A GOP insider on why the party went Trump

The Gray Area with Sean Illing

Vox Media Podcast Network

Society & Culture, News, Politics, News Commentary, Philosophy

4.6 • 10.8K Ratings

🗓️ 3 October 2022

⏱️ 61 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Sean Illing talks with former Republican strategist Tim Miller about his new book Why We Did It, which offers an inside look at Donald Trump's total capture of the Republican Party. Now a staff writer at The Bulwark, Miller shares detailed conversations he had with other party operators — who he criticizes as power- and fame-hungry enablers. He pulls back the curtain on a DC culture of identity and status, talks about the media's role in this transformation, and opens up honestly about the ways in which he and others like him are culpable. Host: Sean Illing (@seanilling), Interviews Writer, Vox Guest: Tim Miller (@Timodc), author; writer, The Bulwark References: Why We Did It: A Travelogue from the Republican Road to Hell by Tim Miller (Harper; 2022) "Unlocking the Conservative Closet" by Kerry Eleveld (The Advocate; Oct. 12, 2010) Losers: The Road to Everyplace but the White House by Michael Lewis (Vintage; 1998) "Elise Stefanik said she was one of the 'most bipartisan' members of Congress. Then she went all-in on Trump's false election claims" by Michael Kranish (Washington Post; May 12, 2021) "The Republican Triangle of Doom" by Sarah Longwell (The Bulwark; Sept. 27, 2021) "Breakfast with J.D. Vance, Anti-Trump Author Turned Pro-Trump Candidate" by Molly Ball (Time; July 7, 2021) "Social decay: what the conversation about Trump and the white working class misses" by Sean Illing (Vox; Nov. 1, 2016) Enjoyed this episode? Rate Vox Conversations ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ and leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Subscribe for free. Be the first to hear the next episode of Vox Conversations by subscribing in your favorite podcast app. Support Vox Conversations by making a financial contribution to Vox! bit.ly/givepodcasts This episode was made by: Producer: Erikk Geannikis Editor: Amy Drozdowska Engineer: Patrick Boyd Deputy Editorial Director, Vox Talk: A.M. Hall Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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0:00.0	This episode is brought to you by Choiceology, an original podcast from Charles Schwab.
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0:11.2	the best-selling book How To Change. Every other week, Milkman speaks with inspiring guests
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0:23.8	authors, athletes, and more about why we do the things we do. Listen to Choiceology at Schwab.com
0:32.3	Slash Podcast. Or wherever you listen.
0:39.4	Support for today's show comes from Slack. A digital HQ in Slack brings your teams, partners,
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1:04.3	However you work, Slack is the flexible digital HQ for organised and efficient teams,
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1:22.8	Do the people working in American politics actually believe in anything?
1:27.9	I'm Sean Eling, and I'm your host, for Vox Conversations.
1:44.2	That's a loaded question, but it's not a bad one. One of the many things we've learned in the
1:50.6	Trump era is that a lot of the people in positions of power are either cynics, or nihilists, or both.
2:00.0	And the whole political process itself is fundamentally broken. This is true on both sides of the
2:07.8	political aisle, but it's especially true on the right at the moment. That's not a partisan
2:14.7	statement, even if it may sound like one. The reality is that ever since Donald Trump took over
2:20.1	the party in 2016, there are many people working in Republican politics who do not believe in what
2:26.4	they're doing, who know that Trump is and was a dangerous figure, and yet they've plowed ahead
2:33.2	anyway. The question is, why?
	...

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