Leading The Bulwark…
The Facts of Life
WILLIAM KRISTOL: The country takes priority over conservative navel gazing.
🎧 On the Pod… 🎧
Tim Miller on CPAC and the Big Lie
On today’s Bulwark podcast, Tim Miller joins Charlie Sykes to discuss 2021 CPAC, and how the big election lie was propagated (and cheered) and why the insurrection it fomented was ignored.
For Bulwark+ Members… 🔐
PLUS, some unlocked content for non-members.
WEEKEND TRIAD: CPAC Was the Real Republican Party All Along 🔓
TIM MILLER: It turns out that the conservative Star Wars bar was actually representative of the Republican base.
MORNING SHOTS: CPAC's Insurrection After-Party 🔐
CHARLIE SYKES on a movement that is both unrepentant and unreflective.
THE TRIAD: Nikki Haley Needs an Act of God 🔐
JONATHAN V. LAST: Unless something happens to Trump, there is no future apart from Trump.
SECRET PODCAST: Trump's Alternate Reality 🔐
Sarah and JVL look at Trump’s first speech as a former president. And handicap CPAC’s big losers.
From The Bulwark Aggregator…
At conservative conference, Trump’s election falsehoods flourish – David Weigel, The Washington Post
The making of Madison Cawthorn: How falsehoods helped propel the career of a new pro-Trump star of the far right – Michael Kranish, The Washington Post
Teleprompter Trump Is the Most Tired Act in America – Molly Jong-Fast, The Daily Beast
Rand Paul, Ron Wyden Want To End Endless National Emergencies – Eric Boehm, Reason
France’s Sarkozy convicted of corruption, sentenced to jail – Sylvie Corbet, The Associated Press
In Today’s Bulwark….
Mugged by Reality
MICKEY EDWARDS: As the chairman of CPAC during the rise of Reagan, I should have seen the grotesque display at this year’s CPAC coming. I failed to do so.
CPAC Rehabs Trump as Master of the GOP
AMANDA CARPENTER: For the Trump-faithful, the event was a raging success.
Biden and Khashoggi
BRIAN KAREM: Justice demands more.
🚨OVERTIME 🚨
Baseball is back! As I write this, I am listening to the dulcet tones of Tom Hamilton, radio announcer for the Cleveland Indians / Team To Be Renamed Later.
It’s only Spring Training, but the Royals were beating up on my team early. We had Shane Bieber on the mound, and as you’ll recall last year he was the first pitcher to win the Major League Triple Crown in 14 years. But they had to pull him. It’s the late innings and we’re making a comeback.
MLB.TV is a little pricey, but it does allow you to overlay the radio broadcast (usually better) over the video. That is an amazing feature. Back when the Indians were bad, I’d just pay for the audio-only, which you can get for $20 a year. It’s a steal if you don’t live in the market of your favorite team, which I haven’t since 2002. (On a clear night I can get the 50,000 watt boomer station WTAM, but just paying $20 seemed to make more sense.)
“The CIA’s lost nuclear-powered spy oven.” At Defector, the story of the CIA’s lost nuclear device in the Himalayas.
A step towards normalcy at the Capitol…
Tax Changes are Coming. A look at the many things that might change in the ever-complex world of tax law. A preview from BakerHostetler’s tax team:
With expected passage in the next few weeks of the Biden Administration’s first COVID-19 relief bill, the focus in Washington, D.C., will shift to a second budget reconciliation bill – Biden Administration tax changes. The tax changes are expected to be substantial and far-reaching, and to include corporate, individual and capital gains tax rate increases, international tax changes, and estate and gift tax changes.
Donald McNeil responds… The longtime former Times newspaper man tells his side of the story.
Trump’s Not-Quite-Triumphant Return… Writing at Bloomberg, Robert George observes: “The former president's speech at CPAC showed both the roots of his appeal and the limits of it.”
Deep State for me, but not for thee? At NBC, Adam Edelman looks at how Trump officials “burrowed” into career positions in the federal government.
“My living room has three TVs and is the harbinger of human evolution”… This item at Polygon is really proof that technology is an harbinger of doom. At my home office, I have relatively big computer screen. This is a step up from my Chromebook or my (recently deceased) MacBook Air, which had really small screens. If I needed to watch a game or a livestream, I could take either (or a Kindle Fire) or turn on the TV behind me, or use my Alexa device to play whatever it is.
My home office is still a work in progress. My wife suggested we consider mounting the TV above my computer so I wouldn’t have to turn around. I demurred. I don’t like watching news on TV unless I have to.
But three TVs in some pyramid of hell? No. Freaking. Way.
Liar Liar First Amendment on Fire? Writing at American Purpose, Gabriel Schoenfeld wonders: “Is it enough to attack lies with truth, or do we need sterner measures?”
The House GOP Circus of Unseriousness continues.
Sad Trombone… SCOTUS rejected Sidney Powell’s very last hope.
On the plus side, Sidney Powell is going to have more time to dedicate to her defense in the forthcoming Dominion lawsuits.
Enjoy!
Meanwhile, in Ohio politics…
Well, that’s it for me for today. Remember, we’ll have a livestream on Thursday night at 8pm Eastern. You can tune in if you’re a member of Bulwark+.
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Questions, comments, thoughts? Drop me a line at swift@thebulwark.com and I’ll do my best to respond.
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