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On with Kara SwisherThe “Blockers” Who Tried to Stop Trump, and the “Cowards” Who Chose Not To
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Episode Details
EPISODE INFO
- Released
- November 2, 2026
- Duration
- 56m
- Channel
- On with Kara Swisher
- Watch on YouTube
- ▶ Open ↗
EPISODE DESCRIPTION
Authors Michael Lewis and Jacob Weisberg have built careers on writing deeply researched books about the ways human judgement shapes powerful institutions, especially the U.S. government. Their latest books are a study in contrasts. In “Profiles in Cowardice,” Weisberg scrutinizes the people in positions of great power who folded to President Donald Trump’s power grab at the start of his second term. Lewis’s “Blockers” highlights the opposite: the nameless career bureaucrats who tried to defend federal laws and norms in the early days of DOGE. Kara, Michael and Jacob talk about the ways the second Trump administration has been dramatically different from the first, whether Elon Musk and his DOGE “musk-rats”really intended to cut $2 trillion from the federal budget, and why gutting the civil service left all of us worse off. They also talk about the upcoming midterm elections and how Democrats can work to hold the Trump administration accountable should they win back power in Congress. CHAPTERS: 0:00 Intro 1:41 Who are the “Blockers” 4:26 Who Chose Not To Stop Trump 7:50 Project 2025 & Trump’s Transition 10:56 The Bureaucratic Stereotype 12:07 Why Mitch McConnell Dropped the Impeachment 15:34 Expert Question: Nicole Wallace 20:06 Bezos Came Out on Top? 23:10 Midterms: Holding MAGA Accountable 31:09 Elon’s True DOGE Intentions 39:15 Mistrust & The Supreme Court 42:55 Midterms: Who Will Pay? 48:15 More Blockers or Cowards? 53:04 How Do We Put Trump Behind Us? _ Subscribe: https://goo.gl/FRleYo Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast... Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/42ntT7X... FOLLOW US Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/onwithkaras... TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@onwithkaraswi... LinkedIn: / kara-swisher-b7213 Threads: https://www.threads.com/@onwithkarasw... Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/onwithkarasw...
SPEAKERS
Michael Lewis
guestJournalist and bestselling author known for narrative nonfiction about politics, finance, and institutions.
Kara Swisher
hostJournalist and host of "On with Kara Swisher," covering tech, media, and politics.
Nicole Wallace
cameoMSNBC host of "Deadline: White House" and political journalist/commentator.
EPISODE SUMMARY
In this episode of On with Kara Swisher, featuring Michael Lewis and Kara Swisher, The “Blockers” Who Tried to Stop Trump, and the “Cowards” Who Chose Not To explores Lewis and Weisberg map Trump-era resistance, capitulation, and institutional damage Michael Lewis describes “blockers” as mostly nonpartisan career civil servants who were labeled obstacles by DOGE for trying to prevent laws and norms from being violated.
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