The Chuck ToddCast

Chris Cillizza and Chuck Todd launch Super Tuesdays — the now-on-every-feed version of the show they've been doing together — with a wide-ranging conversation that runs from Trump's self-centered Fourth of July to the summer's most consequential Senate primaries.  First, Chris starts with the update that the USMNT lost to Belgium after President Trump intervened to get star striker Falorin Balogun’s red card overturned and wonders if Trump curses every sports team he involves himself with. He also weighs in on the latest developments surrounding Graham Platner. Then, the guys break down why Trump's 250th-anniversary flop and his eye-popping financial disclosure ($2.2 billion in his first year back, $1.4 billion of it from crypto) add up to what Chuck calls "late-stage Trumpism" — a president who's more isolated, less able to self-correct, and increasingly celebrating his own version of patriotism by himself. From there it's onto the world stage: Trump's trip to the NATO summit, his instinct to break the alliance, and why throwing a lifeline to a historically vulnerable Putin makes no strategic sense. The back half turns to the 2026 map and the 2028 shadow race. Chuck and Chris dig into Mallory McMorrow's exit and the now one-on-one Abdul El-Sayed–Haley Stevens fight in Michigan, the outsider-vs-insider dynamic driving Democratic primaries, and what the Black vote means from Detroit to Karen Bass's LA. They size up the Wes Moore–Pritzker–Buttigieg field, decode the Graham Platner drama in Maine and why Susan Collins stays chronically underrated, and offer a sharp consumer's guide to why the NYT and Fox polls tell such different stories. Then they close the way only these two would — Trump's alleged FIFA meddling ahead of USA–Belgium, a lesson on how corruption always comes back around, LeBron's next move, and a deep Nationals All-Star and trade-deadline dive. Timeline: 00:00 USMNT loses to Belgium  07:00 Welcome to Super Tuesdays 09:25 Chuck watched 90% of Trump's July 4th speech 09:45 How it compares to Reagan & the 1986 Statue of Liberty centennial 11:11 Gerald Ford's restrained 1976 bicentennial in an election year 11:31 Trump threw away years of 250th anniversary planning 12:44 Trump's financial disclosure: $2.2B in year one, $1.4B from crypto 13:16 The Trump Bible and the tchotchke economy 14:24 "You should've seen what they wanted to put in that disclosure" 15:45 No elected officials showed up to celebrate the 4th with Trump 16:46 Trump is celebrating his version of patriotism by himself 17:05 The K-shaped economy & why Trump is insulated from the 80% 18:37 The case that we've reached "late-stage Trumpism" 21:06 AI-written speeches Trump can't even stick to 22:00 Expect a staff exodus after the midterms 23:12 Trump will never give a "shellacking" concession speech 23:38 The GOP language shift from "socialists" to "communists" 24:15 Trump heads to the NATO summit — can he actually break NATO? 25:32 Trump the transactionalist & the FIFA-Qatar corruption aside 26:36 Trump, Putin, and the shared goal of weakening Europe 28:50 Putin has never been this vulnerable 31:11 Why Trump is drawn to strongmen and rogues 32:20 Trump has no lifelong friends — everyone he gets close to gets alienated 33:37 Transactional "friends" like Howard Lutnick 34:11 To the Senate: Mallory McMorrow drops out of Michigan 35:44 Democratic primary energy is outsider vs. insider 36:38 El-Sayed is a genuinely talented communicator 38:04 Jackson & Bernie's Michigan wins as a pattern 39:34 Progressives' persistent problem with the Black vote 42:06 Michigan is the Democratic-held seat the party overlooks 43:30 How Michigan slipped from the blue wall 44:46 If El-Sayed and Paxton both win, donors panic 45:37 The 2028 hunt for the "most electable" Democrat 47:32 The real dividing line: fix the institutions or blow them up 49:09 Pritzker is the overlooked progressive-with-a-record 51:07 Pete Buttigieg's Biden baggage is heavier than he thinks 51:35 The Graham Platner story brewing in Maine 51:56 Collins vs. Platner is basically a toss-up 52:38 Trump takes credit for FIFA siding with the US over Belgium 54:50 A generic Democrat would beat Collins by ten 57:23 NYT forecasting vs. Fox snapshot polling 59:53 The real battlegrounds: Iowa, Ohio, Alaska 1:00:11 Where Democrats find another seat — Kansas, Mississippi 1:02:04 Jolly vs. Byron Donalds & the closer-than-you-think governor's race 1:04:00 The World Cup, Balogun's red card & USA-Belgium 1:05:23 No other president would have intervened with FIFA 1:05:49 Left-leaning soccer fans rationalizing corruption that helps them 1:08:16 A birthright-citizen Balogun & soccer's Trump ambivalence 1:08:59 LeBron's "Decision Part 10" & Rich Paul's genius whiteboard 1:10:29 Why the Warriors fit LeBron's game 1:12:19 LeBron wants to play guard, not power forward 1:14:00 Nats All-Stars: James Wood & CJ Abrams snubs and starters 1:16:53 The Aug. 3 trade deadline: buyer, seller, or stand pat? 1:18:19 Abrams & Wood among the game's best Black players 1:18:45 Building the Nats around Black stars in a majority-Black city 1:19:59 Baseball's demographics & the "no Bubbas in Connecticut" bitSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd delivers a sweeping, big-picture meditation on the Trump era and where it's ultimately headed, arguing that despite the widespread conviction that Trump is teflon and that nothing will ever take him down, his presidency will end not with a bang but a whimper — and history won't remember it well. He predicts that a century from now Trump will be remembered somewhere between Grover Cleveland and Richard Nixon, and that his act, like every previous iteration of Trump, will eventually wear out its welcome with the public — because it always has, and he's already entered some version of lame-duck territory. The heart of the episode is Chuck’s astonishment at Trump's financial disclosure, which he calls a brazen catalog of impeachable offenses. His sharpest line reframes Trump's entire brand: he doesn't actually "own the libs" — he owns the people who send him money, and he's utterly oblivious to the plight of anyone who isn't rich. He closes on a genuinely searching note — observing that Trump is visibly aging and less sharp, that the country is tired of him and it's starting to show, that his single greatest fear is exposure and ridicule, and that he's proving to be nothing more than a grifter. Finally, Chuck hops into the ToddCast Time Machine to revisit the admission of several western states into the union and how it built the modern senate. He also answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment.  Refresh your wardrobe with Quince. Go to https://Quince.com/chuck for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.  For free and unbiased Medicare help, dial (980) 734-3985 to speak with my trusted partner, Chapter, or go to askchapter.org/chuck /*Paid Partnership Chapter and its affiliates are not connected with or endorsed by any government entity or the federal Medicare program. Chapter Advisory, LLC represents Medicare Advantage HMO, PPO, and PFFS organizations and stand alone prescription drug plans that have a Medicare contract. Enrollment depends on the plan’s contract renewal. While we have a database of every Medicare plan nationwide and can help you to search among all plans, we have contracts with many but not all plans. As a result, we do not offer every plan available in your area. Currently we represent 50 organizations which offer 18,160 products nationwide. We search and recommend all plans, even those we don’t directly offer. You can contact a licensed Chapter agent to find out the number of products available in your specific area. Please contact Medicare.gov, 1-800-Medicare, or your local State Health Insurance Program (SHIP) to get information on all of your options. Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 04:00 Trump has been teflon, we’re convinced nothing will take him down 05:00 Trump era will end in a whimper, history won’t remember it well 07:15 In 100 years, Trump will be as remembered like Cleveland or Nixon 08:15 Trump admitted to rank corruption in his financial disclosures 09:45 Eventually, Trump’s act will wear out its welcome 10:45 Those who criticized Hunter Biden should be outraged about Trump 12:15 Trump has already entered some version of lame duck territory 14:00 Every era of Trump eventually wore out with the public 16:00 In politics, Trump has had nine lives. Survived when nobody else would 17:30 January 6th should have been the end of Trump… but wasn’t  19:15 The bribes from the middle east just keep getting worse and worse 21:15 Trump has lost his ability to influence anyone but his base 22:30 Trump’s financial disclosure is a catalog of impeachable offenses 23:15 Trump’s act feels like it’s entering its late-stage form 24:15 Trump made America 250 participation an endorsement of himself 28:00 Financial disclosure showed how brazen his corruption is 29:30 Trump’s disclosure was 927 pages, Obama’s was 8 31:00 Trump was anti-crypto until he realized he could monetize it personally 31:45 Trump has converted the presidency into a business 33:00 Trump doesn’t “own the libs”... he owns the people who send him money* 36:00 Trump is oblivious to the plight of anyone who isn’t rich 37:45 Trump has stakes in tons of companies with government contracts 39:30 In a healthy political system, this level of corruption would force retreat 41:15 Almost no Republicans appeared with him as he monetized the 4th of July 42:30 America should have been about the country, Trump made it about himself 44:15 Trump ignored warnings about the heat, put his own supporters at risk 46:30 The botched reflected pool is a perfect metaphor for Trump’s presidency 48:15 The white supremacist Patriot Front showed up in DC 49:00 Patriot Front felt emboldened and welcomed enough to show up in Trump’s DC 51:30 Trump is aging and not as sharp 52:15 The country is tired of Trump and it’s starting to show 53:30 Trump’s biggest fear is exposure and ridicule 55:30 Trump is politically vulnerable, he’s proving to only be a grifter 57:00 How did the country turn itself over to this man twice? 1:04:00 ToddCast Time Machine - July 10th, 1890 1:04:30 The U.S. had just admitted six new states and twelve Republican senators 1:05:15 Settlers were building the west, politicians were building the senate 1:07:00 Congress needed to replace votes from the south with votes from the west 1:08:15 Political considerations are why we have two Dakotas 1:08:45 The western states provided votes for a stronger federal government 1:10:30 The politicians had a public mandate to admit these states 1:11:15 Republicans built and maintained their political coalition via statehood admission 1:12:45 Politicians will always seek to give themselves political advantage 1:13:15 The map of America is a map based on political considerations 1:14:00 D.C. and Puerto Rico will eventually become states 1:14:45 Ask Chuck 1:15:00 Thoughts on D.C. statehood, do you support it? 1:18:15 What would it take for a 3rd party to have a viable chance of winning? 1:21:45 If Democrats take control of congress, do they risk stopping Trump’s arch? 1:25:00 What is holding back Vivek Ramaswamy in Ohio governor’s race? 1:28:45 How could the Supreme Court overturn a constitutional amendment? 1:32:00 Props to Charleston, South Carolina and Miami helmetSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd delivers a sweeping, big-picture meditation on the Trump era and where it's ultimately headed, arguing that despite the widespread conviction that Trump is teflon and that nothing will ever take him down, his presidency will end not with a bang but a whimper — and history won't remember it well. He predicts that a century from now Trump will be remembered somewhere between Grover Cleveland and Richard Nixon, and that his act, like every previous iteration of Trump, will eventually wear out its welcome with the public — because it always has, and he's already entered some version of lame-duck territory. The heart of the episode is Chuck’s astonishment at Trump's financial disclosure, which he calls a brazen catalog of impeachable offenses. His sharpest line reframes Trump's entire brand: he doesn't actually "own the libs" — he owns the people who send him money, and he's utterly oblivious to the plight of anyone who isn't rich. He closes on a genuinely searching note — observing that Trump is visibly aging and less sharp, that the country is tired of him and it's starting to show, that his single greatest fear is exposure and ridicule, and that he's proving to be nothing more than a grifter. Then, Carolyn Ryan — deputy managing editor of The New York Times — joins the Chuck Toddcast for a candid conversation about the state of American journalism at a moment when the Times has become, as Ryan puts it, one of the last big independent organizations left in news. Ryan makes the case that serious journalism has become almost impossible without the resources the Times can still muster — deep-dive reporting requires enormous time, the best legal team in the business to withstand the threats and lawsuits now routinely aimed at the press, and an ownership structure insulated from market pressure. She's blunt about the difference the Ochs-Sulzberger family makes: newsrooms owned by publicly traded companies inevitably change their behavior to satisfy shareholders, while the family that controls the Times is, in her words, "ride or die" for journalism — a distinction that has never mattered more than it does now, even as she praises the excellent nonprofit newsrooms springing up around the country. Ryan explains how the Times is building regional reporting hubs and investing heavily in places like Texas on the theory that a truly national news organization needs a journalist in every state, why book reporting from stars like Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan often lands with more impact and candor than day-to-day breaking news, and how the paper decides which reporters get the coveted book leave that produces those deeper stories. The conversation gets into the harder editorial questions facing the Times in the Trump era. Ryan discusses the paper's major investment in a more rigorous polling and data operation , its aggressive push into video to reach younger audiences, and the perennial tension over whether there should be a brighter line between the newsroom and the opinion page — a separation the Times has tried to clarify through design changes and by being more transparent about its process. Ryan is thoughtful about one of the thorniest challenges in modern journalism: how to handle the obvious lies told by Trump and other political figures, explaining that to actually call something a "lie" you have to establish intent, that the audience cares enormously about how things are described, and that the language should always be direct and forthright without tipping into hysteria. She closes with a sharp critique of the Pentagon kicking out reporters and banning contact with unauthorized military members — a policy she argues is not only unconstitutional but a direct threat to the journalism that keeps the public informed about how its military actually operates.  Refresh your wardrobe with Quince. Go to https://Quince.com/chuck for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.    Finally, Chuck hops into the ToddCast Time Machine to revisit the admission of several western states into the union and how it built the modern senate. He also answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment.   