Are you surprised?Another very stable genius. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)With the news that Representative Louie Gohmert (R-Texas) has tested positive for the coronavirus, there is a temptation to be less than gracious.I intend to give in to that temptation.This is not to say that we do not wish him a speedy recovery and, of course, send him our thoughts and prayers.But let’s be clear: The incident does not show us that Gohmert is the dumbest member of Congress, because that is known. To be fair, he is not alone; there was a Democratic representative who once publicly that the island of...…Are you surprised?Another very stable genius. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)With the news that Representative Louie Gohmert (R-Texas) has tested positive for the coronavirus, there is a temptation to be less than gracious.I intend to give in to that temptation.This is not to say that we do not wish him a speedy recovery and, of course, send him our thoughts and prayers.But let’s be clear: The incident does not show us that Gohmert is the dumbest member of Congress, because that is known. To be fair, he is not alone; there was a Democratic representative who once publicly that the island of...WW…

Support The Bulwark and subscribe today.Tuesday’s Rose Garden press conference was . . . something else.(Hannah Yoest / Photos: GettyImages / Shutterstock)What did we just see? And who thought this would be a good idea?Donald Trump is sinking in the polls, failing spectacularly at the worst crisis of his presidency, dogged by recurring scandal, betrayed by his closest aides and family members.And amazingly, in the midst of this, someone suggested he give this press conference.Watch live: President Trump gives a press conference at the White HouseSummaries do not suffice.The president of the...…Support The Bulwark and subscribe today.Tuesday’s Rose Garden press conference was . . . something else.(Hannah Yoest / Photos: GettyImages / Shutterstock)What did we just see? And who thought this would be a good idea?Donald Trump is sinking in the polls, failing spectacularly at the worst crisis of his presidency, dogged by recurring scandal, betrayed by his closest aides and family members.And amazingly, in the midst of this, someone suggested he give this press conference.Watch live: President Trump gives a press conference at the White HouseSummaries do not suffice.The president of the...WW…

John Bolton talks about the Russian bounties, Mike Pompeo's ambitions, and why Trump gets along so well with authoritarians.On today’s episode of The Bulwark Podcast, Donald Trump’s former National Security Advisor John Bolton came on the show to talk about Trump, Russia, and his book, The Room Where It Happened.This is a transcript of our conversation.Charlie Sykes: Welcome to the Bulwark Podcast, I’m Charlie Sykes. We are talking today with Ambassador John Bolton, who has been in the news lately. Ambassador, thank you so much for joining us. I appreciate it very much.Amb. John...…John Bolton talks about the Russian bounties, Mike Pompeo's ambitions, and why Trump gets along so well with authoritarians.On today’s episode of The Bulwark Podcast, Donald Trump’s former National Security Advisor John Bolton came on the show to talk about Trump, Russia, and his book, The Room Where It Happened.This is a transcript of our conversation.Charlie Sykes: Welcome to the Bulwark Podcast, I’m Charlie Sykes. We are talking today with Ambassador John Bolton, who has been in the news lately. Ambassador, thank you so much for joining us. I appreciate it very much.Amb. John...WW…

And that’s why Trump is losing.You mad bro? (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)Quite inadvertently, Congressman Matt Gaetz (R-Trump) has stumbled onto something insightful. On Monday, as America absorbed the Die Hard cosplay from this couple in in St. Louis, Gaetz tweeted out his deep thought:In Joe Biden’s America your job is illegal, you are locked in your home, borders don’t exist, MS-13 lives next door and the police aren’t coming when the mob arrives.This is all of us.— Matt Gaetz (@mattgaetz)The dunking commenced immediately. As it turns out this is actually not all of us, unless we are...…And that’s why Trump is losing.You mad bro? (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)Quite inadvertently, Congressman Matt Gaetz (R-Trump) has stumbled onto something insightful. On Monday, as America absorbed the Die Hard cosplay from this couple in in St. Louis, Gaetz tweeted out his deep thought:In Joe Biden’s America your job is illegal, you are locked in your home, borders don’t exist, MS-13 lives next door and the police aren’t coming when the mob arrives.This is all of us.— Matt Gaetz (@mattgaetz)The dunking commenced immediately. As it turns out this is actually not all of us, unless we are...WW…

