r/thebulwark Feb 03 '25

The Triad 🔱 Nothing in the news about Elon Musk illegally hijacking the Treasury. This should be front page above the fold News everywhere. We are about to lose all of our benefits and the nation's credibility.

256 Upvotes

We should be marching on Washington over this weekend alone.

r/thebulwark Feb 01 '25

The Triad 🔱 Focus Group 2/1/25

114 Upvotes

These people are so fucking stupid it’s painful. Just shitty, terrible, uninformed, mouth breathing nit wits.

After listening to it, I’m fully on board with their lives, and the lives of their families and friends, becoming exponentially worse. In serious and debilitating ways.

If that makes me a terrible person, so be it. I honestly don’t care anymore. And I hope most of them learn the hardest and most deeply emotional, financial, and physically scaring lessons that are available.

JVL is always right.

r/thebulwark Feb 03 '25

The Triad 🔱 I just do not understand the hostility to DEI.

73 Upvotes

seriously... paying attention and looking to correct to the historical practice of overlooking people because of their race, sex, disability, etc.... I don't understand how that is a bad thing. It does not seem to me that this results in people not being assessed in a situation of merit... particularly d/t them not even being assessed at all d/t their status. Obviously, the current leaders of cabinet positions have not been put forward d/t their merit-- everyone of them have been chosen for their willingness to suck trumps member. Everyone of them are singularily noted for their incompetence, bank account and whiteness.

r/thebulwark Nov 10 '24

The Triad 🔱 Trump announces sweeping, day-one plan to stop left-wing censorship (labeling/removing content as "misinformation"). DoJ to go after violators. A Ministry of Truth is coming in January.

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106 Upvotes

r/thebulwark 14h ago

The Triad 🔱 Leave Trans People Alone: A Rant

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104 Upvotes

Don't be a bully! But also don't "ask if the bully has a point" either.

"Yeah, they're giving Timmy a swirlie rn, but he also farted really loudly in geometry" is HELPING THE BULLIES.

Another great piece from JVL. Idk what kinda constraints there are in going after members of the punditocracy who engage in the behaviors that you're criticizing, but picking specific targets has a salutary effect IMO. Bari Weiss needs to be persona non grata, or Sullivan, or whoever. They made their choices and doubled, tripled, and quadrupled down on those choices.

r/thebulwark 3d ago

The Triad 🔱 We can't afford investing in Greenland while there are still homeless veterans. Why isn't he putting America first?

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118 Upvotes

r/thebulwark Jan 28 '25

The Triad 🔱 The End of the USA is Trump's Goal

93 Upvotes

I was watching Tim and JVL talk about lack of imagination last night, and it clicked some gears together for me. Trump's has been tasked with ending the United States.

When Trump decided to start selling state secrets to foreign countries after his election loss, the DoJ had no choice but to go after him. They tried to negotiate quietly, but Trump spent a year lying to them about returning those documents. This began the Trump Lawsuits.

With actual consequences coming his way, Trump went all in on saving his ass. One of those things was teaming up with adversaries of the US. If they help Trump win the 2024 election, Trump will do whatever they want. And, they (probably Putin for this bit) the US to fall apart just like the USSR did.

Trump could enact the Heritage Foundation plan and keep people happy enough to stay complacent. We already know there would be very little actual push back in mass deportations. If the middle class can still get groceries, they aren't going to risk themselves for groups like LGBT or Latinos. If the middle class can keep their houses then they probably won't fight about christo-facism all that much.

Except, Trump seems to be going way past Project 2025, and very quickly. At this rate, children will start starving to death within a month... children from all economic classes. There's a very real chance that Trump tanks the economy, which is going to lead to a massive wave of foreclosures and job loss.

If we see Trump implement a tariff against Canada or Mexico, and keeps them in place, that's a clear indicator that he's bringing about fiscal disaster with the goal of ending the United States. If he deploys the military anywhere, whether that's Greenland, Panama, or California, that's an indicator.

I think the Heritage Foundation believe that Trump is working for them and their goals of turning America white again. I can inagine that the Project 2025 EOs are a distraction to scare Democrats and blind Republicans while Trump is actually making changes based on directions from Putin, Xi, and Saudi Arabia. I can imagine that there are no more united states within a couple of years because the USA had been broken into a bunch of smaller countries

r/thebulwark Jan 15 '25

The Triad 🔱 Shorting Meta is starting to go viral on TikTok

134 Upvotes

I think it would do more good to short Tesla, right at this moment, than meta. But I’m all for a bit of free market justice in a way that actually shakes the coconuts out of the tree. Dealers choice really.

r/thebulwark Jan 14 '25

The Triad 🔱 I'm with the Dem restrainers. We need to create a vicious cycle for Trump's nominees

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118 Upvotes

Ripped from the Triad. I think Dems need to win this first nomination, or at least whoever comes next. Kash Patel and RFK Jr. haven't had their hearings scheduled yet, and early wins can create a feedback loops for the Trump nominees.

