Trump Privately Rages at “Traitors,” Revealing Darker Plans for 2025

The New York Times reports that Donald Trump is now angrily telling advisers that his biggest regret from his first term was that he appointed “traitors.” As a result, his transition team is grilling prospective nominees to gauge their personal loyalty to Trump—revealing how his designs for a second term are getting darker. Is there some way for Democrats to rise to this moment more effectively? We chatted with Brian Beutler, author of the excellent Substack Off Message. He argues that even as Trump’s second-term plans are getting more overtly dangerous to the rule of law, Democrats need to do a lot more to alert the public to what’s coming—not just because it’s good politics, but because the country needs it. Listen to this episode here. A transcript is here.