Anger, Corruption & Trump’s America (with George Packer)

Stay Tuned with Preet

Vox Media Podcast Network

News, Society & Culture, Politics, Government

4.8 • 32.4K Ratings

🗓️ 14 May 2026

⏱️ 65 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

George Packer is a staff writer at The Atlantic, where he covers politics, foreign affairs, and culture. He joins Preet to discuss President Trump’s enduring effect on the American mind, the future of the Democratic Party, and why Congress has become more performance than politics. Then, Preet answers listener questions about malicious prosecution and the meaning of the phrase “eighty-six.” In the bonus for Insiders, Preet and Packer examine the prevailing personality trait among members of Congress, the public’s role in shaping our political environment, and why we’re experiencing national cognitive decline. Join the Insider community for access to bonus content from Stay Tuned and weekly episodes of the Insider podcast hosted by Preet and Joyce Vance. Head to cafe.com/insider to sign up. Thank you for supporting our work. Show notes and a transcript of the episode are available on our website. You can now watch this episode! Head to CAFE’s Youtube channel and subscribe. Shop Stay Tuned merch and featured books by our guests in our Amazon storefront. Have a question for Preet? Ask @PreetBharara on BlueSky, or Twitter with the hashtag #AskPreet. Email us at staytuned@cafe.com, or call 833-997-7338 to leave a voicemail. Stay Tuned with Preet is brought to you by CAFE and the Vox Media Podcast Network. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	From Cafe and the Vox Media Podcast Network, welcome to stay tuned.
0:05.6	I'm Preet Bharara.
0:08.7	I think the bigger concern I have than Trump's staying power is, let's say he's cratering.
0:16.1	He has had an effect on the civic mind that is not going to go away.
0:34.1	Welcome to stay tuned. I'm Preet Bharara.
0:37.4	My guest this week is George Packer.
0:39.5	He's a staff writer at the Atlantic where he covers politics, culture, and foreign policy.
0:44.5	That's coming up.
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	...

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