Wisconsin commentator Charlie Sykes leaving The Bulwark, anti-Trump website he co-founded
Longtime Wisconsin political commentator and former Milwaukee talk radio host Charlie Sykes announced Wednesday he's leaving The Bulwark, a conservative website that opposes former President Donald Trump.
Sykes, 69, said Feb. 9 will be his last day putting out his "Morning Shots" newsletter and podcast for The Bulwark, which he co-founded in 2019. Sykes will remain a contributor for MSNBC, where he publishes opinion pieces that take stock of the Republican party.
"As much as I love putting out a 2,000-word morning newsletter and six podcasts a week —and having conversations with the smartest and most interesting people around — there’s always the risk of being overwhelmed by the sheer volume of idiocracy out there," Sykes wrote in his Thursday newsletter.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter) Wednesday, Sykes said he will continue writing and offering commentary, "but at a somewhat more measured pace."
Sykes added he's "looking forward to accessing that part of my brain that is not TrumpTrumpTrump." Sykes became one of Wisconsin's most prominent conservative figures to join the "Never Trump" movement. The former president looks likely to again become the party's nominee in 2024.
"Everything is on the line this year, and it is more important than ever for rational, principled center-right voicesto stand athwart the right’s mad rush toward cultism and demagoguery," Sykes wrote in his announcement.
In 2016, Sykes gained national prominence when Trump called into his radio show — resulting in a contentious interview that lasted over 15 minutes.
At the end of that year, Sykes left the highly rated politics and talk show he hosted on WTMJ for 23 years. While he acknowledged he had lost listeners and gotten criticism from callers, he said his decision was for personal reasons and not driven by the "political season."
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Charlie Sykes leaving The Bulwark, anti-Trump website he co-founded