For free and unbiased Medicare help, dial (980) 734-3985 to speak with my trusted partner, Chapter, or go to askchapter.org/chuck /*Paid Partnership Chapter and its affiliates are not connected with or endorsed by any government entity or the federal Medicare program. Chapter Advisory, LLC represents Medicare Advantage HMO, PPO, and PFFS organizations and stand alone prescription drug plans that have a Medicare contract. Enrollment depends on the plan’s contract renewal. While we have a database of every Medicare plan nationwide and can help you to search among all plans, we have contracts with many but not all plans. As a result, we do not offer every plan available in your area. Currently we represent 50 organizations which offer 18,160 products nationwide. We search and recommend all plans, even those we don’t directly offer. You can contact a licensed Chapter agent to find out the number of products available in your specific area. Please contact Medicare.gov, 1-800-Medicare, or your local State Health Insurance Program (SHIP) to get information on all of your options. From the opening whistle to the final kick. Bet on a match and get bonus bets for every goal scored at Fanduel.com Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 04:00 Trump has been teflon, we’re convinced nothing will take him down 05:00 Trump era will end in a whimper, history won’t remember it well 07:15 In 100 years, Trump will be as remembered like Cleveland or Nixon 08:15 Trump admitted to rank corruption in his financial disclosures 09:45 Eventually, Trump’s act will wear out its welcome 10:45 Those who criticized Hunter Biden should be outraged about Trump 12:15 Trump has already entered some version of lame duck territory 14:00 Every era of Trump eventually wore out with the public 16:00 In politics, Trump has had nine lives. Survived when nobody else would 17:30 January 6th should have been the end of Trump… but wasn’t  19:15 The bribes from the middle east just keep getting worse and worse 21:15 Trump has lost his ability to influence anyone but his base 22:30 Trump’s financial disclosure is a catalog of impeachable offenses 23:15 Trump’s act feels like it’s entering its late-stage form 24:15 Trump made America 250 participation an endorsement of himself 28:00 Financial disclosure showed how brazen his corruption is 29:30 Trump’s disclosure was 927 pages, Obama’s was 8 31:00 Trump was anti-crypto until he realized he could monetize it personally 31:45 Trump has converted the presidency into a business 33:00 Trump doesn’t “own the libs”... he owns the people who send him money* 36:00 Trump is oblivious to the plight of anyone who isn’t rich 37:45 Trump has stakes in tons of companies with government contracts 39:30 In a healthy political system, this level of corruption would force retreat 41:15 Almost no Republicans appeared with him as he monetized the 4th of July 42:30 America should have been about the country, Trump made it about himself 44:15 Trump ignored warnings about the heat, put his own supporters at risk 46:30 The botched reflected pool is a perfect metaphor for Trump’s presidency 48:15 The white supremacist Patriot Front showed up in DC 49:00 Patriot Front felt emboldened and welcomed enough to show up in Trump’s DC 51:30 Trump is aging and not as sharp 52:15 The country is tired of Trump and it’s starting to show 53:30 Trump’s biggest fear is exposure and ridicule 55:30 Trump is politically vulnerable, he’s proving to only be a grifter 57:00 How did the country turn itself over to this man twice? 1:05:15 Carolyn Ryan joins the Chuck ToddCast 1:07:00 The NYT is the last big independent organization left in news 1:08:00 Positives & concerns about the state of media? 1:09:30 NYT stress importance of fact based reporting 1:10:15 It’s important for journalists to have access to resources 1:11:45 Journalists require access to legal resources 1:12:45 Deep dive journalism requires lots of time & resources 1:13:15 NYT has the best legal team in the business 1:14:15 Newsrooms owned by publicly traded companies change behavior 1:15:45 The Ochz-Sulzberger family is ride or die for journalism 1:16:45 Great non-profit newsrooms exist around the country 1:19:15 NYT is trying to build hubs in certain cities & regions 1:19:45 Book reporting can have greater impact than day-to-day reporting 1:21:15 What’s the NYT policy regarding book vs day-to-day reporting? 1:22:00 Haberman/Swan are a singular force in journalism 1:22:45 Haberman is a scoop machine 1:23:15 Situation room with Bibi scoop broke in the paper months ago 1:24:00 Book reporting offers depth and candor that breaking news doesn’t 1:26:00 How do you decide which reporters can go on book leave? 1:27:45 NYT has created a much more rigorous polling unit 1:28:15 Polling and data are huge investments for the Times 1:30:00 State level polls are a great way to take temperature on issues 1:31:15 Public opinion shift on Israel has been historically fast 1:32:45 NYT investing big in video to reach a younger audience 1:34:45 Journalism has to adapt to new technologies/platforms 1:37:45 Should there be a brighter line between the NYT & opinion page? 1:38:30 Times isn’t guided by audience capture or clicks 1:39:30 Changed the design of the opinion segment to differentiate it 1:41:15 Is the fact checking process the same for opinion pieces? 1:43:30 Have to be forthright about the journalism process for the audience 1:45:15 The impact of having your newsroom centered in NYC? 1:48:45 It’s important to elevate journalists from across the country 1:49:45 NYT is investing heavily in reporting in Texas 1:51:00 You want a national strategy, have a journalist in every state 1:53:15 Grappling with publishing Trump’s & others obvious lies 1:54:15 To call something a lie, you have to understand intent 1:55:45 The audience really cares about how things are described 1:56:15 Language should be direct & forthright, not hysterical 1:58:45 Audience is being numbed to the corruption stories 2:01:30 Unclear how the Dem establishment responds to progressive uprising 2:02:30 What’s being missed by Pentagon kicking out reporters? 2:03:15 Banning talking to unauthorized military members is unconstitutional 2:05:15 The importance of access journalism  2:08:15 Chuck’s thoughts on the interview with Caroline Ryan 2:11:00 ToddCast Time Machine - July 10th, 1890 2:11:30 The U.S. had just admitted six new states and twelve Republican senators 2:12:15 Settlers were building the west, politicians were building the senate 2:14:00 Congress needed to replace votes from the south with votes from the west 2:15:15 Political considerations are why we have two Dakotas 2:15:45 The western states provided votes for a stronger federal government 2:17:30 The politicians had a public mandate to admit these states 2:18:15 Republicans built and maintained their political coalition via statehood admission 2:19:45 Politicians will always seek to give themselves political advantage 2:20:15 The map of America is a map based on political considerations 2:21:00 D.C. and Puerto Rico will eventually become states 2:21:45 Ask Chuck 2:22:00 Thoughts on D.C. statehood, do you support it? 2:25:15 What would it take for a 3rd party to have a viable chance of winning? 2:28:45 If Democrats take control of congress, do they risk stopping Trump’s arch? 2:32:00 What is holding back Vivek Ramaswamy in Ohio governor’s race? 2:35:45 How could the Supreme Court overturn a constitutional amendment? 2:39:00 Props to Charleston, South Carolina and Miami helmet 2:40:15 Thoughts on LeBron & his free agencySee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Carolyn Ryan — deputy managing editor of The New York Times — joins the Chuck Toddcast for a candid conversation about the state of American journalism at a moment when the Times has become, as Ryan puts it, one of the last big independent organizations left in news. Ryan makes the case that serious journalism has become almost impossible without the resources the Times can still muster — deep-dive reporting requires enormous time, the best legal team in the business to withstand the threats and lawsuits now routinely aimed at the press, and an ownership structure insulated from market pressure. She's blunt about the difference the Ochs-Sulzberger family makes: newsrooms owned by publicly traded companies inevitably change their behavior to satisfy shareholders, while the family that controls the Times is, in her words, "ride or die" for journalism — a distinction that has never mattered more than it does now, even as she praises the excellent nonprofit newsrooms springing up around the country. Ryan explains how the Times is building regional reporting hubs and investing heavily in places like Texas on the theory that a truly national news organization needs a journalist in every state, why book reporting from stars like Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan often lands with more impact and candor than day-to-day breaking news, and how the paper decides which reporters get the coveted book leave that produces those deeper stories. The conversation gets into the harder editorial questions facing the Times in the Trump era. Ryan discusses the paper's major investment in a more rigorous polling and data operation , its aggressive push into video to reach younger audiences, and the perennial tension over whether there should be a brighter line between the newsroom and the opinion page — a separation the Times has tried to clarify through design changes and by being more transparent about its process. Ryan is thoughtful about one of the thorniest challenges in modern journalism: how to handle the obvious lies told by Trump and other political figures, explaining that to actually call something a "lie" you have to establish intent, that the audience cares enormously about how things are described, and that the language should always be direct and forthright without tipping into hysteria. She closes with a sharp critique of the Pentagon kicking out reporters and banning contact with unauthorized military members — a policy she argues is not only unconstitutional but a direct threat to the journalism that keeps the public informed about how its military actually operates.  Refresh your wardrobe with Quince. Go to https://Quince.com/chuck for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.    For free and unbiased Medicare help, dial (980) 734-3985 to speak with my trusted partner, Chapter, or go to askchapter.org/chuck /*Paid Partnership Chapter and its affiliates are not connected with or endorsed by any government entity or the federal Medicare program. Chapter Advisory, LLC represents Medicare Advantage HMO, PPO, and PFFS organizations and stand alone prescription drug plans that have a Medicare contract. Enrollment depends on the plan’s contract renewal. While we have a database of every Medicare plan nationwide and can help you to search among all plans, we have contracts with many but not all plans. As a result, we do not offer every plan available in your area. Currently we represent 50 organizations which offer 18,160 products nationwide. We search and recommend all plans, even those we don’t directly offer. You can contact a licensed Chapter agent to find out the number of products available in your specific area. Please contact Medicare.gov, 1-800-Medicare, or your local State Health Insurance Program (SHIP) to get information on all of your options. Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Carolyn Ryan joins the Chuck ToddCast 01:45 The NYT is the last big independent organization left in news 02:45 Positives & concerns about the state of media? 04:15 NYT stress importance of fact based reporting 05:00 It’s important for journalists to have access to resources 06:30 Journalists require access to legal resources 07:30 Deep dive journalism requires lots of time & resources 08:00 NYT has the best legal team in the business 09:00 Newsrooms owned by publicly traded companies change behavior 10:30 The Ochz-Sulzberger family is ride or die for journalism 11:30 Great non-profit newsrooms exist around the country 14:00 NYT is trying to build hubs in certain cities & regions 14:30 Book reporting can have greater impact than day-to-day reporting 16:00 What’s the NYT policy regarding book vs day-to-day reporting? 16:45 Haberman/Swan are a singular force in journalism 17:30 Haberman is a scoop machine 18:00 Situation room with Bibi scoop broke in the paper months ago 18:45 Book reporting offers depth and candor that breaking news doesn’t 20:45 How do you decide which reporters can go on book leave? 22:30 NYT has created a much more rigorous polling unit 23:00 Polling and data are huge investments for the Times 24:45 State level polls are a great way to take temperature on issues 26:00 Public opinion shift on Israel has been historically fast 27:30 NYT investing big in video to reach a younger audience 29:30 Journalism has to adapt to new technologies/platforms 32:30 Should there be a brighter line between the NYT & opinion page? 33:15 Times isn’t guided by audience capture or clicks 34:15 Changed the design of the opinion segment to differentiate it 36:00 Is the fact checking process the same for opinion pieces? 38:15 Have to be forthright about the journalism process for the audience 40:00 The impact of having your newsroom centered in NYC? 43:30 It’s important to elevate journalists from across the country 44:30 NYT is investing heavily in reporting in Texas 45:45 You want a national strategy, have a journalist in every state 48:00 Grappling with publishing Trump’s & others obvious lies 49:00 To call something a lie, you have to understand intent 50:30 The audience really cares about how things are described 51:00 Language should be direct & forthright, not hysterical 53:30 Audience is being numbed to the corruption stories 56:15 Unclear how the Dem establishment responds to progressive uprising 57:15 What’s being missed by Pentagon kicking out reporters? 58:00 Banning talking to unauthorized military members is unconstitutional 1:00:00 The importance of access journalismSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd delivers a genuinely heartfelt lament that America's 250th anniversary — a moment that should have been enormous — has been shrunk, cheapened, and ultimately ruined by a president who turned the country's birthday into his own political rally. He argues the American experiment is a remarkable achievement worth celebrating in full, that "a more perfect union" is the single greatest phrase in the founding documents precisely because it acknowledges the country is a perpetual work in progress, and that the 250th should have been a moment to celebrate American progress rather than run from American history — to recognize that America is fundamentally an idea rather than an ethnicity. Instead, Trump has made the nation's birthday about Donald Trump: he created his own version of the celebration, turned "The Great American Fair" into a dud, and once again demonstrated his belief that everyone and everything must accommodate him. He says he feels genuinely betrayed watching the brand of America get sullied and cheapened this way, and argues the country desperately needs a president capable of rising above himself — something Trump has proven, again and again, he simply cannot do. He finds a silver lining in the Supreme Court blocking Trump's attempt to end birthright citizenship, arguing it proves this is a conservative court but not purely a Trump court — though he's sharply critical of the Court's campaign finance ruling, which he frames as a straightforward bailout of the Republican Party.. He closes by looking ahead: the Colorado primaries raised the question of whether the DSA movement has truly broken through. Finally, he presents his ToddCast Top 5 list of the best fictional presidents seen on TV & movies and answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment. From the opening whistle to the final kick. Bet on a match and get bonus bets for every goal scored at Fanduel.com     Refresh your wardrobe with Quince. Go to https://Quince.com/chuck for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.    For free and unbiased Medicare help, dial (980) 734-3985 to speak with my trusted partner, Chapter, or go to askchapter.org/chuck /*Paid Partnership Chapter and its affiliates are not connected with or endorsed by any government entity or the federal Medicare program. Chapter Advisory, LLC represents Medicare Advantage HMO, PPO, and PFFS organizations and stand alone prescription drug plans that have a Medicare contract. Enrollment depends on the plan’s contract renewal. While we have a database of every Medicare plan nationwide and can help you to search among all plans, we have contracts with many but not all plans. As a result, we do not offer every plan available in your area. Currently we represent 50 organizations which offer 18,160 products nationwide. We search and recommend all plans, even those we don’t directly offer. You can contact a licensed Chapter agent to find out the number of products available in your specific area. Please contact Medicare.gov, 1-800-Medicare, or your local State Health Insurance Program (SHIP) to get information on all of your options. Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 03:30 The American 250 celebration sucks… Trump ruined it 04:00 America 250 should be much bigger, and keeps feeling smaller 05:45 The American experiment is a remarkable achievement 07:00 Modern American democracy didn’t start until the 1960s 07:30 “More Perfect Union” is greatest phrase in founding documents 08:15 250 should be celebrating our progress, not afraid of our history 09:00 SCOTUS blocking Trump’s ban on birthright citizenship was important 09:30 America is an idea, not an ethnicity 10:30 This was a moment to celebrate and also understand our history 11:00 Donald Trump has made the country’s birthday about Donald Trump* 12:15 Trump created his own version of the celebration 13:00 He turned the country’s birthday into his own political rally 14:45 Trump thinks everyone should accommodate him. Insult to Americans 15:30 The country needs a president that can rise above himself. Trump can’t 16:30 The Great American Fair could have been amazing. Instead it’s a dud 18:15 The big anniversaries force us to look at ourselves, not like what we see 19:45 Love the American story BECAUSE it’s complicated 21:00 Trump is showing us who he is by stealing this anniversary from us 22:00 Trump has sullied the brand of America, doesn’t have to be at 275 22:45 Feel betrayed as an American by this, resent seeing it cheapened 24:00 SCOTUS showed it’s a conservative court, but not a Trump court 25:15 There are partisans on the court, but the court itself isn’t purely partisan 26:15 Campaign finance ruling is a bail out of the Republican party 26:45 Campaigns can buy TV ads at a lower rate, outside groups can’t 28:00 Republicans have more big $ donors, Dems have more small $ donors 30:15 Court shows deference to congress if they are explicit in what they want 31:45 There will still be an effort to block birthright citizenship 32:30 Did Colorado primaries show the DSA movement has broken through? 33:15 Michigan will be the real test for the DSA 36:15 Let this be a lesson to anyone coming from Bidenworld 38:00 If Dems win both chambers, smooth path for Jeffries to speakership 38:45 Failure to win the senate will cause lots of finger pointing 45:00 ToddCast Top 5 Fictional Presidents 46:00 #5 David Palmer (Dennis Haysbert) from 24 47:00 #4 Selina Meyer (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) from Veep 48:30 #3 James Marshall (Harrison Ford) from Air Force One 50:15 #2 Thomas Whitmore (Bill Pullman) from Independence Day 51:15 #1 Dwayne Elizondo Mountain Dew Herbert Camacho (Terry Crews) from Idiocracy 53:30 Ask Chuck 53:45 What’s the point of voting down ballot when politicians vote on party lines? 1:01:30 Issue with Mamdani’s comments on Israel and religious/ethno states? 1:05:45 Expanding vote by mail? 1:07:30 Could Trump legally mount a write-in campaign? 1:12:30 Is America still not ready to elect a woman president? 1:16:00 What’s your take on the NPR retraction on Alito retirement? 1:23:15 How will Rubio/Vance dynamic play out in ‘28? 1:27:45 What’s the latest a SCOTUS justice can retire & get confirmed?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd delivers a genuinely heartfelt lament that America's 250th anniversary — a moment that should have been enormous — has been shrunk, cheapened, and ultimately ruined by a president who turned the country's birthday into his own political rally. He argues the American experiment is a remarkable achievement worth celebrating in full, that "a more perfect union" is the single greatest phrase in the founding documents precisely because it acknowledges the country is a perpetual work in progress, and that the 250th should have been a moment to celebrate American progress rather than run from American history — to recognize that America is fundamentally an idea rather than an ethnicity. Instead, Trump has made the nation's birthday about Donald Trump: he created his own version of the celebration, turned "The Great American Fair" into a dud, and once again demonstrated his belief that everyone and everything must accommodate him. He says he feels genuinely betrayed watching the brand of America get sullied and cheapened this way, and argues the country desperately needs a president capable of rising above himself — something Trump has proven, again and again, he simply cannot do. He finds a silver lining in the Supreme Court blocking Trump's attempt to end birthright citizenship, arguing it proves this is a conservative court but not purely a Trump court — though he's sharply critical of the Court's campaign finance ruling, which he frames as a straightforward bailout of the Republican Party.. He closes by looking ahead: the Colorado primaries raised the question of whether the DSA movement has truly broken through. Then, Debbie Cox Bultan — CEO of the NewDEAL, a network of center-left state and local elected officials focused on delivering results rather than fighting culture wars — joins the Chuck Toddcast to make the case for the unglamorous, often-overlooked pragmatic wing of the Democratic Party. Bultan argues that the center-left's defining challenge is structural and almost temperamental: moderates and pragmatists are, by their very nature, not the loud part of the coalition, which means they get drowned out. She rejects the premise that "fighting the other side" has to mean yelling, argues that governing effectively is still the best way for talented officials to rise through the ranks. Bultan notes a crucial asymmetry that gives her hope: the left has not actually dominated Democratic primaries the way the right has captured GOP primaries, in part because the perception of electability matters far more to base Democratic voters than it does to the Republican base — and she points to how even Mamdani's focus on affordability carried genuine cross-party appeal as evidence that pragmatic, results-oriented messaging still works. The conversation digs into the deeper tensions facing the party heading into a favorable 2026 and a wide-open 2028. Bultan introduces the concept of "pragmatic disruption" — the idea that the people who genuinely want to disrupt a broken system actually need government to work to do it. Bultan argues the leadership of key left-leaning interest groups has drifted much further left than the actual Democratic electorate, advises candidates to stop answering interest-group questionnaires that force them into litmus-test corners, and warns that base voters can become obsessed with issues only 1% of the electorate actually cares about. She frames this moment — with Trump as a uniquely norm-breaking figure and the country's 250th anniversary approaching — as the perfect opening for a serious conversation about democracy reform. Finally, he presents his ToddCast Top 5 list of the best fictional presidents seen on TV & movies and answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment.   From the opening whistle to the final kick. Bet on a match and get bonus bets for every goal scored at Fanduel.com     Refresh your wardrobe with Quince. Go to https://Quince.com/chuck for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.    For free and unbiased Medicare help, dial (980) 734-3985 to speak with my trusted partner, Chapter, or go to askchapter.org/chuck /*Paid Partnership Chapter and its affiliates are not connected with or endorsed by any government entity or the federal Medicare program. Chapter Advisory, LLC represents Medicare Advantage HMO, PPO, and PFFS organizations and stand alone prescription drug plans that have a Medicare contract. Enrollment depends on the plan’s contract renewal. While we have a database of every Medicare plan nationwide and can help you to search among all plans, we have contracts with many but not all plans. As a result, we do not offer every plan available in your area. Currently we represent 50 organizations which offer 18,160 products nationwide. We search and recommend all plans, even those we don’t directly offer. You can contact a licensed Chapter agent to find out the number of products available in your specific area. Please contact Medicare.gov, 1-800-Medicare, or your local State Health Insurance Program (SHIP) to get information on all of your options. Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 03:30 The American 250 celebration sucks… Trump ruined it 04:00 America 250 should be much bigger, and keeps feeling smaller 05:45 The American experiment is a remarkable achievement 07:00 Modern American democracy didn’t start until the 1960s 07:30 “More Perfect Union” is greatest phrase in founding documents 08:15 250 should be celebrating our progress, not afraid of our history 09:00 SCOTUS blocking Trump’s ban on birthright citizenship was important 09:30 America is an idea, not an ethnicity 10:30 This was a moment to celebrate and also understand our history 11:00 Donald Trump has made the country’s birthday about Donald Trump* 12:15 Trump created his own version of the celebration 13:00 He turned the country’s birthday into his own political rally 14:45 Trump thinks everyone should accommodate him. Insult to Americans 15:30 The country needs a president that can rise above himself. Trump can’t 16:30 The Great American Fair could have been amazing. Instead it’s a dud 18:15 The big anniversaries force us to look at ourselves, not like what we see 19:45 Love the American story BECAUSE it’s complicated 21:00 Trump is showing us who he is by stealing this anniversary from us 22:00 Trump has sullied the brand of America, doesn’t have to be at 275 22:45 Feel betrayed as an American by this, resent seeing it cheapened 24:00 SCOTUS showed it’s a conservative court, but not a Trump court 25:15 There are partisans on the court, but the court itself isn’t purely partisan 26:15 Campaign finance ruling is a bail out of the Republican party 26:45 Campaigns can buy TV ads at a lower rate, outside groups can’t 28:00 Republicans have more big $ donors, Dems have more small $ donors 30:15 Court shows deference to congress if they are explicit in what they want 31:45 There will still be an effort to block birthright citizenship 32:30 Did Colorado primaries show the DSA movement has broken through? 33:15 Michigan will be the real test for the DSA 36:15 Let this be a lesson to anyone coming from Bidenworld 38:00 If Dems win both chambers, smooth path for Jeffries to speakership 38:45 Failure to win the senate will cause lots of finger pointing 46:30 Debbie Cox Bultan (New Deal Leaders) joins the Chuck ToddCast 48:30 What is the best way to describe the center-left? 50:00 New Deal is a group of center-left officials trying to deliver results 51:15 What’s different between New Deal and the DLCC? 51:45 Need to modernize progressive politics for the 21st century 53:15 Members don’t have to declare which part of coalition they are in 53:45 Governing effectively is the best way to rise up the ranks 55:00 The democratic pipeline for talent has proven to be effective 55:30 Want to support talented candidates once they get elected 56:45 By nature, the moderates/centrists aren’t a loud part of the coalition 57:45 Some voters treat bipartisan compromise as treason 58:30 Reject the idea that “fighting the other side” means yelling 59:15 20% of Democratic voters post the vast majority of online content 1:00:45 The political conflict isn’t just online, it’s starting to be everywhere 1:03:15 The institutionalists are now between the center left and right 1:04:00 State & local officials are the bright spots in American politics 1:05:15 Primary season heightens partisanship 1:06:00 The left hasn’t dominated Democratic primary elections 1:06:45 Perception of electability matters more to base Dems than base GOP 1:07:30 Mamdani’s focus on affordability has had cross party appeal to voters 1:08:45 Is there such a thing as “pragmatic disruption”? 1:09:45 People who want to be disrupters need government to work 1:14:15 Do Democrats need to diversify the backgrounds of their office holders? 1:15:00 More veterans are now running as Democrats 1:17:45 Trump is a uniquely troubling and norm-breaking person 1:18:30 Feels like beginning of the 20th century, need major reforms 1:19:45 The 250th anniversary is a great time to talk about democracy reform 1:20:45 Democrats are going to have a great election in ‘26 1:21:15 If Dems win both chambers, how do they govern with Trump? 1:23:00 What do you say to progressives who have never had the presidency? 1:25:15 The word socialism has a different meaning to different voters 1:26:00 Can center-left Dems get behind a DSA nominee? 1:28:00 Do progressives really want to risk someone like RFK running healthcare? 1:28:30 Progressives can’t rebrand the world socialism 1:30:45 Leadership of key interest groups on left are much further left now 1:31:15 Candidates shouldn’t answer questionnaires from interest groups 1:32:15 Base voters can obsess over issues 1% of electorate cares about 1:33:30 The donors are part of the problem, but that’s starting to change 1:34:30 Democrats need to do a lot more listening 1:35:00 What could you provide a local official that wants to run for higher office? 1:36:00 Helping candidates with pragmatic governing and skill development 1:39:15 Civic engagement and national service could help the country heal  1:42:30 ToddCast Top 5 Fictional Presidents 1:43:30 #5 David Palmer (Dennis Haysbert) from 24 1:44:30 #4 Selina Meyer (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) from Veep 1:46:00 #3 James Marshall (Harrison Ford) from Air Force One 1:47:45 #2 Thomas Whitmore (Bill Pullman) from Independence Day 1:48:45 #1 Dwayne Elizondo Mountain Dew Herbert Camacho (Terry Crews) from Idiocracy 1:51:00 Ask Chuck 1:51:15 What’s the point of voting down ballot when politicians vote on party lines? 1:59:00 Issue with Mamdani’s comments on Israel and religious/ethno states? 2:03:15 Expanding vote by mail? 2:05:00 Could Trump legally mount a write-in campaign? 2:10:00 Is America still not ready to elect a woman president? 2:13:30 What’s your take on the NPR retraction on Alito retirement? 2:20:45 How will Rubio/Vance dynamic play out in ‘28? 2:25:15 What’s the latest a SCOTUS justice can retire & get confirmed?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Debbie Cox Bultan — CEO of the NewDEAL, a network of center-left state and local elected officials focused on delivering results rather than fighting culture wars — joins the Chuck Toddcast to make the case for the unglamorous, often-overlooked pragmatic wing of the Democratic Party. Bultan argues that the center-left's defining challenge is structural and almost temperamental: moderates and pragmatists are, by their very nature, not the loud part of the coalition, which means they get drowned out. She rejects the premise that "fighting the other side" has to mean yelling, argues that governing effectively is still the best way for talented officials to rise through the ranks. Bultan notes a crucial asymmetry that gives her hope: the left has not actually dominated Democratic primaries the way the right has captured GOP primaries, in part because the perception of electability matters far more to base Democratic voters than it does to the Republican base — and she points to how even Mamdani's focus on affordability carried genuine cross-party appeal as evidence that pragmatic, results-oriented messaging still works. The conversation digs into the deeper tensions facing the party heading into a favorable 2026 and a wide-open 2028. Bultan introduces the concept of "pragmatic disruption" — the idea that the people who genuinely want to disrupt a broken system actually need government to work to do it. Bultan argues the leadership of key left-leaning interest groups has drifted much further left than the actual Democratic electorate, advises candidates to stop answering interest-group questionnaires that force them into litmus-test corners, and warns that base voters can become obsessed with issues only 1% of the electorate actually cares about. She frames this moment — with Trump as a uniquely norm-breaking figure and the country's 250th anniversary approaching — as the perfect opening for a serious conversation about democracy reform. Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary.  Refresh your wardrobe with Quince. Go to https://Quince.com/chuck for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.  Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements 00:00 Debbie Cox Bultan (New Deal Leaders) joins the Chuck ToddCast 02:00 What is the best way to describe the center-left? 03:30 New Deal is a group of center-left officials trying to deliver results 04:45 What’s different between New Deal and the DLCC? 05:15 Need to modernize progressive politics for the 21st century 06:45 Members don’t have to declare which part of coalition they are in 07:15 Governing effectively is the best way to rise up the ranks 08:30 The democratic pipeline for talent has proven to be effective 09:00 Want to support talented candidates once they get elected 10:15 By nature, the moderates/centrists aren’t a loud part of the coalition 11:15 Some voters treat bipartisan compromise as treason 12:00 Reject the idea that “fighting the other side” means yelling 12:45 20% of Democratic voters post the vast majority of online content 14:15 The political conflict isn’t just online, it’s starting to be everywhere 16:45 The institutionalists are now between the center left and right 17:30 State & local officials are the bright spots in American politics 18:45 Primary season heightens partisanship 19:30 The left hasn’t dominated Democratic primary elections 20:15 Perception of electability matters more to base Dems than base GOP 21:00 Mamdani’s focus on affordability has had cross party appeal to voters 22:15 Is there such a thing as “pragmatic disruption”? 23:15 People who want to be disrupters need government to work 27:45 Do Democrats need to diversify the backgrounds of their office holders? 28:30 More veterans are now running as Democrats 31:15 Trump is a uniquely troubling and norm-breaking person 32:00 Feels like beginning of the 20th century, need major reforms 33:15 The 250th anniversary is a great time to talk about democracy reform 34:15 Democrats are going to have a great election in ‘26 34:45 If Dems win both chambers, how do they govern with Trump? 36:30 What do you say to progressives who have never had the presidency? 38:45 The word socialism has a different meaning to different voters 39:30 Can center-left Dems get behind a DSA nominee? 41:30 Do progressives really want to risk someone like RFK running healthcare? 42:00 Progressives can’t rebrand the world socialism 44:15 Leadership of key interest groups on left are much further left now 44:45 Candidates shouldn’t answer questionnaires from interest groups 45:45 Base voters can obsess over issues 1% of electorate cares about 47:00 The donors are part of the problem, but that’s starting to change 48:00 Democrats need to do a lot more listening 48:30 What could you provide a local official that wants to run for higher office? 49:30 Helping candidates with pragmatic governing and skill development 52:45 Civic engagement and national service could help the country heal 54:45 People need to understand “with rights come responsibilities”See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd opens with the Iran ceasefire collapsing as the U.S. and Iran trade strikes again — but the real story, he argues, is that the U.S. military just inadvertently revealed Trump was lying about the war all along. The targets American forces hit in this latest round were the very targets Trump claimed weeks ago had already been destroyed; either Iran somehow reconstituted its entire military in a single week, or the president lied to the country, and CENTCOM's own report makes clear which it was. He warns that lying about war is historically not a small thing for a president to survive, no matter how badly Trump wants to memory-hole the entire episode. He then turns to the escalating Democratic fight over taxing billionaires, taking a characteristically nuanced position: billionaires are genuinely undertaxed, but "tax the rich" doesn't work as actual policy the way it works as a slogan, the loopholes built into the code exist to avoid unintended consequences, and the changes to the inheritance "death tax" are responsible for an enormous share of current inequality. He assesses Zohran Mamdani taking a victory lap as the new face of the DSA (and increasingly comfortable as a face of the Democratic Party), praising him as a genuinely compelling performer and possible heir to the Bernie movement while questioning whether his story can travel beyond New York City. He closes with one of his favorite structural arguments — that the far-left and far-right are now feeding off each other's fear, that a faction doesn't need to capture the whole country, just one congressional caucus, and that the founders' actual protection against factions was supposed to be a multitude of them — which is exactly why the House was meant to scale with the population and why Congress's choice to freeze its size needs to be reversed. He also looks ahead at fascinating Colorado primaries. Finally, he hops into the ToddCast Time Machine to explain the origin of the name of the bikini swimsuit, and why America’s relationship with nuclear technology changed over time. He also answers listeners’ questions in the “Asl Chuck” segment.  From the opening whistle to the final kick. Bet on a match and get bonus bets for every goal scored at Fanduel.com  Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary.  Refresh your wardrobe with Quince. Go to https://Quince.com/chuck for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.  Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 05:15 U.S. and Iran trade strikes again, ceasefire not holding 06:15 The U.S. military basically revealed Trump was lying about the war 06:45 Historically, voters don’t accept lies from presidents about war 07:30 The targets the U.S. hit were targets Trump said were already destroyed 08:30 Three weeks ago Trump said Iran had nothing… clearly it wasn’t true 09:15 Making the case that Trump is full of shit isn’t hard* 10:30 Either Iran reconstituted its military in a week, or Trump lied.  11:15 CENTCOM’s report shows that Trump lied to the country 13:15 Trump announced on his birthday that he had ended the war 14:00 Handing Iran billions of dollars is hardly the “surrender” Trump proclaimed 15:45 Lying about war is not a small thing for a president to do 17:15 Trump thought he could memory-hole the Iran war, Iran won’t let him 17:45 There’s a right way to tax billionaires, but it’s not currently being proposed 19:00 Billionaires are undertaxed, but tax policy doesn’t work as a slogan 19:45 Loopholes are built into the tax code to avoid unintended consequences 20:30 Reforms to the inheritance tax allow the wealthy to avoid taxation 21:45 Closing other loopholes could raise hundreds of billions 23:00 Taxing billionaires is fine, but you can’t mess up tax code in the process 24:30 The Newsom vs. Khanna fight - Both are making good points 25:00 A state level wealth tax could create a shortfall in the long term 25:45 The “death tax” change is responsible for much of the current inequality 26:30 “Fair share” polls well, but requires major changes to the tax code 27:30 Tax reform isn’t simple or quick, requires real work from congress 28:15 Mamdani takes a victory lap, wants to be face of the DSA movement 29:30 Mamdani is fine with being the face of the Democratic party 31:00 Mamdani is telling a compelling story, but can it go beyond NYC? 33:00 Mamdani had a weak defense of the Dan Goldman coffee incident 34:00 Mamdani is very good as a performer, could be heir to Bernie movement 35:45 The far-left and the far-right are feeding off of each other 36:30 Trump ramps up rhetoric against DSA, calls them “godless communists” 37:30 The DSA and Trump both working off the fear of each other 38:45 A faction doesn’t need to capture the country, just one caucus 39:30 The founders’ protection from factions, was a multitude of factions 41:30 The House of Representatives was supposed to scale with the country 43:15 Congress chose to stop letting the House grow, needs to change 46:45 The Colorado primaries will be fascinating 48:15 Michael Bennett has to carry the banner of being a D.C. creature 48:45 John Hickenlooper facing a viable challenge from the left 50:30 The DSA candidate for congress is ahead in the polls 55:15 ToddCast Time Machine 56:15 July 1946 The bikini swimsuit named after atomic bomb test 58:45 Both fear and optimism rose about nuclear technology 59:30 We didn’t have an enemy yet with an atomic bomb 1:00:15 The atom wasn’t viewed just as a weapon, but as the future 1:01:45 We were exporting the atomic age and that seemed cool 1:02:15 The people on bikini atoll were being told to leave their homes 1:03:15 The vibe changed once the Soviets detonated their first bomb 1:04:15 Very few people know why the bikini swimsuit carries its name 1:05:45 Ask Chuck 1:06:00 Do you see somebody jumping into ‘28 presidential race prior to midterms? 1:11:15 What do you think happened in the meeting between Trump & senators? 1:19:15 Thoughts on college athletics eligibility changes? 1:22:15 Thoughts on straight-ticket voting? 1:24:15 Is the premise that moderate Democrats are more “electable” overstated? 1:31:45 Would reforms that redistribute power meaningfully improve our system? 1:33:45 Any go-to books on civics and the constitution?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd opens with the Iran ceasefire collapsing as the U.S. and Iran trade strikes again — but the real story, he argues, is that the U.S. military just inadvertently revealed Trump was lying about the war all along. The targets American forces hit in this latest round were the very targets Trump claimed weeks ago had already been destroyed; either Iran somehow reconstituted its entire military in a single week, or the president lied to the country, and CENTCOM's own report makes clear which it was. He warns that lying about war is historically not a small thing for a president to survive, no matter how badly Trump wants to memory-hole the entire episode. He then turns to the escalating Democratic fight over taxing billionaires, taking a characteristically nuanced position: billionaires are genuinely undertaxed, but "tax the rich" doesn't work as actual policy the way it works as a slogan, the loopholes built into the code exist to avoid unintended consequences, and the changes to the inheritance "death tax" are responsible for an enormous share of current inequality. He assesses Zohran Mamdani taking a victory lap as the new face of the DSA (and increasingly comfortable as a face of the Democratic Party), praising him as a genuinely compelling performer and possible heir to the Bernie movement while questioning whether his story can travel beyond New York City. He closes with one of his favorite structural arguments — that the far-left and far-right are now feeding off each other's fear, that a faction doesn't need to capture the whole country, just one congressional caucus, and that the founders' actual protection against factions was supposed to be a multitude of them — which is exactly why the House was meant to scale with the population and why Congress's choice to freeze its size needs to be reversed. He also looks ahead at fascinating Colorado primaries. Then, Alvaro Bedoya — the former FTC Commissioner whom Trump fired in an unprecedented break with a century of agency-independence norms — joins the Chuck Toddcast to explain why his firing matters far beyond his own career, and what it reveals about the collision between corporate power and consumer protection in the Trump era. Bedoya makes the legal case plainly: removal "for cause" is clearly written into the law, Congress needs to codify FTC independence, and while he's skeptical this Supreme Court will rule in favor of agency independence, the circumstances of his dismissal are damning — he believes he was fired specifically for suing companies that happened to be Trump donors. The Amazon case is his exhibit A: the FTC was actively pursuing Amazon until Trump intervened, and after Amazon funneled millions to Trump, the investigations simply evaporated — proof, Bedoya argues, that existing laws against bribery and corruption clearly aren't working. He walks through the sprawling, well-funded lobbying effort against meaningful privacy legislation, and offers vivid examples of how unchecked data collection harms ordinary people. His prescription is structural: America needs genuine restrictions on what data can be collected and how it can be used, paired with serious antitrust enforcement — but the agencies tasked with that work have been starved of the resources they need. The conversation opens up into a fascinating, wide-ranging debate about monopoly power and consolidation across the American economy. Bedoya argues that streaming bills were already climbing even before the proposed Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger — a deal he believes there's a clear consumer case to block. He notes that Thomas Jefferson once argued for an anti-monopoly amendment in the Bill of Rights, that consolidation has hammered workers across countless industries, and that America is now suffering a genuine "drought of creativity" because of relentless media mergers — pointing out that there are only three serious buyers of documentary films left, and that half of America's TV news archive is about to be owned by a single family. Bedoya is honest about the nuances (Costco throws its weight around but has genuinely been good for consumers; vertically integrated health insurers are universally loathed), wrestles with whether unilateral Democratic executive action is even the answer, and warns that in this environment it's dangerously easy for regulators to simply get overwhelmed.  Finally, he hops into the ToddCast Time Machine to explain the origin of the name of the bikini swimsuit, and why America’s relationship with nuclear technology changed over time. He also answers listeners’ questions in the “Asl Chuck” segment.  Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary.  Refresh your wardrobe with Quince. Go to https://Quince.com/chuck for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.  From the opening whistle to the final kick. Bet on a match and get bonus bets for every goal scored at Fanduel.com Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 05:15 U.S. and Iran trade strikes again, ceasefire not holding 06:15 The U.S. military basically revealed Trump was lying about the war 06:45 Historically, voters don’t accept lies from presidents about war 07:30 The targets the U.S. hit were targets Trump said were already destroyed 08:30 Three weeks ago Trump said Iran had nothing… clearly it wasn’t true 09:15 Making the case that Trump is full of shit isn’t hard* 10:30 Either Iran reconstituted its military in a week, or Trump lied.  11:15 CENTCOM’s report shows that Trump lied to the country 13:15 Trump announced on his birthday that he had ended the war 14:00 Handing Iran billions of dollars is hardly the “surrender” Trump proclaimed 15:45 Lying about war is not a small thing for a president to do 17:15 Trump thought he could memory-hole the Iran war, Iran won’t let him 17:45 There’s a right way to tax billionaires, but it’s not currently being proposed 19:00 Billionaires are undertaxed, but tax policy doesn’t work as a slogan 19:45 Loopholes are built into the tax code to avoid unintended consequences 20:30 Reforms to the inheritance tax allow the wealthy to avoid taxation 21:45 Closing other loopholes could raise hundreds of billions 23:00 Taxing billionaires is fine, but you can’t mess up tax code in the process 24:30 The Newsom vs. Khanna fight - Both are making good points 25:00 A state level wealth tax could create a shortfall in the long term 25:45 The “death tax” change is responsible for much of the current inequality 26:30 “Fair share” polls well, but requires major changes to the tax code 27:30 Tax reform isn’t simple or quick, requires real work from congress 28:15 Mamdani takes a victory lap, wants to be face of the DSA movement 29:30 Mamdani is fine with being the face of the Democratic party 31:00 Mamdani is telling a compelling story, but can it go beyond NYC? 33:00 Mamdani had a weak defense of the Dan Goldman coffee incident 34:00 Mamdani is very good as a performer, could be heir to Bernie movement 35:45 The far-left and the far-right are feeding off of each other 36:30 Trump ramps up rhetoric against DSA, calls them “godless communists” 37:30 The DSA and Trump both working off the fear of each other 38:45 A faction doesn’t need to capture the country, just one caucus 39:30 The founders’ protection from factions, was a multitude of factions 41:30 The House of Representatives was supposed to scale with the country 43:15 Congress chose to stop letting the House grow, needs to change 46:45 The Colorado primaries will be fascinating 48:15 Michael Bennett has to carry the banner of being a D.C. creature 48:45 John Hickenlooper facing a viable challenge from the left 50:30 The DSA candidate for congress is ahead in the polls 56:45 Alvaro Bedoya joins the Chuck ToddCast 58:45 Trump broke a long standing norm to fire Alvaro from the FTC 59:15 Congress needs to codify FTC independence 1:00:15 Firing “for cause” is very clearly written into the law 1:02:15 This Supreme Court unlikely to rule for agency independence 1:02:45 Was likely fired for suing companies that were Trump donors 1:03:30 You want consumers to be protected from political donors 1:05:15 FTC was pursuing case against Amazon until Trump intervened 1:06:45 Amazon funneled millions to Trump, investigations went away 1:07:15 Laws against bribery & corruption clearly aren’t working 1:09:15 How should government tackle consumer privacy protections? 