Sam Stein and Lauren Egan give their takes on the first ads from Maine Senate candidates Graham Platner and Susan Collins. The two campaigns couldn’t be more different. Platner comes out aggressively, launching a hard-hitting populist message that goes straight at Collins’ record and frames the race as part of a broader fight over power, Trump, and the direction of the country. Meanwhile, Susan Collins responds with a very different strategy: a nostalgic, local-focused ad centered on a decade-old infrastructure win in Maine. Sam and Lauren dig into what these opening ads reveal about each campaign’s theory of the race, whether Collins’ long-standing strengths still hold in today’s environment, and how Platner is betting that going on offense early will define her before she can define him.

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Bulwark Live: California tickets are on sale now! Sarah and gang return to sunny Southern California for two nights May 20 & 21. For details and tickets go to https://TheBulwark.com/Events.

Sarah Longwell takes on growing backlash from Trump’s own voters as rising gas prices, grocery costs, and the fallout from the Iran war hammer household budgets. New focus groups reveal frustration, disappointment, and anger from people who believed Trump’s promises on the economy and “no more forever wars.”

Stop putting off those doctors appointments and go to https://ZocDoc.com/BULWARKTAKES to find and instantly book a doctor you love today.

Bulwark Live: California tickets are on sale now! Sarah and gang return to sunny Southern California for two nights May 20 & 21. For details and tickets go to https://TheBulwark.com/Events.

Tim Miller joins Nicole Wallace on MSNBC with General Mark Hertling to discuss the Iran war chaos—Trump undercut Rubio twice in one day, the ceasefire is already wobbling, and the "deal" is one page long. Plus: Trump declared war on the Pope and is losing that one too.

For a limited time, listeners can get an exclusive $25 off AuraFrame's best-selling Carver Mat frame at https://on.auraframes.com/BULWARKTAKES with code BULWARKTAKES.

Watch Deadline: White House on MS NOW: https://www.ms.now/deadline-white-house

The Bulwark is going to Southern California! Go to https://thebulwark.com/events to learn more.

Tim Miller reacts to Barack Obama and Stephen Colbert joking about Trump, “Colbert 2028,” Democratic messaging failures, and the corruption Americans have somehow normalized in modern politics.

For a limited time, listeners can get an exclusive $25 off AuraFrame's best-selling Carver Mat frame at https://on.auraframes.com/BULWARKTAKES with code BULWARKTAKES.

The Bulwark is going to Southern California! Go to https://thebulwark.com/events to learn more.

Sam Stein and Will Saletan give their takes on the breaking news that the FBI raided the office of Virginia Democrat Louise Lucas, the bizarre presence of a Fox News crew already on the scene, and the FBI’s reported investigation into leaks connected to a damaging Atlantic story about FBI Director Kash Patel.

For a limited time, listeners can get an exclusive $25 off AuraFrame's best-selling Carver Matframe at https://on.auraframes.com/BULWARKTAKES with code BULWARKTAKES.

Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling (Ret.) and Ben Parker went live to discuss the Washington Post’s reporting that Iran has hit more U.S. military assets than previously reported, the pause on Trump’s Project Freedom hours after it was announced, and whether Putin had any say about the U.S. withdrawing troops from Germany.

For a limited time, listeners can get an exclusive $25 off AuraFrame's best-selling Carver Matframe at https://on.auraframes.com/BULWARKTAKES with code BULWARKTAKES.

Read more from the Washington Post exclusive: https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/2026/05/06/iran-us-bases-satellite-images/

Read more from Mark's piece on Germany:https://www.thebulwark.com/p/the-last-time-we-reduced-troops-in-europe-war-germany-withdrawal-russia-ukraine-nato-trump-hegseth

Read more from Mark's piece on culture at the Pentagon: https://www.thebulwark.com/p/pete-hegseth-change-military-culture-firings-diversity-general-secretary-admiral

The Bulwark is going to Southern California! Go to https://thebulwark.com/events to learn more.

Sam Stein joined Nicolle Wallace on Deadline: White House to break down Trump’s billion-dollar White House ballroom boondoggle, the GOP’s corruption problem, Democratic Senate momentum, and why the “Epstein class” attack line may be landing harder than Republicans expected.

For a limited time, listeners can get an exclusive $25 off AuraFrame's best-selling Carver Matframe at https://on.auraframes.com/BULWARKTAKES with code BULWARKTAKES.

Watch Deadline: White House on MS NOW: https://www.ms.now/deadline-white-house

Tickets for our Bulwark Live shows in San Diego and Los Angeles in May: https://thebulwark.com/events

Tim Miller and Will Sommer give their take on the Libs of TikTok’s latest campaign targeting a Louisiana doctor and the disturbing evolution of the account growing into right-wing influencer operation. As Libs of TikTok is now deploying a rotating cast of influencer-style hosts to mass-produce outrage content, Tim and Will get into why the anti-cancel culture crowd still seems obsessed with getting random people fired, and how accusations of “violence” are being stretched beyond recognition to punish dissent. Plus, the hypocrisy of the modern free speech debate and why MAGA’s culture war machine never really moved on from cancel culture after all.

For a limited time, listeners can get an exclusive $25 off AuraFrame's best-selling Carver Matframe at https://on.auraframes.com/BULWARKTAKES with code BULWARKTAKES.

Tickets for our Bulwark Live shows in San Diego and Los Angeles in May: https://thebulwark.com/events

Sam Stein and Bill Kristol are going live to discuss Senate Republicans' request for $1 billion in taxpayer money for Trump's ballroom after Trump claimed it was "free of charge." Plus Pete Hegseth announces a new military campaign in Iran, while also claiming the ceasefire is still in place.

For a limited time, listeners can get an exclusive $25 off AuraFrame's best-selling Carver Matframe at https://on.auraframes.com/BULWARKTAKES with code BULWARKTAKES.

Tickets for our Bulwark Live shows in San Diego and Los Angeles in May: https://thebulwark.com/events

Tim Miller is joined by Gas Buddy's Head of Petroleum Analysis Patrick De Haan for his take on the escalating oil crisis, surging gas prices, and why Americans could be feeling the effects for a long time. De Haan warns that every day the Strait of Hormuz remains disrupted could mean weeks of recovery for global oil markets, potentially leading to a 65-week climb back to pre-crisis prices. He also predicts a July 4 “sticker shock” as rising diesel costs drive up prices on everything from gas to summer cookout staples. They break down why U.S. oil production can’t insulate Americans from global markets, how refinery problems are making things worse, and why this crisis could ripple through the entire economy.

Read more from Patrick's work: https://gaspriceguy.substack.com/

For a limited time, listeners can get an exclusive $25 off AuraFrame's best-selling Carver Matframe at https://on.auraframes.com/BULWARKTAKES with code BULWARKTAKES.

Tickets for our Bulwark Live shows in San Diego and Los Angeles in May: https://thebulwark.com/events