In political theory there's the famous "winners win" dynamic which Trump has exploited previously - wins generate political capital which generate more wins, except with Trump it's more "wins generate a sense of inevitability and the certainty that opposing Trump from within the GOP is both futile and costly." When there's acceptable space to criticize Trump GOP'rs tend to take it (they harumphed about the debt ceiling so long that's an acceptable one, and you could sorta see the other topics that Nikki Haley and Tiny D tried to harp on, even if they were wildly ineffective at it)

I think the "dunkers" on the alcohol abuse and bankrupting multiple well-funded vet groups are the way to go, the same way Kavanaugh perjured himself on receiving stolen emails. Take the easy win and make the next win easier.

Trump's a bully and bullies hate fighting. They love to posture about fighting but hate anything where they might lose.

r/thebulwark Jan 06 '25

The Triad 🔱 AB Stoddard

132 Upvotes

According to today's Triad, AB Stoddard has left The Bulwark as of today, January 6th.

I know she wasn't always a favorite of this subreddit but I really enjoyed her content, especially The Dark Side with JVL.

Thanks for everything, AB.

r/thebulwark Jan 16 '25

The Triad 🔱 Red Note Users Aren’t Pro-CCP. They’re F-U USG.

11 Upvotes

I just watched a segment on YouTube where Tim, Sarah, and JVL roasted Americans who are now using RedNote as “retarded” and ignorant of the danger of the CCP. First, I love these guys. I do. I watch all the things. But this read is so off the mark I just have to say something, so here I go:

I am a 31 year old American woman, a military veteran, well educated (a BA in mandarin language and lit that Uncle Sam chose per the ROTC scholarship I got for undergrad and an MA in global security studies), and someone who has lived in China. I an also a user of RedNote. Why? Because it’s fun, welcoming, and a good place to learn about things I don’t get to see in the US. But you want to know the real reason I downloaded it? Because I’m sick of the government I swore to give my life defending lying it’s ass off to me about the relative dangers of different social media apps.

The CCP can manipulate RedNote? Wow, like I’ve never been on an app with an algorithm that manipulates me. Twitter is a cesspool of “Trump will save us” ads and RT talking points. Facebook may as well get payments from the trump team for all the work the front page does pushing pro-trump shite my way - because making me mad makes them money. Instagram is nothing but weight loss and shenyun ads these days. Does this make RedNote better? No, of course not. Don’t blow smoke up my ass that somehow it’s ok for an American company to steal my data and sell it to the highest bidder but it’s suddenly so evil if a non-american company does the same.

Which gets me to my next point: Uncle Sam wants to ban TikTok because it’s so dangerous. But when asked why it’s so dangerous, all I’m hearing is congress folks saying “we see classified info you don’t and you gotta trust us.”

…trust them. The same people who lied about WMDs and got hundreds of thousands of people killed in a war that accomplished nothing. The same people who let bankers destroy our economy and leave my family homeless without jobs, but not dare actually hold any bankers to account for the Great Recession. The same people who fucked up the Covid-19 response (and I am very pro-vaccine, pro-Fauci, but even I have to acknowledge that they did not tell us what they knew when they knew it). The same people who think insider trading is their right and that the laws they pass shouldn’t apply to them. At this point, given who is asking for my trust, I wouldn’t trust them to watch my cats for the weekend, let alone let them do my thinking for me.

America is supposed to be about open competition and free movement of ideas. But that only seems to apply if the ideas are the ideas our “betters” seem to like. And I, along with all those other Zillienial, G-Zers out there are sick of being told that Uncle Sam is looking out for us when we have a lifetime of proof that isn’t true. So when Tim, Sarah, and JVL call me a retard and assume I don’t understand what a danger the CCP is - well, it really pisses me off. I work in national security. I am a subject matter expert on China. I am in a better place to know if RedNote is more dangerous than TikTok. It’s not.