1:10:00 There is a massive lobbying effort against privacy laws 1:11:15 Background actors were being scanned rather than being paid 1:12:15 Privacy can sometimes be an abstract concept to people 1:12:45 Labor unions are the group actually winning in this space 1:15:00 Need protections around privacy, data collection and antitrust 1:15:45 Need restrictions on collecting certain data and how it is used 1:17:15 Against law to use SEC database to solicit donations, not enforced 1:17:45 Agencies have been starved of resources needed for enforcement 1:20:00 Meta has grown massive and Zuckerberg retains total control 1:22:15 The debate about whether to break up the biggest companies 1:23:00 Breaking up AT&T benefitted consumers, ended long distance rates 1:23:45 T-Mobile merger should not have been allowed 1:24:45 Streaming bills going up even before Paramount WB merger 1:28:15 Jefferson argued for an amendment against monopolies in Bill of Rights 1:30:45 Consolidation has hurt workers in a variety of industries 1:31:30 Has there been a consolidation that’s been good for consumers? 1:34:00 Costco throws its weight around, but has been good for consumers 1:35:00 Health insurers are vertically integrated, and consumers loathe them 1:36:15 Iheart’s merger was allowed as an effort to preserve a “dying industry” 1:37:45 Paramount/WB only shot of catching Netflix/Disney is to merge? 1:39:00 Loading up the company with $80B in debt won’t produce a healthy firm 1:39:45 There are only 3 buyers of serious documentary films 1:41:00 Half of America’s TV news archive is about to be owned by one family 1:42:15 There are clear consumer cases for preventing the Paramount/WB merger 1:45:15 There’s been a cycle of innovation, then consolidation 1:46:45 We are suffering a drought of creativity due to mergers 1:49:00 There are antitrust exceptions for co-ops, can FTC encourage them? 1:51:00 Is unilateral Democratic executive branch action the answer here? 1:52:15 In this environment, it’s easy for regulators to get overwhelmed 1:53:00 The White House UFC fight was corrupt 1:55:45 Making the UFC event private at the WH was made it feel dirty 1:58:30 Favorite potential 2028 candidates? 2:00:30 Popular movements are effective pushing back against corporate power  2:02:30 ToddCast Time Machine 2:03:30 July 1946 The bikini swimsuit named after atomic bomb test 2:06:00 Both fear and optimism rose about nuclear technology 2:06:45 We didn’t have an enemy yet with an atomic bomb 2:07:30 The atom wasn’t viewed just as a weapon, but as the future 2:09:00 We were exporting the atomic age and that seemed cool 2:09:30 The people on bikini atoll were being told to leave their homes 2:10:30 The vibe changed once the Soviets detonated their first bomb 2:11:30 Very few people know why the bikini swimsuit carries its name 2:13:00 Ask Chuck 2:13:15 Do you see somebody jumping into ‘28 presidential race prior to midterms? 2:18:30 What do you think happened in the meeting between Trump & senators? 2:26:30 Thoughts on college athletics eligibility changes? 2:29:30 Thoughts on straight-ticket voting? 2:31:30 Is the premise that moderate Democrats are more “electable” overstated? 2:39:00 Would reforms that redistribute power meaningfully improve our system? 2:41:00 Any go-to books on civics and the constitution?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Alvaro Bedoya — the former FTC Commissioner whom Trump fired in an unprecedented break with a century of agency-independence norms — joins the Chuck Toddcast to explain why his firing matters far beyond his own career, and what it reveals about the collision between corporate power and consumer protection in the Trump era. Bedoya makes the legal case plainly: removal "for cause" is clearly written into the law, Congress needs to codify FTC independence, and while he's skeptical this Supreme Court will rule in favor of agency independence, the circumstances of his dismissal are damning — he believes he was fired specifically for suing companies that happened to be Trump donors. The Amazon case is his exhibit A: the FTC was actively pursuing Amazon until Trump intervened, and after Amazon funneled millions to Trump, the investigations simply evaporated — proof, Bedoya argues, that existing laws against bribery and corruption clearly aren't working. He walks through the sprawling, well-funded lobbying effort against meaningful privacy legislation, and offers vivid examples of how unchecked data collection harms ordinary people. His prescription is structural: America needs genuine restrictions on what data can be collected and how it can be used, paired with serious antitrust enforcement — but the agencies tasked with that work have been starved of the resources they need. The conversation opens up into a fascinating, wide-ranging debate about monopoly power and consolidation across the American economy. Bedoya argues that streaming bills were already climbing even before the proposed Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger — a deal he believes there's a clear consumer case to block. He notes that Thomas Jefferson once argued for an anti-monopoly amendment in the Bill of Rights, that consolidation has hammered workers across countless industries, and that America is now suffering a genuine "drought of creativity" because of relentless media mergers — pointing out that there are only three serious buyers of documentary films left, and that half of America's TV news archive is about to be owned by a single family. Bedoya is honest about the nuances (Costco throws its weight around but has genuinely been good for consumers; vertically integrated health insurers are universally loathed), wrestles with whether unilateral Democratic executive action is even the answer, and warns that in this environment it's dangerously easy for regulators to simply get overwhelmed.  Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary.  Refresh your wardrobe with Quince. Go to https://Quince.com/chuck for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.  Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Alvaro Bedoya joins the Chuck ToddCast 02:00 Trump broke a long standing norm to fire Alvaro from the FTC 02:30 Congress needs to codify FTC independence 03:30 Firing “for cause” is very clearly written into the law 05:30 This Supreme Court unlikely to rule for agency independence 06:00 Was likely fired for suing companies that were Trump donors 06:45 You want consumers to be protected from political donors 08:30 FTC was pursuing case against Amazon until Trump intervened 10:00 Amazon funneled millions to Trump, investigations went away 10:30 Laws against bribery & corruption clearly aren’t working 12:30 How should government tackle consumer privacy protections? 13:15 There is a massive lobbying effort against privacy laws 14:30 Background actors were being scanned rather than being paid 15:30 Privacy can sometimes be an abstract concept to people 16:00 Labor unions are the group actually winning in this space 18:15 Need protections around privacy, data collection and antitrust 19:00 Need restrictions on collecting certain data and how it is used 20:30 Against law to use SEC database to solicit donations, not enforced 21:00 Agencies have been starved of resources needed for enforcement 23:15 Meta has grown massive and Zuckerberg retains total control 25:30 The debate about whether to break up the biggest companies 26:15 Breaking up AT&T benefitted consumers, ended long distance rates 27:00 T-Mobile merger should not have been allowed 28:00 Streaming bills going up even before Paramount WB merger 31:30 Jefferson argued for an amendment against monopolies in Bill of Rights 34:00 Consolidation has hurt workers in a variety of industries 34:45 Has there been a consolidation that’s been good for consumers? 37:15 Costco throws its weight around, but has been good for consumers 38:15 Health insurers are vertically integrated, and consumers loathe them 39:30 Iheart’s merger was allowed as an effort to preserve a “dying industry” 41:00 Paramount/WB only shot of catching Netflix/Disney is to merge? 42:15 Loading up the company with $80B in debt won’t produce a healthy firm 43:00 There are only 3 buyers of serious documentary films 44:15 Half of America’s TV news archive is about to be owned by one family 45:30 There are clear consumer cases for preventing the Paramount/WB merger 48:30 There’s been a cycle of innovation, then consolidation 50:00 We are suffering a drought of creativity due to mergers 52:15 There are antitrust exceptions for co-ops, can FTC encourage them? 54:15 Is unilateral Democratic executive branch action the answer here? 55:30 In this environment, it’s easy for regulators to get overwhelmed 56:15 The White House UFC fight was corrupt 59:00 Making the UFC event private at the WH was made it feel dirty 1:01:45 Favorite potential 2028 candidates? 1:03:45 Popular movements are effective pushing back against corporate powerSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd opens with a programming note—the ToddCast moves to a Monday/Thursday schedule for July and August—before digging into the fallout from Zohran Mamdani-endorsed candidates sweeping New York's primaries. Chuck unpacks who powered the wins (younger, white progressives), argues that Mamdani's affordability focus rather than his endorsements was the real galvanizing force, and examines how Israel has become a litmus test on a left that, like MAGA, increasingly has little patience for the pluralism Chuck calls the heart of the American experiment—warning that when every issue becomes a litmus test, disagreement turns into something punishable. He weighs whether this is a singular New York moment or a broader realignment in which two uncompromising factions come to dominate both parties, with Abdul El-Sayed's Michigan Senate bid shaping up as the next big test. From there, Chuck turns to Trump blowing a chance to show voters he cares about affordability by refusing to sign a housing bill that already has veto-proof majorities—and how the president keeps making it nearly impossible for the GOP to govern heading into a brutal midterm stretch he's brought on himself. Finally, an alarming look at Pete Hegseth's overt politicization of the military: the firing of respected leaders like Chris Donahue, purges that appear to target officers for their race, gender, what they know, or their willingness to push back on illegal orders, the removal of the JAGs and the Pentagon press corps, and why Chuck argues that whoever Hegseth wants out may be exactly who the country needs leading it next.  Finally, he answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment.  Refresh your wardrobe with Quince. Go to https://Quince.com/chuck for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.  Thank you Wildgrain for sponsoring. Visit http://wildgrain.com/TODDCAST and use the code "TODDCAST" at checkout to receive $30 off your first box PLUS free Croissants for life! From the opening whistle to the final kick. Bet on a match and get bonus bets for every goal scored at Fanduel.com  Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 00:15 Programming Note: July & August the ToddCast will be on M/TH only 03:30 Fallout from Mamdani endorsed candidates sweeping NYC primaries 04:30 Younger, white progressives powered Mamdani’s candidates 05:00 Mamdani was smart about where he spent his political capital 06:15 Unlikely there’s a wider swath of voters open to socialism 08:30 Mamdani’s affordability focus was galvanizing, not his endorsees 09:15 Israel has become a litmus test for some on the left 09:45 MAGA, and increasingly the progressive left don’t appreciate pluralism 10:15 Pluralism IS the American experiment 11:00 When every issue is a litmus test, disagreement becomes punishable 14:00 Many Jewish Americans felt very unsettled by the results 16:00 Is this New York’s moment, or a broader ideological realignment? 17:30 Two factions not interested in compromise could dominate both parties 19:00 Both parties used to move to the center to win elections, less so lately 19:45 The DSA could create discomfort with centrist voters like MAGA does 21:30 The next test will be with the candidacy of Abdul El-Sayed in MI 23:45 Mamdani is an incredibly smart and calculating leader of DSA movement 26:15 Despite better organization, DSA has less chance of taking over the party 29:00 It’s still early, but it feels like the left is on the march 29:30 Trump meets with senate GOP after refusing to sign housing bill 30:30 Trump blew a chance to show voters he cares about affordability 31:00 Trump turned meeting into an airing of grievances 31:45 The bill has veto proof majorities even if Trump doesn’t sign it 33:00 Trump is hurting the Republicans politically ahead of the midterms 33:45 Trump makes it almost impossible for the GOP to govern 34:45 It’s going to be a miserable 2 years for Trump, has only himself to blame 36:00 Pete Hegseth is overtly trying to politicize the military 36:30 Military leadership wants to stay out of the political fray 37:30 One of these generals they force out could become next POTUS 39:00 Chris Donahue is quintessential military leader, fired by Hegseth 40:00 Donahue was viewed as a future chairman of the joint chiefs 41:15 Confirming Hegseth is biggest black eye on the record of Tom Thillis 42:00 All military leaders make personnel changes, this is different 42:30 Hegseth is removing leaders simply for being black or women 44:00 Hegseth is firing people for what they know or what they’ve seen 45:00 He also fires officers for when they push back on illegal orders 45:45 Hegseth removed the JAGS to avoid “legal roadblocks” 47:45 Hegseth is trying to force his religious beliefs on the entire military 49:15 We’ve never had a comparable purge in our military 50:45 The Pentagon removed to the press corp to avoid difficult questions 51:30 This should be extraordinarily alarming to Americans 52:15 Whoever Pete Hegseth wants out… should be our next set of leaders 53:00 We can’t risk the military being turned into a political force 53:45 Damage at DOJ and Pentagon will be hard to repair 59:45 Ask Chuck 01:00:00 How much have outlets like Fox News shaped the outlooks of boomers? 01:07:45 Is there a future where large PAC spending burns out due to voter backlash? 01:12:45 Could you talk about Keir Starmer and labours struggles.. Lessons for Dems? 01:20:00 What would you consider the Top 5 presidential actions that worked? 01:25:45 What characteristics define a “Trumpy” voter? 01:28:30 Can the establishment mend fences with the progressives?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd opens with a programming note—the ToddCast moves to a Monday/Thursday schedule for July and August—before digging into the fallout from Zohran Mamdani-endorsed candidates sweeping New York's primaries. Chuck unpacks who powered the wins (younger, white progressives), argues that Mamdani's affordability focus rather than his endorsements was the real galvanizing force, and examines how Israel has become a litmus test on a left that, like MAGA, increasingly has little patience for the pluralism Chuck calls the heart of the American experiment—warning that when every issue becomes a litmus test, disagreement turns into something punishable. He weighs whether this is a singular New York moment or a broader realignment in which two uncompromising factions come to dominate both parties, with Abdul El-Sayed's Michigan Senate bid shaping up as the next big test. From there, Chuck turns to Trump blowing a chance to show voters he cares about affordability by refusing to sign a housing bill that already has veto-proof majorities—and how the president keeps making it nearly impossible for the GOP to govern heading into a brutal midterm stretch he's brought on himself. Finally, an alarming look at Pete Hegseth's overt politicization of the military: the firing of respected leaders like Chris Donahue, purges that appear to target officers for their race, gender, what they know, or their willingness to push back on illegal orders, the removal of the JAGs and the Pentagon press corps, and why Chuck argues that whoever Hegseth wants out may be exactly who the country needs leading it next.  