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Post Reports

Why Bob Woodward worries about Trump's America

Post Reports

The Washington Post

Daily News, Politics, News

4.45.1K Ratings

🗓️ 28 March 2025

⏱️ 24 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

What does Bob Woodward think of all this? Colby Itkowitz poses that question to the renowned Washington Post journalist in his first sit-down interview about President Donald Trump since Trump’s second inauguration.

Over 50 years ago, Woodward’s reporting of the break-in at the Watergate with his colleague Carl Bernstein exposed the Nixon administration’s plan to spy on and sabotage his political adversaries and the cover-up that followed. After President Richard Nixon’s resignation, Congress would go on to enact new limits on presidential power, which Trump is now challenging. 

In the years since Watergate, Bob Woodward has continued to report on presidents – interviewing Trump and writing three books about him that reveal the president’s approach to power.

“So much of it is Trump just asserted himself, taking on the role of the courts, taking on the role of Congress,” Woodward told Itkowitz. “So we are entering a moment where there is going to be a clash of those traditions and laws and Trump's will.” 

You can also watch the interview here on Youtube.

Special thanks to the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library. 

Today's episode was produced by Sabby Robinson. It was edited by Renita Jablonski and Reena Flores and mixed by Sam Bair. 

Additional thanks to Zach Purser Brown, David Bruns, Ross Godwin, Randolph Smith, Dan Mich, Tom LeGro, Lauren Saks and Micah Gelman on our video team. 

Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Transcript

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0:00.0

What would Bob Woodward think?

0:03.7

That's the question I've been asking myself for weeks since President Trump took office for a second time.

0:11.8

Bob Woodward, renowned Washington Post journalist, who worked with Carl Bernstein to investigate and uncover the Watergate scandal.

0:20.3

President Richard Nixon became the first

0:21.9

and only U.S. president to resign from office.

0:25.5

In the 50 years since Watergate, Bob Woodward has continued to report on U.S. presidents.

0:30.6

He's written books about the last 10, and he wrote three bestsellers about President Trump.

0:36.3

And so I've been thinking, he had a front row seat to the massive transformations in our federal

0:41.4

government following Watergate.

0:43.7

And he spent hours talking to Trump when he was writing those books.

0:49.2

I went to his house last week to ask him this question.

0:53.7

What does he make of President Trump's approach to the

0:56.5

presidency this time? This is Post Reports. I'm Kolby Ekowitz. It's Friday, March 28th. Two quick

1:06.0

notes. We spoke with Bob before the news of the signal group chat, so that won't be in our conversation.

1:13.6

And also, if you're listening to this conversation, you can also watch it.

1:17.8

It's on YouTube, and the link to that is in our show notes.

1:21.3

So, here it is, my conversation with Bob Woodward.

1:27.0

Bob, thank you so much for being here.

1:28.7

Thank you.

1:29.6

So I want to start by playing something that I'm sure you've heard many times, but let's

1:34.4

just take a listen.

1:35.4

Sure.

...

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