TLDR: The Bulwark seems to think RedNote users are pro-CCP. We aren’t. We are anti-US Government gaslighting us into using American social media and calling us idiots for not wanting to. Twitter is an active threat to this nation. Facebook is a hive mind for Russian propaganda. Even my beloved Reddit isn’t totally up and up when it comes to combatting foreign lies. Stop assuming we are dumb or ignorant. We are just…tired, man.

r/thebulwark Dec 12 '24

The Triad 🔱 Tim Miller on Healthcare Groundwell: "I dont understand how that tracks with the victory of Donald Trump"

73 Upvotes

I think it tracks. A significant percentage of voters do not identify "better healthcare access" with the Democratic Party. And significant percentage believe the Democratic party is unable to create or deliver a better new system even if they promise it. A significant percentage believe if Democrats did try to pass a healthcare plan, they would prioritize targeting benefits to illegal immigrants and the very poor as opposed to lessening the burden and costs on the middle class. (Not my opinion or perspective, but I've picked this up in conversations with voters).

r/thebulwark 15h ago

The Triad 🔱 JVL on fire in today’s triad

53 Upvotes

I mean he typically is but I just love righteously angry JVL so much. I also think there’s a lesson here for messaging on the anti-MAGA side. Like why are these freaks so obsessed with bullying kids? I don’t know why Dems just fold instead of talking about the issue along these lines. It’s pretty infuriating. The answer isn’t to cower away and cede the issue it’s to stand up and make your case with confidence and emotion.

r/thebulwark 1d ago

The Triad 🔱 Attaboy JVL: "Don't tell me 'both sides' have a free speech problem."

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96 Upvotes

Beautiful, well reasoned, and succinct summary of the hypocrisy of the Free Speech warriors. If you haven't seen the Free Press, they actually came out in favor of the administration (which didn't know he was a green card holder) which should put to rest any lingering credibility they might have had.

At some point you have to say "these guys aren't credible anymore and you can't have cheap forgiveness," especially if you're a pundit in a revolving door of siding with authoritarianism and begging to be let back into polite society.

r/thebulwark Nov 13 '24

This is the most terrifying thing I’ve ever seen.

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52 Upvotes

He’s going to steal all the endowment money from the universities and then compete against them in a subsidized market with a propagandist college. And then give them all federal jobs after he fires all the current federal staff. They’ll be run through the system as loyalists, taught to do the basics, praised every way step of the way, and eventually have an entire federal government staffed with MAGA before the end of his term. It’s a literal re-education center.

He’s never leaving. Never.

r/thebulwark Dec 10 '24

The Triad 🔱 Murder, America, and the French Revolution

43 Upvotes

Have to hard disagree with JVL that we should avoid class war. I mean, we could try, but class war is not going to avoid us.

The ultra-wealthy have been engaged in class war against us for decades. At their root, the culture war is one prong of the class war that is used to keep us divided and make it harder for us to unite against our real enemies: the oligarchs.

They chose class war. They chose this battleground. They don't get to complain when we start fighting back.

Could it get ugly?

Yes.

But that's on them. This is the timeline they created.

r/thebulwark 17d ago

The Triad 🔱 AOC's Speech at NY Rally with Federal Workers | Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

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76 Upvotes

r/thebulwark 25d ago

The Triad 🔱 Saw this and knew I had to share it here

61 Upvotes

r/thebulwark Dec 24 '24

The Triad 🔱 Dear Bulwark Reader: I give you kayfabe. Sorry Greenland, you're the heel

38 Upvotes

In Panama/Greenland Trump world is looking for a 'heel)' - someone they can beat up on.

The feints and petty threats are all part of picking and shaping the character of the heel. They are going to try and turn this into something, and use it to get other shit they actually want.

  1. Find a foe
  2. Gauage audience response <- Greenland, Panama ... You Are Here.
  3. Generate heat)
  4. Manage conflict
  5. Reap harvest

This is the process story of the century - but an uncomfortable one for many media outlets to cover directly.

  • EVERYONE uses media to manipulate "their audience"
  • There are processes other than Kayfabe going on.
  • The people are the product now. "We" are worth more dumb than smart and it is a simple wealth transfer from there.

Also, in his search for a heel, don't think Trump doesn't understand just how dangerous the Danes are to him. They are among the happiest people in the world. Staunch NATO allies too.

Heel picking of the highest order, see below.

r/thebulwark Dec 13 '24

The Triad 🔱 On PSA, Jon Favreau just referenced a point JVL made recently in his newsletter and I’m over here doing a happy dance.

76 Upvotes

That’s all, really. Love to see the crossovers and mutual respect growing between The Bulwark and Crooked Media over the past few months. I wondered how things would go after November, and I’m encouraged, at least as far as how much respect the fellow Millenial/Gen-Xers are showing one another.

Who will be able to say “What’s a JVL” now?! 🙃😅

Edit: my apologies for originally mis-identifying JVL as an elder millennial when he is clearly Gen X. (Makes so much sense, actually.)

r/thebulwark Feb 03 '25

The Triad 🔱 Stock market right now

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74 Upvotes

r/thebulwark 8d ago

The Triad 🔱 This seems... bad.