Then, Matt Bennett — co-founder and executive vice president of the center-left think tank Third Way — joins the Chuck Toddcast to offer a pragmatist's anxious assessment of what the Mamdani-led DSA surge in New York actually means for the future of the Democratic Party. Bennett's central worry is whether the New York primaries represent a genuine "Tea Party moment" for the left — which he frankly admits would be scary for Democrats — though he takes some comfort in the fact that the three districts Mamdani candidates won are extraordinarily deep blue, and argues the national Democratic electorate simply isn't as extreme as the Republican base, making the party much harder to hijack than the GOP was. Bennett draws a crucial distinction in how these races were actually won: Mamdani himself won on affordability, but many of his endorsees won on Israel, where anti-Israel sentiment has become the number-one voting issue for New York progressives. He's careful but direct on the antisemitism question — not all of the far-left are antisemites, he says, but they are increasingly making common cause with them, pointing to the antisemitic abuse Dan Goldman faced during his campaign — and argues that while antisemitism won't ultimately eat the Democratic Party, it absolutely needs to be contained. Bennett is sharply critical of the self-inflicted wounds of progressive governance (decriminalizing shoplifting was a disaster, he says), and argues the broader problem is that left-coded "performative nonsense" fundamentally changed how voters see the party — that the country rejected both Biden's progressive overreach and the left's woke cultural politics, and that Biden's real mistake was bragging he was the most progressive president since FDR. The conversation broadens into a rich strategic discussion about 2028 and the soul of the party. Bennett argues that parties are ultimately defined by their nominee, so Democrats will be fine if they simply get that choice right, and frames the Michigan Senate primary — where he's skeptical Abdul El-Sayed can beat Mike Rogers — as a fascinating case study in the tension between charisma and electability. He makes the case that charisma genuinely matters (Mamdani and El-Sayed have it), that "boring doesn't work" in modern politics, and that the biggest open question for 2028 is whether a center-left candidate can successfully run as a genuine change agent — because the status quo is extremely broken, and no one can win by running to preserve it. Bennett offers some encouraging signs for his wing of the party: Iowa is drifting back toward Democrats, James Talarico is a genuinely strong candidate in Texas, and candidate quality still matters enormously. He and Chuck dig into why Palestine became the defining progressive cause rather than the plight of the Uighurs, how social media and the collapse of civics education have sealed people into ideological bubbles, and why the word "socialism" means Norway to some voters and Cuba to others. Bennett argues that Netanyahu has personally turned off a generation of young Americans to Israel — and that if Israelis remove him, it could serve as a genuine relief valve for Democrats — and closes with a series of pointed predictions: Schumer should make clear soon that he won't run for leader again, Warren and Murphy are too far-left-coded to unify the party, both wings could actually rally around Brian Schatz as leader, and the Mamdani story, for all the panic it's generated, is ultimately a minor earthquake rather than a major fracture. Finally, he answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment.    Refresh your wardrobe with Quince. Go to https://Quince.com/chuck for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.    Thank you Wildgrain for sponsoring. Visit http://wildgrain.com/TODDCAST and use the code "TODDCAST" at checkout to receive $30 off your first box PLUS free Croissants for life!   From the opening whistle to the final kick. Bet on a match and get bonus bets for every goal scored at Fanduel.com  Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 00:15 Programming Note: July & August the ToddCast will be on M/TH only 03:30 Fallout from Mamdani endorsed candidates sweeping NYC primaries 04:30 Younger, white progressives powered Mamdani’s candidates 05:00 Mamdani was smart about where he spent his political capital 06:15 Unlikely there’s a wider swath of voters open to socialism 08:30 Mamdani’s affordability focus was galvanizing, not his endorsees 09:15 Israel has become a litmus test for some on the left 09:45 MAGA, and increasingly the progressive left don’t appreciate pluralism 10:15 Pluralism IS the American experiment 11:00 When every issue is a litmus test, disagreement becomes punishable 14:00 Many Jewish Americans felt very unsettled by the results 16:00 Is this New York’s moment, or a broader ideological realignment? 17:30 Two factions not interested in compromise could dominate both parties 19:00 Both parties used to move to the center to win elections, less so lately 19:45 The DSA could create discomfort with centrist voters like MAGA does 21:30 The next test will be with the candidacy of Abdul El-Sayed in MI 23:45 Mamdani is an incredibly smart and calculating leader of DSA movement 26:15 Despite better organization, DSA has less chance of taking over the party 29:00 It’s still early, but it feels like the left is on the march 29:30 Trump meets with senate GOP after refusing to sign housing bill 30:30 Trump blew a chance to show voters he cares about affordability 31:00 Trump turned meeting into an airing of grievances 31:45 The bill has veto proof majorities even if Trump doesn’t sign it 33:00 Trump is hurting the Republicans politically ahead of the midterms 33:45 Trump makes it almost impossible for the GOP to govern 34:45 It’s going to be a miserable 2 years for Trump, has only himself to blame 36:00 Pete Hegseth is overtly trying to politicize the military 36:30 Military leadership wants to stay out of the political fray 37:30 One of these generals they force out could become next POTUS 39:00 Chris Donahue is quintessential military leader, fired by Hegseth 40:00 Donahue was viewed as a future chairman of the joint chiefs 41:15 Confirming Hegseth is biggest black eye on the record of Tom Thillis 42:00 All military leaders make personnel changes, this is different 42:30 Hegseth is removing leaders simply for being black or women 44:00 Hegseth is firing people for what they know or what they’ve seen 45:00 He also fires officers for when they push back on illegal orders 45:45 Hegseth removed the JAGS to avoid “legal roadblocks” 47:45 Hegseth is trying to force his religious beliefs on the entire military 49:15 We’ve never had a comparable purge in our military 50:45 The Pentagon removed to the press corp to avoid difficult questions 51:30 This should be extraordinarily alarming to Americans 52:15 Whoever Pete Hegseth wants out… should be our next set of leaders 53:00 We can’t risk the military being turned into a political force 53:45 Damage at DOJ and Pentagon will be hard to repair 01:00:30 Matt Bennett (The Third Way) joins the Chuck ToddCast 01:01:30 Third Way believes themselves to be center-left pragmatists 01:02:45 If NY primaries are a “Tea Party moment” for left, that’s scary for Dems 01:04:00 3 districts Mamdani candidates won are very deep blue 01:04:30 Worried about MI senate primary if Abdul El-Sayed wins 01:06:15 The far left could become a disruptive force inside the Dem party 01:08:30 Mamdani won on affordability, his endorsees won on Israel 01:10:00 Not all far-left are antisemites, but they’re making common cause with them 01:10:30 Dan Goldman faced antisemetic abuse during the campaign 01:11:45 Antisemitism won’t eat the Dem party, but needs to be contained 01:14:15 Progressive politicians decriminalizing shoplifting was a disaster 01:16:15 The national Dem electorate not as extreme as the GOP’s 01:18:00 It will be harder to hijack the Democratic electorate 01:20:00 Democrats suffered from a lack of charismatic leaders in the 80s 01:21:15 Parties are defined by their nominee, Dems will be fine if they get it right 01:22:00 Anti-Israel has become the #1 voting issue for New York progressives 01:23:15 Why has Palestine become the cause and not the Uighurs? 01:27:15 Social media and a lack of civics education has put people in bubbles 01:28:00 You have to be able to talk to people you disagree with 01:29:30 Socialism means Norway to some people and Cuba to others 01:32:30 Biden’s mistake was bragging he was most progressive president since FDR 01:33:15 The country rejected Biden’s progressive change & left’s “woke” culture 01:35:30 The left coded performative nonsense changed the view of the party 01:36:45 Al Gore lost as a VP to a popular president, Harris had impossible task 01:40:00 Could the Democratic base reject someone center-left in 2028? 01:41:15 The Michigan primary is a fascinating case study in Dem politics 01:42:30 Being charismatic like Mamdani or El-Sayed matters in politics 01:43:00 Democratic candidates have to get through the wall in South Carolina 01:44:45 Big question for 2028… can a center-left candidate run as a change agent? 01:47:00 Bibi Netanyahu has turned off a generation of Americans to Israel 01:49:15 If Israelis get rid of Netanyahu, that could be a relief valve for Dems 01:49:45 What can the establishment learn from the DSA? 01:50:15 The status quo is extremely broken, can’t run on preserving it 01:51:15 Iowa is coming back to the Democratic party 01:52:15 Candidate quality matter and Talarico is a good candidate 01:53:30 Boring doesn’t work in modern politics 01:56:00 What does success look like for the center left in the 2026 midterms? 01:56:45 Skeptical that El-Sayed can beat Mike Rogers in Michigan 01:57:45 Schumer should make clear he won’t run in 2028 and announce it soon 01:58:30 Warren and Murphy are too far left and far left coded 01:59:00 Both wings of the party can agree on Brian Schatz as leader 01:59:30 Mamdani story is a minor earthquake not a major fracture  02:00:15 Chuck’s thoughts on the interview with Matt Bennett 02:03:15 Ask Chuck 02:03:30 How much have outlets like Fox News shaped the outlooks of boomers? 02:11:15 Is there a future where large PAC spending burns out due to voter backlash? 02:16:15 Could you talk about Keir Starmer and labours struggles.. Lessons for Dems? 02:23:30 What would you consider the Top 5 presidential actions that worked? 02:29:15 What characteristics define a “Trumpy” voter? 02:32:00 Can the establishment mend fences with the progressives? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Matt Bennett — co-founder and executive vice president of the center-left think tank Third Way — joins the Chuck Toddcast to offer a pragmatist's anxious assessment of what the Mamdani-led DSA surge in New York actually means for the future of the Democratic Party. Bennett's central worry is whether the New York primaries represent a genuine "Tea Party moment" for the left — which he frankly admits would be scary for Democrats — though he takes some comfort in the fact that the three districts Mamdani candidates won are extraordinarily deep blue, and argues the national Democratic electorate simply isn't as extreme as the Republican base, making the party much harder to hijack than the GOP was. Bennett draws a crucial distinction in how these races were actually won: Mamdani himself won on affordability, but many of his endorsees won on Israel, where anti-Israel sentiment has become the number-one voting issue for New York progressives. He's careful but direct on the antisemitism question — not all of the far-left are antisemites, he says, but they are increasingly making common cause with them, pointing to the antisemitic abuse Dan Goldman faced during his campaign — and argues that while antisemitism won't ultimately eat the Democratic Party, it absolutely needs to be contained. Bennett is sharply critical of the self-inflicted wounds of progressive governance (decriminalizing shoplifting was a disaster, he says), and argues the broader problem is that left-coded "performative nonsense" fundamentally changed how voters see the party — that the country rejected both Biden's progressive overreach and the left's woke cultural politics, and that Biden's real mistake was bragging he was the most progressive president since FDR. The conversation broadens into a rich strategic discussion about 2028 and the soul of the party. Bennett argues that parties are ultimately defined by their nominee, so Democrats will be fine if they simply get that choice right, and frames the Michigan Senate primary — where he's skeptical Abdul El-Sayed can beat Mike Rogers — as a fascinating case study in the tension between charisma and electability. He makes the case that charisma genuinely matters (Mamdani and El-Sayed have it), that "boring doesn't work" in modern politics, and that the biggest open question for 2028 is whether a center-left candidate can successfully run as a genuine change agent — because the status quo is extremely broken, and no one can win by running to preserve it. Bennett offers some encouraging signs for his wing of the party: Iowa is drifting back toward Democrats, James Talarico is a genuinely strong candidate in Texas, and candidate quality still matters enormously. He and Chuck dig into why Palestine became the defining progressive cause rather than the plight of the Uighurs, how social media and the collapse of civics education have sealed people into ideological bubbles, and why the word "socialism" means Norway to some voters and Cuba to others. Bennett argues that Netanyahu has personally turned off a generation of young Americans to Israel — and that if Israelis remove him, it could serve as a genuine relief valve for Democrats — and closes with a series of pointed predictions: Schumer should make clear soon that he won't run for leader again, Warren and Murphy are too far-left-coded to unify the party, both wings could actually rally around Brian Schatz as leader, and the Mamdani story, for all the panic it's generated, is ultimately a minor earthquake rather than a major fracture.  Refresh your wardrobe with Quince. Go to https://Quince.com/chuck for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.  Thank you Wildgrain for sponsoring. Visit http://wildgrain.com/TODDCAST and use the code "TODDCAST" at checkout to receive $30 off your first box PLUS free Croissants for life! From the opening whistle to the final kick. Bet on a match and get bonus bets for every goal scored at Fanduel.com  Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Matt Bennett (The Third Way) joins the Chuck ToddCast 01:00 Third Way believes themselves to be center-left pragmatists 02:15 If NY primaries are a “Tea Party moment” for left, that’s scary for Dems 03:30 3 districts Mamdani candidates won are very deep blue 04:00 Worried about MI senate primary if Abdul El-Sayed wins 05:45 The far left could become a disruptive force inside the Dem party 08:00 Mamdani won on affordability, his endorsees won on Israel 09:30 Not all far-left are antisemites, but they’re making common cause with them 10:00 Dan Goldman faced antisemetic abuse during the campaign 11:15 Antisemitism won’t eat the Dem party, but needs to be contained 13:45 Progressive politicians decriminalizing shoplifting was a disaster 15:45 The national Dem electorate not as extreme as the GOP’s 17:30 It will be harder to hijack the Democratic electorate 19:30 Democrats suffered from a lack of charismatic leaders in the 80s 20:45 Parties are defined by their nominee, Dems will be fine if they get it right 21:30 Anti-Israel has become the #1 voting issue for New York progressives 22:45 Why has Palestine become the cause and not the Uighurs? 