144. GUILTY! Olivia Nuzzi on the Strange Sadness of Donald Trump

Girl crush alert

UPDATE: This episode was recorded the day before Donald Trump was found guilty on all charges in his hush-money case, but the insight and observations of the interview still stand. Olivia Nuzzi is the Washington correspondent for New York Magazine, and a total fox, not that it’s AT ALL relevant to the work she does, which is top-tier. She began her career as a teenager at an alt-weekly in New Jersey and worked on the Anthony Weiner campaign (oh boy), and a story she wrote about that experience brought her to prominence. These days, she’s a rock-star writer with bylines in Politico, GQ, Esquire, and The Washington Post, and she was a finalist for the 2023 National Magazine Award for feature writing. She’s been covering the recent Trump trial from the courtroom — until she got kicked out, that is — and her insight into that uniquely American character has made her reporting a must-read. “Trump is not really there if he’s not being looked at by other people.”

Also discussed:

• “It’s certainly ‘Weiner.’”

• How an obsession with comedy led a political beat

• The peculiar power of being professionally curious

• Olivia did not steal Corey Lewandowski’s photo album!

• The journalist’s question: What the fuck is going on here?

• How to NOT bribe a cop

• Donuts as micro-aggression

• Is Trump sleeping during his trial, and if so, why?

• The beige oppression of a courtroom

• Why Trump needs a beauty blender

• Stormy Daniels: “I slept with THAT?!”

• Trump as the classic American striver

• “Bimbo eruptions”

• But ARE we living in a simulation?

• The greatness of Eddie Pepitone

• “Just because something is not true doesn’t mean it can’t be a problem”

• Olivia is named after who?!

Plus, how being unable to say “More Ovaltine, please” changed the course of Olivia’s career, one of the great movie soundtracks according to Sarah, Olivia’s predictions about the trial and the 2024 election, and much more!

REMINDER: First Sunday Zoom is this Sunday, June 2, 8pm ET / 5pm PT. We’re discussing our group watch PULP FICTION, but feel free to join regardless, we’re very forgiving. Link will be sent day-of.