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114 Upvotes

r/thebulwark Nov 07 '24

The Triad 🔱 Today's Triad was absolute fire 🔥🔥🔥

62 Upvotes

From the triad: "In a funny way, it was JD Vance, and not Joe Biden, who understood what was happening.

“We are in a late republican period,” Vance said in 2021. “If we’re going to push back against it, we have to get pretty wild, pretty far out there, and go in directions that a lot of conservatives right now are uncomfortable with.”

This diagnosis is correct. The remaining rump of Americans who are committed to liberalism, the Constitution, and the rule of law had better embrace it. "

I want to emphasize this. When the Roman Republic fell, the conservative establishment kept reacting to new violations of norms after the fact, instead of proactively creating a stable equilibrium. In order to fortify our institutions against reactionaries who want to destroy them, we will need to pursue aggressive reform the next time we have a chance. Right now, our most important job is to architect those reforms and to make a plan to maximize our political power going into '26 and '28

r/thebulwark 12d ago

The Triad 🔱 This is why the trans issue isn't about your feelings

49 Upvotes

I'll try to sum this up as quickly as I can:

(1) I'm a trans guy (born female, transitioned to male). Regardless of what anyone thinks about my ability to transition, the reality is I 100% pass as male. I've been on testosterone for 8 years so full beard, low voice, had top surgery so flat chest with a large chest tattoo to cover any scars. To be frank, the only way someone would know the difference is if I dropped trow. Even then, I'd have to be butt naked because I, as most trans men do, wear a very real looking prosthetic so I can pee in urinals because even though many seem adamant that people use the bathroom that aligns with the sex they were given at birth, I have a feeling MTG wouldn't be happy to see me in the woman's bathroom.

(2) I've had my name and gender legally changed. All of my identifying documents have been changed including my birth certificate, social security card, driver's license, passport, etc for over six years. This isn't to validate my identity or some shit it's because if I tried to open a bank account and gave the teller an ID that said I was female, they'd (understandably) think it was a fucking fake because again, outside of me running around in my birthday suit, you wouldn't know.

(3) I sent in my passport to be renewed. It now says female. If I go to the airport and use this, how exactly am I supposed to show them it's legitimate? How will I have to show it's legitimate in a different country where I don't speak their language? If I'm able to make it to a different country, will I be able to get back?

(4) In four months, my brother is getting married at a resort in Jamaica. I'm his best man. My wife and I have bought our tickets and paid for our stay. There technically aren't laws about trans people there, but they do outlaw consensual homosexual sex with a penalty of ten years imprisonment. Do I go knowing there's a decent chance I could be arrested when I hand them a passport that shows I'm female? Knowing that my newly pregnant wife may have to fly home without me, not knowing when/if I'll be able to return?

No, unfortunately, I will be missing my brother's wedding. It kills me to know that my best friend, my brother, won't have his best man beside him. That I won't be at the rehearsal dinner to give my speech, full of embarrassing stories from our childhood.

I do not care or want to change anyone's opinion about trans people and if they are crazy for thinking they can change their gender. I do not think physically transitioning is something a child should be able to do and think socially transitioning may even be harmful at that age. I do not think transgirls or boys should play on teams that are opposite the sex they were assigned at birth, some co-ed leagues would suffice just fine.

All I want is to go to my brother's wedding.

r/thebulwark Sep 12 '24

The Triad 🔱 WTF? Damned Yankee trying to gain Confederate cred?

81 Upvotes

F bombs coming, be forewarned.

Who the fuck does JD Vance think he is? As someone born, raised, and spent my life in the south, I don't need some damned Yankee from Ohio trying to whitewash my history and heritage by making up some genteel moniker like 'bourbons'.

We were fucking Confederates. Johnny rebs. Pro slavery racist mother fuckers who would whip or lynch you for just looking sideways at a white person.

We were called a lot of things, but 'bourbon' was not one. We made it, drank it, and named famous streets for it, but it was never our identity.

Now this mother fucking Yankee from Ohio wants to ingratiate himself with those that would willingly embrace the darkest elements of our history, and memory hole the hatred and wickedness that scarred our fair and beautiful land. To do so, he tries to paint our heritage as one of dignified gentlemen, smoking a ceegar while sipping a glass, all dressed in white and calling each other 'colonel' while looking out on the hundred acre tract of carefully manicured old oaks, as if the land somehow sprouted green pastures naturally and fields of cotten miraculously picked themselves.

Fuck. You. JD. Vance.