26:45 Social media and a lack of civics education has put people in bubbles 27:30 You have to be able to talk to people you disagree with 29:00 Socialism means Norway to some people and Cuba to others 32:00 Biden’s mistake was bragging he was most progressive president since FDR 32:45 The country rejected Biden’s progressive change & left’s “woke” culture 35:00 The left coded performative nonsense changed the view of the party 36:15 Al Gore lost as a VP to a popular president, Harris had impossible task 39:30 Could the Democratic base reject someone center-left in 2028? 40:45 The Michigan primary is a fascinating case study in Dem politics 42:00 Being charismatic like Mamdani or El-Sayed matters in politics 42:30 Democratic candidates have to get through the wall in South Carolina 44:15 Big question for 2028… can a center-left candidate run as a change agent? 46:30 Bibi Netanyahu has turned off a generation of Americans to Israel 48:45 If Israelis get rid of Netanyahu, that could be a relief valve for Dems 49:15 What can the establishment learn from the DSA? 49:45 The status quo is extremely broken, can’t run on preserving it 50:45 Iowa is coming back to the Democratic party 51:45 Candidate quality matter and Talarico is a good candidate 53:00 Boring doesn’t work in modern politics 55:30 What does success look like for the center left in the 2026 midterms? 56:15 Skeptical that El-Sayed can beat Mike Rogers in Michigan 57:15 Schumer should make clear he won’t run in 2028 and announce it soon 58:00 Warren and Murphy are too far left and far left coded 58:30 Both wings of the party can agree on Brian Schatz as leader 59:00 Mamdani story is a minor earthquake not a major fractureSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd breaks down a seismic primary night in New York, where Mamdani-backed Democratic Socialist candidates swept their races — and argues the DSA may be on the verge of becoming the far-left equivalent of the Freedom Caucus, a small but disciplined faction capable of making the establishment's life genuinely miserable. The most stunning data point: Chuck argues Chuck Schumer likely couldn't win a Democratic primary anywhere in New York right now, that Dan Goldman lost his primary handily, and that while Schumer clearly shouldn't run again, politicians rarely walk away on their own. It was also a quietly bad night for Hakeem Jeffries, and Chuck raises the genuinely open question of whether Jeffries would even survive a primary challenge — and whether he still has a clear path to the speakership if Democrats take the House. The strategic lesson the left has internalized, Chuck argues, is that the smaller the Democratic majority, the more leverage a committed progressive bloc can apply, which means Democrats may have to govern in a fundamentally different way than their leadership wants. But Chuck repeatedly returns to the central tension: this brand of far-left politics plays beautifully in coastal cities but the socialist label simply doesn't travel well elsewhere, the rise of far-left politics has become uncomfortably intertwined with rising antisemitism, pro-Israel Democrats may soon find themselves politically homeless, and the real test will be whether progressives can win anywhere outside their urban strongholds. It all amounts, Chuck says, to a genuine fight for the heart and soul of the Democratic Party. He closes with a heartfelt remembrance of former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, who passed away at 100 — recalling a man who always grounded his opinions in data, and what a personal treat it was to have known him. Finally, skip the reflecting pool… Chuck presents his ToddCast Top 5 list of his favorite Washington D.C. monuments & answers listeners’ questions in the Ask Chuck segment. Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary.  Refresh your wardrobe with Quince. Go to https://Quince.com/chuck for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.  Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code CHUCKTODDCAST at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: https://incogni.com/chucktoddcast  Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 04:00 Mamdani backed DSA candidates sweep in NY primaries 06:00 Democratic socialists could become the far left equivalent of Freedom Caucus? 06:45 Chuck Schumer likely couldn’t win any Democratic primary in New York 07:30 Dan Goldman lost his primary handily 09:45 Schumer shouldn’t run again, but politicians rarely walk away 10:30 It was a bad night for Hakeem Jeffries, would he survive a primary? 13:30 The left has learned that you can make life miserable for the establishment 15:00 The smaller the Dems majority, the more pressure the left can apply in Congress 15:45 Hakeem Jeffries may not have a clear path to the speakership 17:00 Democrats will have to govern differently if the majority is narrow 19:00 The far left politics play on the coasts, but can it win elsewhere? 21:45 The socialist label doesn’t travel well outside the left leaning cities 23:30 Far-left politics has become intertwined with rise of antisemitism 24:45 Pro-Israel Democrats could become politically homeless 25:45 Big test will be if progressive can win elsewhere 27:45 There’s a real fight for the heart and soul of the Democratic party29:00 Alan Greenspan passes away at the age of 100 30:30 Greenspan always grounded his opinions in data 33:15 It was a treat to know Alan Greenspan personally 38:15 Chuck’s thoughts on the interview with Mayor David Holt 40:30 ToddCast Top 5 list 42:00 Top 5 historical attractions in Washington DC 44:15 Honorable Mention - Mount Vernon 45:45 #5 The World War I Memorial 47:15 #4 Albert Einstein Memorial 49:00 #3 Arlington National Cemetery 51:30 #2 Korean War Memorial 52:45 #1 Vietnam Veterans Memorial 55:45 Ask Chuck 56:00 Thoughts on the predictions Trump might not finish his term? 01:04:45 Do leaders rise due to the political moment, or do they make the history? 01:11:30 Does George W Bush’s “go shopping” mindset say something about boomers? 01:17:45 Where would you rank the Iran war amongst top presidential blunders? 01:27:15 Why can’t the country ever deal with long term crises in advance? 01:31:45 How do you manage to juggle your busy schedule? 01:35:45 Does Trump’s leadership style hurt the ability to make peace?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd breaks down a seismic primary night in New York, where Mamdani-backed Democratic Socialist candidates swept their races — and argues the DSA may be on the verge of becoming the far-left equivalent of the Freedom Caucus, a small but disciplined faction capable of making the establishment's life genuinely miserable. The most stunning data point: Chuck argues Chuck Schumer likely couldn't win a Democratic primary anywhere in New York right now, that Dan Goldman lost his primary handily, and that while Schumer clearly shouldn't run again, politicians rarely walk away on their own. It was also a quietly bad night for Hakeem Jeffries, and Chuck raises the genuinely open question of whether Jeffries would even survive a primary challenge — and whether he still has a clear path to the speakership if Democrats take the House. The strategic lesson the left has internalized, Chuck argues, is that the smaller the Democratic majority, the more leverage a committed progressive bloc can apply, which means Democrats may have to govern in a fundamentally different way than their leadership wants. But Chuck repeatedly returns to the central tension: this brand of far-left politics plays beautifully in coastal cities but the socialist label simply doesn't travel well elsewhere, the rise of far-left politics has become uncomfortably intertwined with rising antisemitism, pro-Israel Democrats may soon find themselves politically homeless, and the real test will be whether progressives can win anywhere outside their urban strongholds. It all amounts, Chuck says, to a genuine fight for the heart and soul of the Democratic Party. He closes with a heartfelt remembrance of former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, who passed away at 100 — recalling a man who always grounded his opinions in data, and what a personal treat it was to have known him. Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt — the popular Republican who has won all three of his mayoral elections with at least 60% of the vote — joins the Chuck Toddcast to make an impassioned and deeply substantive case for pluralism as the foundation of the entire American experiment. Holt, who recently gave a notable speech on the subject, argues that the American system was fundamentally built on the acceptance of pluralism and the idea that compromise should produce something "good enough" rather than perfect for any single faction — and that the founders gave us a pretty good system specifically designed to channel disagreement away from political violence. The problem, Holt argues, is that the system is now actively making compromise harder. He points to closed partisan primaries as a central culprit: because he faces all voters rather than a narrow partisan base, he's incentivized to build consensus, but most candidates today are forced to pass bizarre litmus tests with base voters and campaign on culture-war messaging rather than the bread-and-butter issues people actually care about.  The conversation broadens into the structural and cultural threats Holt sees to a pluralistic society. He argues this era has revealed the long-ignored flaws in American democracy — that we've all taken the system for granted — and makes the case that getting rid of closed partisan primaries, sometimes through ballot initiatives, is one of the most important reforms available, provided it's done in a way that doesn't simply flip parties or states for partisan advantage but instead empowers minority-party voters to act as genuine swing votes. Holt is sharp on education's role in all of this: he worries that the voucherization of schools and the explosion of private schools risk teaching kids in ideological monocultures, and laments the erosion of civics education over the past two decades, noting that public schools deliberately deemphasized social studies after No Child Left Behind. He and Chuck dig into whether pluralism can even be taught or whether it has to be lived in a genuinely diverse place, the difficulty of having a nuanced public conversation about AI data centers, and the housing crisis that Holt argues is not getting nearly enough attention from either the national media or Washington — closing with a concrete look at what a federal housing bill would actually mean for a fast-growing city like Oklahoma City. Finally, skip the reflecting pool… Chuck presents his ToddCast Top 5 list of his favorite Washington D.C. monuments & answers listeners’ questions in the Ask Chuck segment. Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary.  Refresh your wardrobe with Quince. Go to https://Quince.com/chuck for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.  Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code CHUCKTODDCAST at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: https://incogni.com/chucktoddcast  Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 04:00 Mamdani backed DSA candidates sweep in NY primaries 06:00 Democratic socialists could become the far left equivalent of Freedom Caucus? 06:45 Chuck Schumer likely couldn’t win any Democratic primary in New York 07:30 Dan Goldman lost his primary handily 09:45 Schumer shouldn’t run again, but politicians rarely walk away 10:30 It was a bad night for Hakeem Jeffries, would he survive a primary? 13:30 The left has learned that you can make life miserable for the establishment 15:00 The smaller the Dems majority, the more pressure the left can apply in Congress 15:45 Hakeem Jeffries may not have a clear path to the speakership 17:00 Democrats will have to govern differently if the majority is narrow 19:00 The far left politics play on the coasts, but can it win elsewhere? 21:45 The socialist label doesn’t travel well outside the left leaning cities 23:30 Far-left politics has become intertwined with rise of antisemitism 24:45 Pro-Israel Democrats could become politically homeless 25:45 Big test will be if progressive can win elsewhere 27:45 There’s a real fight for the heart and soul of the Democratic party29:00 Alan Greenspan passes away at the age of 100 30:30 Greenspan always grounded his opinions in data 33:15 It was a treat to know Alan Greenspan personally 41:45 Mayor David Holt joins the Chuck ToddCast 42:30 Was the city in mourning after the OKC Thunder lost? 44:15 Are San Antonio and OKC set to become rival cities? 46:15 The mayor gave a speech about the importance of pluralism 47:00 The American experiment is based on the acceptance of pluralism 47:45 Compromise should result in “good enough”, not perfect for anybody 49:15 The founders gave us a pretty good system to avoid political violence 51:30 Nowadays, the system is making compromise harder 52:15 OKC’s politics mirror the country, went 49-48 for Trump in ‘24 53:45 Won all three mayoral elections with at least 60% of the vote 54:30 Mayor faces all voters rather than closed partisan primaries 55:45 Electoral system needs to incentivize consensus building 57:30 Candidates used to campaign on their ability to work across the aisle 59:00 Messaging from gubernatorial candidates are not bread & butter issues 01:00:15 Candidates are forced to pass bizarre litmus tests with base voters 01:02:15 Can you teach pluralism, or do you have to live in a diverse place? 01:04:00 There are always opposing views that exist even in highly red/blue areas 01:06:15 This era has revealed the flaws/weaknesses of our democracy 01:07:15 We’ve all taken our system for granted 01:07:45 We have to get away from closed partisan primaries 01:09:45 How do you convince parties in power to open up primaries to more voters? 01:10:45 Some states can get rid of partisan primaries via ballot initiatives 01:12:30 The process shouldn’t flip parties or states 01:14:15 Voters in the minority should act as swing votes 01:16:30 Voucherization of schools can lead kids to learning in a monoculture 01:18:00 There’s been explosion in the creation of private schools 01:19:45 There’s been an erosion in civics education the past two decades 01:21:15 Public schools deemphasized social studies after No Child Left Behind 01:23:30 Can the electorate have a nuanced conversation around AI data centers? 01:25:15 Hard for elected officials to go against the NIMBY crowd 01:25:45 Politicians have to argue for the positive trade offs 01:27:00 Bringing in tech and investment used to be good politics, it’s not with data centers 01:27:30 Housing is the issue that’s not getting enough attention from media & DC 01:28:30 What would the housing bill do for you in OKC?  01:29:45 Chuck’s thoughts on the interview with Mayor David Holt 01:32:00 ToddCast Top 5 list 01:33:30 Top 5 historical attractions in Washington DC 01:35:45 Honorable Mention - Mount Vernon 01:37:15 #5 The World War I Memorial 01:38:45 #4 Albert Einstein Memorial 01:40:30 #3 Arlington National Cemetery 01:43:00 #2 Korean War Memorial 01:44:15 #1 Vietnam Veterans Memorial 01:47:15 Ask Chuck 01:47:30 Thoughts on the predictions Trump might not finish his term? 01:56:15 Do leaders rise due to the political moment, or do they make the history? 02:03:00 Does George W Bush’s “go shopping” mindset say something about boomers? 02:09:15 Where would you rank the Iran war amongst top presidential blunders? 02:18:45 Why can’t the country ever deal with long term crises in advance? 02:23:15 How do you manage to juggle your busy schedule? 02:27:15 Does Trump’s leadership style hurt the ability to make peace?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt — the popular Republican who has won all three of his mayoral elections with at least 60% of the vote — joins the Chuck Toddcast to make an impassioned and deeply substantive case for pluralism as the foundation of the entire American experiment. Holt, who recently gave a notable speech on the subject, argues that the American system was fundamentally built on the acceptance of pluralism and the idea that compromise should produce something "good enough" rather than perfect for any single faction — and that the founders gave us a pretty good system specifically designed to channel disagreement away from political violence. The problem, Holt argues, is that the system is now actively making compromise harder. He points to closed partisan primaries as a central culprit: because he faces all voters rather than a narrow partisan base, he's incentivized to build consensus, but most candidates today are forced to pass bizarre litmus tests with base voters and campaign on culture-war messaging rather than the bread-and-butter issues people actually care about.  