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Michael Lewis

Author and Financial Journalist

Search every verified Michael Lewis interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote — each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. Michael Lewis has been promoting his new book, "Blockers: Rebels in the Deep State," which examines the Trump administration's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and the federal workers who resisted its efforts. In interviews, Lewis has described DOGE's stated goal of cutting $2 trillion from the federal budget as mathematically impossible, arguing that the initiative targeted only a small portion of the budget and that its actions functioned as a "smokescreen for a power grab." He has said the administration sought to transform the nonpartisan civil service into a loyalist operation serving the president's interests, and he has highlighted stories of career employees, such as an IRS privacy chief and a security director at the U.S. Institute of Peace, who attempted to block what they viewed as unlawful or harmful actions. Lewis has also discussed the broader consequences of DOGE's cuts, including the loss of experienced personnel, the erosion of trust in government institutions, and the potential misuse of sensitive data such as taxpayer information. He has called for a renewed appreciation of public service and argued that a practical, constructive version of government efficiency is necessary. The book has been featured on programs including PBS News Hour, Meet the Press, CBS Mornings, and several podcasts, where Lewis has also touched on topics such as the national debt and parallels to the 2008 financial crisis.

Recent appearances

  • PBS News Hour full episode, Oct. 12, 2026

    October 12, 2026 · 📺 PBS NewsHour

    Monday on the News Hour, federal agents search the home of Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar, raising questions ahead of the midterms. Ukraine disputes President Trump's claim of an energy ceasefire, as pressure mounts to reverse a diesel deal with Russia. Plus, while the economy remains the top issue for most of the country, Arizona voters focus on access to water in their drought-stricken state. WATCH TODAY'S SEGMENTS: Rep. Omar alleges political intimidation after home search    • Rep. Omar accuses Trump of political intim...   News Wrap: Houthi strikes kill 13 at Riyadh airport    • News Wrap:…

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  • In 'Blockers,' Michael Lewis highlights government workers who resisted DOGE

    October 12, 2026 · 📺 PBS NewsHour

    Elon Musk has donated more than $365 million to support Republicans in the midterm elections. Musk's influence on the federal government is the focus of "Blockers," a new book by Michael Lewis. Lisa Desjardins sat down with Lewis to discuss Musk's time leading DOGE and the federal workers who found themselves in its crosshairs. Watch PBS News for daily, breaking and live news, plus special coverage. We are home to PBS News Hour, ranked the most credible and objective TV news show. Sign up for Here's The Deal with Lisa Desjardins: https://to.pbs.org/41q6E8i Subscribe for exclusive content in o…

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  • Michael Lewis on how DOGE changed 'all the incentives' in government: Full interview

    October 11, 2026 · 📺 NBC News

    Michael Lewis, author of the new book, “Blockers: Rebels in the Deep State,” joins Meet the Press for an inside look at the cost of DOGE’s cuts to the federal government.  For more context and news coverage of the most important stories of our day, click here: https://www.nbcnews.com Every day, NBC News helps people understand what’s happening and why it matters — through fact-based reporting, meaningful conversations, and powerful stories. From its leading news broadcasts — TODAY, NBC Nightly News, Meet the Press, and Dateline — to NBC News NOW, the 24/7 streaming news channel, plus chart-t…

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  • Meet the Press Full Episode — October 11

    October 11, 2026 · 📺 NBC News

    Kristen Welker has exclusive interviews with Abdul El-Sayed and Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.). Michael Lewis discusses his new ...PLUS, DEEP CUTS, BESTSELLING AUTHOR MICHAEL LEWIS ON HIS NEW BOOK AND THE FEDERAL WORKERS WHO ...

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  • Michael Lewis (‘The Big Short’) on DOGE, Michael Oher’s Lawsuit, and Sam Bankman-Fried | Talk Easy

    October 11, 2026 · 📺 Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso and Higher Ground Productions

    “The Trump administration was betting that if they broke the law fast enough,” writes Michael Lewis, “the law would never catch up to them.” On the heels of his new book, Blockers: Rebels in the Deep State, the bestselling author of Moneyball and The Big Short returns to the show. We discuss how watching Trump’s 2017 inauguration inspired The Fifth Risk, (4:30), the rise of DOGE (9:30), and Elon Musk’s mass firing of public servants (11:00). Then, Lewis unpacks the country’s growing national debt (26:00), parallels to the 2008 financial crisis (29:30), and the attack on non-partisanship in go…

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  • 'Smoke screen for a power grab': Author Michael Lewis blasts DOGE's attack on the civil service

    October 09, 2026 · 📺 MS NOW

    Journalist and author Michael Lewis joins The Weeknight to discuss his new book, offering a look at DOGE’s attacks on the federal workforce and the government workers who resisted its pressure, after a new report reveals DOGE’s cuts cost the government more than $6 billion. MS NOW: My Source for News, Opinion, and the World. » Subscribe to MS NOW:    / @msnow   » Become an MS NOW Member! Join us here http://ms.now/membership MS NOW is the go-to destination for domestic and international breaking news, and best-in-class opinion journalism. For more context and news coverage of the most impo…

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  • DOGE Created the “Deep State” MAGA Claimed to Hate | Michael Lewis & Preet Bharara

    October 08, 2026 · 📺 Stay Tuned with Preet Bharara

    This week on the Stay Tuned with Preet podcast, financial journalist and New York Times best-selling author Michael Lewis joins Preet to discuss the unraveling of the Department of Government Efficiency, chronicled in Lewis’s new book, "Blockers: Rebels in the Deep State." Preet and Lewis make sense of what went wrong with DOGE, discussing some of the influential figures who shaped the department’s decisions, both in front of the cameras and behind the scenes. They delve into how ideology drove DOGE’s mass firings and why the resulting suffering was not a coincidence, but part of the design.…

