalty beyond being a blank slate for Trump/Miller.

• Democratic Reaction & Fetterman’s Vote:

  • JVL is shocked that John Fetterman says he’ll vote to confirm Mullin; considers this political suicide for any Democrat.
    • Quote: “I take this vote by Fetterman basically as a declaration that he is not even going to bother running again.” (12:25 – JVL)
  • Sarah floats the idea of Fetterman running as a Republican, given Pennsylvania’s odd political history, but both doubt GOP would actually want him.

3. The Iran War & Trump’s Foreign Policy (13:53–32:11)

• JVL’s Foreign Policy Critique:

  • JVL argues that Iran’s leadership is playing chess while Trump is "playing checkers,” with Iran’s regime survival the clear objective while U.S. strategy is muddled, reactive, and lacking contingency planning.
    • Quote: "They have a clearer understanding of their objectives and a better alignment of their strategy to their objectives in this war than Trump does...bad for America." (14:07 – JVL)

• Strategic Disconnects and Blunders:

  • JVL details how Iran’s decentralized “mosaic” structure is designed for survival, while the U.S. miscalculated by assuming they could keep the Strait of Hormuz open with military power alone—overlooking the economic and insurance dimensions (16:00–17:13).
  • Sarah reframes JVL’s point: It’s not about intelligence, but about the regime’s understanding of U.S. weaknesses and domestic political pain points—particularly Trump’s aversion to long-term pain or political risk.

• Trump’s “Unique” Leadership Style in War:

  • JVL: Trump is uniquely willing to simply “declare victory and leave,” regardless of real outcomes or consequences—something no other president would do.
    • Quote: “He could fuck all of this up over there...and I won. Look at that. Biggest win. Biggest. They said it couldn’t be done. A guy came up to me...‘Sir, sir. They said we could never do it, but we did it.’” (19:12–20:20 – JVL, in classic Trump impersonation)

• Economic Fallout and All-Consuming Chaos:

  • Discussions of energy prices, supply chain disruptions (fertilizer, aluminum), and downstream effects likely to damage the economy—and how none of this seems to register in U.S. planning (22:25–24:26).
  • JVL likens it to “not understanding how the plumbing in your house works and thinking, well, I can just go over and jackhammer this wall here and everything will be fine” (24:20).

• Lack of Clear Objectives & Public Trust:

  • Both express exasperation with the administration’s incoherent, ever-changing war objectives and the lack of transparency with Congress or the public.
    • Quote: “It is not even the case of like, oh, I don’t trust them. It’s that we have five different versions of what’s happening.” (28:20 – JVL)

Notable Exchange:

• “We are being led by a bunch of fucking morons.” (24:30 – JVL)
• “It’s amazing how quickly they rebuilt them. But...you shouldn’t trust any of these people. Like it’s perfect. It’s no, I don’t want to go to war with a president who seems to be running this whole operation.” (26:27–26:51 – Sarah)

4. Closing & Brief Good News (32:11–33:34)

• Community & Fundraising Success:

  • Sarah and JVL share uplifting news about raising $60,000 for Second Harvest Heartland in Minneapolis, which ballooned to another $96,000 through listener donations.
    • Quote: “We got an email from the Second Harvest people saying...another $96,000 people donated from this community in a day.” (33:09 – Sarah)

• Final Call to Join Bulwark+

  • The duo invites listeners to become members and be “part of the best people.”

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Kristi Noem Ouster & Miller Coup Theory: 01:41–08:45
• Markwayne Mullin as Replacement & Democratic Dynamics: 08:45–13:53
• Iran War, Administration Dysfunction, and Foreign Policy Critique: 13:53–32:11
• Second Harvest Fundraising & Community Closing: 32:11–33:34

Most Memorable Quotes

• On Trump’s Tolerance for Corruption:
  “It’s not the corruption. It’s when you don’t get your peace.” (04:10 – Sarah)

• On Stephen Miller’s Motives:
  “This was a Stephen Miller op to get rid of her because she’d become problematic...for his continued project of getting rid of every brown person in America.” (06:25 – JVL)

• On Mullin’s (Lack of) Competence:
  “He’s extremely dumb, like Tuberville dumb.” (10:01 – Sarah)

• On Trump’s War Playbook:
  “He could fuck all of this up over there...and I won. Look at that. Biggest win. Biggest. They said it couldn’t be done...” (19:25 – JVL impersonating Trump)

• On U.S. Strategic Blind Spots:
  “It’s like not understanding how the plumbing in your house works and thinking, well, I can just go over and jackhammer this wall here and everything will be fine.” (24:20 – JVL)

• On Biden’s/Trump’s Iran Policy:
  “We are being led by a bunch of fucking morons.” (24:30 – JVL)

Tone & Style

• Sharp, irreverent banter: Full of gallows humor, exasperation, and the hosts’ characteristic irreverence.
• Cynically realistic: The conversation is heavy with skepticism about both Trumpworld and U.S. institutions.
• Camaraderie, not just critique: Amidst caustic political analysis, there's warmth about their show's community and a brief, uplifting plug for charitable action.

Takeaway

Listeners are treated to a wide-ranging, unsparing, and often darkly funny dissection of a week in Trump-era America—where palace coups are orchestrated by ideologues, loyalty is enforced with mob-like rules, and U.S. foreign policy is left to drift amidst economic and strategic chaos. All wrapped in the unmistakable flavor of Bulwark banter.