Bulwark Takes

Sam Stein and Will Sommer preview Trump’s strangely low-energy midterm convention, where Republicans are skipping town, lawmakers are being asked to cough up $25,000, and even the convention website has become an embarrassment. Plus, they discuss the increasingly bizarre campaign attacks coming from Elon Musk’s PAC and Ken Paxton—and what they say about the GOP’s plan for 2026.
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The Bulwark will be watching the convention so you don’t have to—including live coverage when Vance and Trump take the stage. Join us as a member to support more of the reporting, analysis, and ridicule that goes into making sense of this stuff.

Andrew Egger and Bill Kristol discuss Donald Trump’s increasingly erratic social media posts, his proposed triumphal arch near Arlington National Cemetery, and the GOP’s Trump-centered midterm convention in Dallas as the elections draw closer. They also consider the expanding Senate battlefield, looming Supreme Court decisions affecting voting, and what a possible wave election could mean for Republicans.
Find your next fall favorites at Quince. Download the Quince app for app-exclusive offers, or go to https://www.quince.com/BULWARKTAKES. Get free shipping on your order and 365-day returns. Now available in Canada and the UK, too.
Plus, we have huge news about the Bulwark’s Fall tour: Pete Buttigieg will be joining the gang for the Sunday, October 18 show in Charlotte, NC! Get your tickets at https://thebulwark.com/events.
Like this video? You’ll love the Morning Shots newsletter: https://www.thebulwark.com/s/morningshots

Catherine Rampell and Joe Perticone discuss the growing signs that Republicans see Trump as a midterm liability, from candidates scrubbing his photos and endorsements from their websites to vulnerable members finding excuses to skip his big convention. They also look at the collapse of the MAGA merch business, Trump’s post about renaming New Mexico, and Kash Patel’s embarrassing AI-generated FBI propaganda.
Joe Perticone, The Bulwark — “Sorry, Mr. President. I Have a Thing.”
https://www.thebulwark.com/p/sorry-mr-president-i-have-a-thing-republican-midterm-convention-trumpapalooza-dallas-gop
New York Times — "As Midterms Approach, Republicans Find There Is No Escape From Trump" https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/06/us/politics/trump-miderm-elections-republicans.html
Axios — “‘We’re stuck’: GOP accepts Trump’s all-about-me midterms”
https://www.axios.com/2026/09/05/republicans-stuck-trump-midterms
The Wall Street Journal — “In Trump’s Second Term, the MAGA Merchandise Boom Is Going Bust”
https://www.wsj.com/politics/in-trumps-second-term-the-maga-merchandise-boom-is-going-bust-725bc43a
CBS News — “At the FBI, a history of hiring prostitutes or stealing from employer may no longer be a barrier to being hired”
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/fbi-candidates-prostitutes-theft/

Tim Miller sits down with New York Magazine’s Ben Terris to discuss his extraordinary reporting on Donald Trump’s obsession with the new White House ballroom. Ben spent 90 minutes with Trump, toured the ballroom construction site, and got a firsthand look at the massive project, which is already employing hundreds of workers.
Trump claims the ballroom is being built with “nuclear concrete” strong enough to withstand a nuclear blast. He also opened up to Ben about why he’s so determined to build it, agreeing that nobody else would build monuments to him after he’s gone.
Read more from Ben: https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/donald-trump-white-house-ballroom-helipad-reflecting-pool-supreme-court.html

Bill Kristol and Sarah Longwell discuss Longwell’s new book, How to Eat an Elephant: One Voter at a Time, tracing the origins of The Bulwark and their efforts to oppose Trump while drawing lessons from years of voter focus groups. They consider how the media environment has changed, what Democrats can learn from Republican political infrastructure, how a broad pro-democracy coalition can manage internal disagreements, and what a successful strategy against Trumpism could look like.
Buy Sarah's book: https://www.amazon.com/How-Eat-Elephant-Voter-Time/dp/B0GR8JRW71