Trump is Drowning Us in Lies—On Purpose (w/ Anne Applebaum) | Bulwark Podcast

Trump shifts his position on the Iran war so often that it sure looks like he is using the same propaganda technique that Putin uses with abandon: Flood people with contradictory stories to confuse and exhaust them so they'll just tune out. That could be helpful for a commander–in-chief running a failed military campaign. At the same time, the only engagement the administration seems to want is from the online world—which they use to create an alternate reality. Plus, Russia is not winning the war in Ukraine and does not know how to, much of Trump's immigration policy is about performative cruelty, political oppression still continues in Venezuela, Kari Lake has a new gig, and new selections for the Anne Applebaum book club. Anne Applebaum joins Tim Miller. Show Notes: Anne's latest reporting from Ukraine: https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/06/ukraine-war-momentum-shift/687444/?gift=AO0MhSsTDaHgiP_RxFGfB6Oe8wLLz6vf-xZBf_QoAfc&utm_source=copy-link&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=share Phillips O'Brien piece on Iran, "War Crimes Seem To Be Official US Policy Now": https://open.substack.com/pub/phillipspobrien/p/war-crimes-seem-to-be-official-us A Venezuelan opposition leader on the continuing political oppression there: https://www.wsj.com/opinion/delcy-rodriguez-invades-my-home-38b9e0e1 Anne's reporting on Kari Lake running Voice of America: https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/02/kari-lake-maga-future/685906/ Anne on Lake being nominated as ambassador to Jamaica: https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/05/kari-lake-jamaica-record/687141/?gift=AO0MhSsTDaHgiP_RxFGfB7W7nXlBxqKe8gB0Xkmobb0&utm_source=copy-link&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=share Summer novel rec from Anne, "The Time of Cherries": https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-time-of-cherries-a-novel-montserrat-roig/1c4d38e139577a76 Tim's summer novel rec, "My Tender Matador": https://bookshop.org/p/books/my-tender-matador-pedro-lemebel/dddbcf12a7a8c2a5 Become a Bulwark Youtube Plus Member here - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCG4Hp1KbGw4e02N7FpPXDgQ/join