Support The Bulwark and subscribe today.Joe Biden, Tara Reade, and double-standards.MUSCATINE, IOWA - JANUARY 28: Democratic presidential candidate, former Vice President Joe Biden speaks during a campaign town hall meeting at the Riverview Center January 28, 2020 in Muscatine, Iowa. The Iowa caucuses are February 3. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)I have no idea if Tara Reade’s allegations against Joe Biden are true. And, like Cathy Young, I think there are reasons to be skeptical. (You can read her .)But the story obviously is not going away and Joe Biden is going to have to...…Support The Bulwark and subscribe today.Joe Biden, Tara Reade, and double-standards.MUSCATINE, IOWA - JANUARY 28: Democratic presidential candidate, former Vice President Joe Biden speaks during a campaign town hall meeting at the Riverview Center January 28, 2020 in Muscatine, Iowa. The Iowa caucuses are February 3. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)I have no idea if Tara Reade’s allegations against Joe Biden are true. And, like Cathy Young, I think there are reasons to be skeptical. (You can read her .)But the story obviously is not going away and Joe Biden is going to have to...WW…

"You can’t build a 'no peeing' section in the swimming pool."(Hannah Yoest / Shutterstock)The images of a packed  shoppers in Arkansas, and  in the midst of a spreading pandemic felt like a turning point, because, let’s be honest, they were.The social contract is unraveling.While most Americans continue to tell pollsters they are worried about re-opening the country, a substantial number have simply decided they are done with it. And by done with it, they mean done with it all: the social distancing, the wearing of masks, treating the pandemic as a BFD. We’re...…"You can’t build a 'no peeing' section in the swimming pool."(Hannah Yoest / Shutterstock)The images of a packed  shoppers in Arkansas, and  in the midst of a spreading pandemic felt like a turning point, because, let’s be honest, they were.The social contract is unraveling.While most Americans continue to tell pollsters they are worried about re-opening the country, a substantial number have simply decided they are done with it. And by done with it, they mean done with it all: the social distancing, the wearing of masks, treating the pandemic as a BFD. We’re...WW…

Support The Bulwark and subscribe today.,The president says America is fighting a plague. His son tells Fox that it's all a media hoax. Which is it?(Collage by Hannah Yoest / photos: GettyImages / Shutterstock) “Doublethink means the power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one’s mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them.”—George Orwell, 1984So we are back to Orwell again.On Monday, Donald Trump’s campaign took a break from his relentless attack on reality to announce the launch of a new “investigative website” that is called, without even a hint of irony,...…Support The Bulwark and subscribe today.,The president says America is fighting a plague. His son tells Fox that it's all a media hoax. Which is it?(Collage by Hannah Yoest / photos: GettyImages / Shutterstock) “Doublethink means the power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one’s mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them.”—George Orwell, 1984So we are back to Orwell again.On Monday, Donald Trump’s campaign took a break from his relentless attack on reality to announce the launch of a new “investigative website” that is called, without even a hint of irony,...WW…

Support The Bulwark and subscribe today., ,You can't mistake the pus for the infection.(Illustration by Hannah Yoest / photos: GettyImages)Jonathan V. Last that Twitter should ban Donald Trump. I’m going to make a counterpoint, but he reminds us of several crucial facts here: Twitter is a private company and “private companies are legally allowed to make reasonable decisions about who they will and will not serve.”That’s the whole point of having terms of service and standards. JVL also reminds us that it shouldn’t be up to Twitter to make this call: “Ideally, a president would have the...…Support The Bulwark and subscribe today., ,You can't mistake the pus for the infection.(Illustration by Hannah Yoest / photos: GettyImages)Jonathan V. Last that Twitter should ban Donald Trump. I’m going to make a counterpoint, but he reminds us of several crucial facts here: Twitter is a private company and “private companies are legally allowed to make reasonable decisions about who they will and will not serve.”That’s the whole point of having terms of service and standards. JVL also reminds us that it shouldn’t be up to Twitter to make this call: “Ideally, a president would have the...WW…