You know when someone says something that’s both obvious and profound and it crystallizes something you’ve long felt but couldn’t articulate?

That’s what Angela Alsobrooks did to Larry Hogan last night and it was something else.

Also: Sarah and JVL talk about the swing-state vibe shift in Trump’s direction and the idea that Trump has a ceiling.

The Secret …

Will Saletan is in for Sarah and he and JVL have a long, high-level conversation about the conflicts between liberalism and democracy; the need for institutions and civil society; and the problem with “guardrails.”

It’s all very high-toned. Also: Will is optimistic about Kamala Harris’s chances while JVL is . . . struggling.

Oh, and there’s beard talk. Sh…

Sarah can’t stop JVL from talking about the $100,000 Trump Watch. It’s pure candy this week.

Also: A look ahead to Walz versus Vance. And is Kamala Harris “doing enough”?

The Secret Podcast is exclusively for members of Bulwark+ featuring Jonathan V. Last and Sarah Longwell. To listen to this episode become a Bulwark+ member today.

Hoo boy—it’s a super-sized show with everything.

A trans-obsessed, black-Nazi Republican gubernatorial candidate who’s rocking a string of bankruptcies and a porn habit?

Check.

A Trump boat parade with a crowd of half-naked geriatric mouth-breathers?

Check.

Sarah ringing up a 187 on live television by utterly destroying a Trump surrogate?

Check.

This is the on…

Sarah and JVL go 10 rounds on the the debate, and fact checking, and the proper role of moderators and news organizations in holding candidates accountable for presenting misinformation.

Then they talk about the difference between journalists and propagandists, such as Hugh Hewitt and Byron York.

And finally things get hot when JVL makes the case for why …

Bill Kristol is in for Sarah and he and JVL have a wide-ranging discussion:

* Liz Cheney and the anti-Cheneys: Republicans who decided to get onboard the Trump train after January 6.

* The Russian use of a bunch of conservative YouTubers.

* Tucker’s Nazi historian.

* Kamala’s debate challenge.

Oh, and there’s a whole section on the U.S. Open and the bizarre to decis…

Sarah and JVL are back.

They have some thoughts about the Harris-Walz CNN interview. (And also some notes for the Harris comms team.) There are thoughts about cemeteries, human psychology, and Donald Trump’s pathology. JVL asks Sarah which cabinet post she’ll take in the Harris administration.

And then Sarah circles back to TNL and takes another pass. SLA…

Sarah is in Chicago and JVL gets her to tell everything.

What else could you ask for?

How about the greatest analogy ever:

Travis is to Taylor as Doug is to Kamala.

Boom.

Go listen. It’s good stuff.

The Secret Podcast is exclusively for members of Bulwark+ featuring Jonathan V. Last and Sarah Longwell. To listen to this episode become a Bulwark+ member today.

JVL and Bill Kristol talk about the unsettling feeling that the campaign is going . . . really well.

We also talk about what indicators to look for coming out of the Democratic convention, the possibility that Harris could sling-shot her change message all the way through November, and Trump’s failure to define her.

Not to mention the triumphant return of…

Sarah and JVL talk about Simone Biles and the weirdo conservatives who hate her. Also about Trump’s cheap heat with the National Association of Black Journalists. Kamala Harris’s mammoth fundraising numbers. And why progressives don’t want Josh Shapiro.

It’s a super-sized Secret show before we head…