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  • Author Michael Lewis On Elon Musk, DOGE, and the War on the "Deep State" | This Is Gavin Newsom

    October 07, 2026 · 📺 This is Gavin Newsom

    Bestselling author Michael Lewis (Moneyball, The Big Short, The Blind Side) joins the show to talk about his new book, Blockers: Rebels in the Deep State, and what he found reporting on the Trump administration's war against federal civil servants. Lewis often writes about overlooked people inside massive, misunderstood systems, from Wall Street to baseball to government scientists.  In his newest work, he explains how Elon Musk's DOGE actually operated inside agencies like the IRS and NIH, why career civil servants became targets, and what happens when we finally lose trust in our government…

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  • Michael Lewis details how DOGE 'FUNDAMENTALLY SHIFTED' the U.S. government in new book 'Blockers'

    October 06, 2026 · 📺 MS NOW

    New York Times bestselling author Michael Lewis takes readers inside the Trump administration's Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, campaign to slash federal spending in his new book, ‘Blockers: Rebels in the Deep State.’ In it, Lewis shares stories of civil servants who say they were simply doing their jobs—protecting taxpayer data, enforcing the law, fighting wildfires and more—when they were labeled "blockers," the term for people DOGE viewed as standing in its way. Lewis, the author of ‘Moneyball’ and ‘The Big Short,’ joins Morning Joe to discuss the book and why he describes DOG…

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  • "Moneyball" author Michael Lewis tackles Elon Musk and DOGE in new book

    October 05, 2026 · 📺 CBS Mornings

    Michael Lewis, who wrote "Moneyball," "The Big Short" and "The Blind Side," sits down with "CBS Mornings" to discuss his new book, "Blockers: Rebels in the Deep State," about Elon Musk's DOGE cuts and government layoffs at the beginning of President Trump's second term. Each weekday morning, "CBS Mornings" co-hosts Gayle King and Nate Burleson bring you the latest breaking news, smart conversation and in-depth feature reporting. "CBS Mornings" airs weekdays at 7 a.m. on CBS and stream it at 8 a.m. ET on the CBS News app. Subscribe to "CBS Mornings" on YouTube:    / cbsmornings   Watch CBS N…

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  • Michael Lewis on "Blockers": Profiling government workers confronted by DOGE

    October 04, 2026 · 📺 CBS Sunday Morning

    The latest book by bestselling author Michael Lewis ("The Big Short," "Moneyball") is "Blockers," which profiles federal workers targeted by President Trump and his mega-donor Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). "Sunday Morning" national correspondent Robert Costa talks with Lewis about why Americans may not understand the value of government workers, and with a former IRS attorney who says she was alarmed about a DOGE effort to acquire taxpayer information. "CBS News Sunday Morning" features stories on the arts, music, nature, entertainment, sports, history, science and A…

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  • How Trump Broke Government, And How To Fix It (w/ Michael Lewis)

    October 04, 2026 · 📺 Pod Save America

    Michael Lewis, the New York Times bestselling author of "Moneyball" and "The Big Short," stops by the studio to talk to Lovett about "Blockers: Rebels in the Deep State," his latest book on the government employees who stood up to Elon Musk and Donald Trump during the heyday of DOGE. Lovett and Lewis revisit the story of Colin O'Brien, the security chief who locked DOGE out of the U.S. Institute of Peace, and break down how Howard Lutnick's takeover of the Commerce Department reveals the inner workings of Trump's government. Then, Lewis shares what essential government employees told him about…

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Verified interview transcripts

Notable quotes

“Inside the IRS, there's a database of seven million tax returns of undocumented workers. We have told the undocumented community for 30 years that, if you file your taxes, you pay taxes, you're more likely to gain a path to citizenship. You're showing that you're, like, willing to participate in the society, contribute to the society. And we have told that community that the tax returns are as sacred as citizens' tax”

“DOGE is mysterious, because Elon Musk isn't a fool. But he looks like he was on a fool's errand. He said he was going to cut $2 trillion out of the deficit. He only attacked a part of the government that was about 20 percent of the budget. It was never going to cut $2 trillion. It was never going to work. It was doomed to fail if actually he was trying to do what he said he was trying to do. If, on the other hand wha”

“Oh my god, it's so necessary. I mean there is a I mean there isn't if you want to look for silver linings here so much there's been so much destruction that maybe we're in a place we can have a conversation of what you do. I mean the way the government runs it's not this is not the fault of the people in the government and you sort of have to separate government from politics. You're talking about politics on this sh”

“It's mathematically impossible to cut $2 trillion out of that just attacking what they're attacking that and then on top of that what they actually end up cutting is a few billion dollars it doesn't ends up being nothing almost nothing and the costs that they incur by like having to pay people they've laid off for two years end up probably being greater than what they cut. So, it was it's not been good business. And ”

“So all of a sudden the IRS tax data which is supposed to be sacrosanct can be used as a weapon for the political operation. It can be used to hunt down undocumented workers. It can be used for all kinds of nefarious purposes. So all of a sudden the private data becomes endangered and the public data gets manipulated for the benefit of the administration whoever happens to be in the White House. So that if the economi”

“Look, I grew up in Washington, D.C., you can say what the hell you want about the federal government but I damn sure bet you that there's not a person in this country who would not be able to get the check, get the information, get the help, find out where to go, what to do to navigate all the courts without those civil servants, of which I was one in my early career. And so when you have a bunch incomebody, a lot of”

The summary and quote tags on this profile are produced with AI assistance from verified, first-person interview transcripts, then checked by our team to confirm the speaker's identity and the accuracy of every quote. See how we verify →