The conversation broadens into the structural and cultural threats Holt sees to a pluralistic society. He argues this era has revealed the long-ignored flaws in American democracy — that we've all taken the system for granted — and makes the case that getting rid of closed partisan primaries, sometimes through ballot initiatives, is one of the most important reforms available, provided it's done in a way that doesn't simply flip parties or states for partisan advantage but instead empowers minority-party voters to act as genuine swing votes. Holt is sharp on education's role in all of this: he worries that the voucherization of schools and the explosion of private schools risk teaching kids in ideological monocultures, and laments the erosion of civics education over the past two decades, noting that public schools deliberately deemphasized social studies after No Child Left Behind. He and Chuck dig into whether pluralism can even be taught or whether it has to be lived in a genuinely diverse place, the difficulty of having a nuanced public conversation about AI data centers, and the housing crisis that Holt argues is not getting nearly enough attention from either the national media or Washington — closing with a concrete look at what a federal housing bill would actually mean for a fast-growing city like Oklahoma City. Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order.   Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary.  Refresh your wardrobe with Quince. Go to https://Quince.com/chuck for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.  Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code CHUCKTODDCAST at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: https://incogni.com/chucktoddcast  Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Mayor David Holt joins the Chuck ToddCast 00:45 Was the city in mourning after the OKC Thunder lost? 02:30 Are San Antonio and OKC set to become rival cities? 04:30 The mayor gave a speech about the importance of pluralism 05:15 The American experiment is based on the acceptance of pluralism 06:00 Compromise should result in “good enough”, not perfect for anybody 07:30 The founders gave us a pretty good system to avoid political violence 09:45 Nowadays, the system is making compromise harder 10:30 OKC’s politics mirror the country, went 49-48 for Trump in ‘24 12:00 Won all three mayoral elections with at least 60% of the vote 12:45 Mayor faces all voters rather than closed partisan primaries 14:00 Electoral system needs to incentivize consensus building 15:45 Candidates used to campaign on their ability to work across the aisle 17:15 Messaging from gubernatorial candidates are not bread & butter issues 18:30 Candidates are forced to pass bizarre litmus tests with base voters 20:30 Can you teach pluralism, or do you have to live in a diverse place? 22:15 There are always opposing views that exist even in highly red/blue areas 24:30 This era has revealed the flaws/weaknesses of our democracy 25:30 We’ve all taken our system for granted 26:00 We have to get away from closed partisan primaries 28:00 How do you convince parties in power to open up primaries to more voters? 29:00 Some states can get rid of partisan primaries via ballot initiatives 30:45 The process shouldn’t flip parties or states 32:30 Voters in the minority should act as swing votes 34:45 Voucherization of schools can lead kids to learning in a monoculture 36:15 There’s been explosion in the creation of private schools 38:00 There’s been an erosion in civics education the past two decades 39:30 Public schools deemphasized social studies after No Child Left Behind 41:45 Can the electorate have a nuanced conversation around AI data centers? 43:30 Hard for elected officials to go against the NIMBY crowd 44:00 Politicians have to argue for the positive trade offs 45:15 Bringing in tech and investment used to be good politics, it’s not with data centers 45:45 Housing is the issue that’s not getting enough attention from media & DC 46:45 What would the housing bill do for you in OKC?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd focuses this episode around a single, almost too-perfect metaphor: the reflecting pool Trump remade, where the paint is now visibly peeling off the concrete and the president is blaming vandals rather than his own shoddy work — a fitting symbol, Chuck argues, for a presidency defined by grandiose self-promotion and an inability to take responsibility for anything. He opens on the Iran fallout, where JD Vance is attending the latest round of negotiations while Marco Rubio is conspicuously MIA, MAGA is openly fracturing over the war and over support for Israel, and Trump's defenders are stuck trying to explain away an obvious capitulation.He warns that the Iranians have now learned to manipulate the markets the same way Trump does — opening and closing the Strait of Hormuz whenever they need cash — and that there will be no positives to come out of this war. From there Chuck pivots into one of his sharpest character indictments yet, arguing Trump is the worst role-model president in American history — a man who behaves like an elementary-school playground bully, and who constantly tries to steal other people's achievements.The contrast crystallized, Chuck says, in the split-screen of Obama's library dedication against Trump's UFC spectacle — the Obamas embodying the story of American meritocracy while Trump embodies inherited advantage squandered. That comparison leads Chuck into a genuinely nuanced reassessment of Obama's legacy: a successful president by traditional measures whose party nonetheless weakened badly on his watch, in part because there was no accountability for the financial crisis, no real effort to set up an heir apparent, and because Obama built a movement around himself rather than the party.He closes on Tuesday's pivotal New York primaries, where he argues the Democratic Socialists of America — led by Zohran Mamdani and AOC — are attempting a genuine takeover of New York Democratic politics, where the long-convenient "progressive" label is about to be torn apart to reveal the socialist faction underneath, and where the central question facing the entire party will be forced into the open: the socialist brand isn't automatically fatal, but it terrifies suburban voters, and a committed faction of supporters is all it takes to hijack a political party.  Finally, Chuck hops into the ToddCast Time Machine to revisit the Korean War and its lasting legacy on both American culture and geopolitics. He also answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment. Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order.   Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary.    Refresh your wardrobe with Quince. Go to https://Quince.com/chuck for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.    Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code CHUCKTODDCAST at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: https://incogni.com/chucktoddcast  Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 01:30 The reflecting pool has become a metaphor for Trump’s presidency 05:30 JD Vance attending latest round of Iran negotiations, Rubio MIA 07:30 MAGA is divided over the Iran war and support for Israel 08:45 Trump’s defenders stuck trying to explain away capitulation to Iran 09:30 Administration threatening to purge any critics of the Iran deal 10:30 Much of the administration is more populist, less pro-Israel 13:00 Growing movement of isolationism in both parties 14:30 Iranians have learned from Trump how to manipulate the markets 15:15 Iran will open and close the Strait whenever they need money 16:00 There will be no positives coming out of the Iran war 17:15 Will Republicans pretend Trump won, or will they start to speak out? 18:30 Trump has been a terrible role model for young American boys/men 19:30 Trump is the worst role model president we’ve ever had 20:15 Trump’s behavior is like an elementary school bully 21:15 Crypto.com bribed Trump to get out of legal trouble 21:45 UAE bribed Trump get export controls for chips dropped 22:45 Trump pardoned J6 rioters, then tried to reward them with slush fund 24:00 At least 40 pardoned J6ers have reoffended & been arrested again 25:00 Trump sent troops into cities to intimidate them like a playground bully 26:00 Trump, like a kid, tries to steal other people’s achievements 27:00 Trump’s remake of the reflecting pool has been a disaster 27:45 Paint is peeling off the concrete from the pool, Trump blames vandals 29:00 It’s clear Trump wasn’t parented at all, not given character tests 29:45 Trump gets a pass for behavior we wouldn’t tolerate from a child 30:30 How do we assess Obama’s legacy when Trump was elected after him? 31:15 Obama library ceremony reminded us about what he did best 31:45 Obama library vs Trump’s UFC showed sharp contrast between the two 32:45 The Obamas embodied the story of American meritocracy 33:15 Trump was born on 3rd base, and always trying to steal home 33:45 Both Obama and Trump’s stories are American stories 35:00 As time passes it becomes harder to separate Obama from Trump 35:45 By traditional measures, Obama was a successful president 36:30 The Democratic party weakened during Obama’s presidency 37:00 Three things Obama could have done to strengthen his party 37:30 Public was upset there was no accountability for financial crisis 38:00 Obama didn’t help identify and set up an heir apparent for success 39:00 22nd amendment a mistake? Would the country be better with 3 Obama terms? 39:30 Obama built a movement around himself, leaving party weaker 40:30 New York holds its primary on Tuesday with major implications  41:30 The Democratic Socialists of America trying to shift the party left 42:00 The Democratic party is splitting into 3 camps 42:45 “Progressive” used to cover both progressives and socialists 43:15 Tuesday’s primaries will tear the cover off the socialism facade 44:15 Mamdani believes he’s leading a movement, challenging establishment 44:45 Mamdani and AOC trying to lead DSA takeover of NY Democratic politics 45:45 Mamdani trying to remake the Democratic party in his image 46:30 Can the DSA brand work in the suburbs and outside the 5 boroughs? 47:15 Dem leadership treated Mamdani like a liability, socialism only sells in cities 48:15 The socialist label isn’t automatically fatal, but it scares suburban voters 49:00 Tuesday will force Democratic candidates to fit into one of the boxes 49:45 A faction of supporters is enough to hijack a political party 57:30 Chuck’s thoughts on interview with Paul Taylor 57:45 ToddCast Time Machine - June 25th, 1950 58:00 The Korean War never ended 58:45 The Korean War has a strange place in American history 59:15 The Korean War memorial in DC is haunting 01:00:30 The Korean War produced a world we’re still living in 01:01:00 America’s approach to foreign intervention began in Korea 01:01:45 Before the war, South Korea was third world and impoverished 01:02:45 North Korea has become a repressive military regime, more dangerous 01:03:45 The fighting ended in an armistice, not a peace treaty 01:04:15 The DNZ is one of the most heavily fortified borders on earth 01:04:45 The first fighting between US and China was in Korea 01:05:15 Truman didn’t rely on congress for a formal declaration of war 01:06:15 Korea was really America’s first true “forever war” 01:07:15 Korea taught America to live with a problem rather than fix it 01:08:00 Korea was not a clear victory or a clear defeat 01:09:00 Ask Chuck 01:09:15 Where’s the best place to go for civics education for kids? 01:12:15 Have you thought about creating an “election manifesto”? 01:16:15 Are there guardrails around presidential interference in elections? 01:20:30 If you could warn the founders about one blind spot, what would it be? 01:23:45 What happens behind the scenes during a TV news anchor walk-off? 01:27:00 What has actually changed on the ground in Venezuela post-Maduro?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd focuses this episode around a single, almost too-perfect metaphor: the reflecting pool Trump remade, where the paint is now visibly peeling off the concrete and the president is blaming vandals rather than his own shoddy work — a fitting symbol, Chuck argues, for a presidency defined by grandiose self-promotion and an inability to take responsibility for anything. He opens on the Iran fallout, where JD Vance is attending the latest round of negotiations while Marco Rubio is conspicuously MIA, MAGA is openly fracturing over the war and over support for Israel, and Trump's defenders are stuck trying to explain away an obvious capitulation.He warns that the Iranians have now learned to manipulate the markets the same way Trump does — opening and closing the Strait of Hormuz whenever they need cash — and that there will be no positives to come out of this war. From there Chuck pivots into one of his sharpest character indictments yet, arguing Trump is the worst role-model president in American history — a man who behaves like an elementary-school playground bully, and who constantly tries to steal other people's achievements.The contrast crystallized, Chuck says, in the split-screen of Obama's library dedication against Trump's UFC spectacle — the Obamas embodying the story of American meritocracy while Trump embodies inherited advantage squandered. That comparison leads Chuck into a genuinely nuanced reassessment of Obama's legacy: a successful president by traditional measures whose party nonetheless weakened badly on his watch, in part because there was no accountability for the financial crisis, no real effort to set up an heir apparent, and because Obama built a movement around himself rather than the party.He closes on Tuesday's pivotal New York primaries, where he argues the Democratic Socialists of America — led by Zohran Mamdani and AOC — are attempting a genuine takeover of New York Democratic politics, where the long-convenient "progressive" label is about to be torn apart to reveal the socialist faction underneath, and where the central question facing the entire party will be forced into the open: the socialist brand isn't automatically fatal, but it terrifies suburban voters, and a committed faction of supporters is all it takes to hijack a political party.  Then, Paul Taylor — former executive vice president of the Pew Research Center and author of This Is Getting Old — joins the Chuck Toddcast for a sweeping, data-rich conversation about the generation that has dominated American political life longer than any other: the Baby Boomers. Taylor's framing is striking — voters keep electing presidents born in 1946, and no generation in American history has enjoyed the kind of political hegemony Boomers have held since becoming the largest voting bloc in the 1980s. He argues this dominance has had real consequences as America approaches its 250th birthday in a genuinely dark place: CEO pay has ballooned from a 20-to-1 ratio to 300-to-1 on the Boomers' watch, their decisions have fueled the very populist backlash now reshaping both parties, and — in a deep irony — they spent decades undermining public confidence in the very institutions that benefited them most, helping imprint Trump's "everything is rigged" worldview onto the broader public. Taylor offers a wealth of arresting data points: Jimmy Carter is the only Democrat to win a majority of the Boomer vote in the last 14 elections, and the United States is the only country on earth where a majority of citizens believe their fellow citizens are morally bad — a stunning measure of how thoroughly Americans have turned on one another. The conversation broadens into questions of national identity, demographics, and where the country goes from here. Taylor argues that America is fundamentally a creedal nation rather than a "blood and soil" one, that it has accepted far more immigrants than any other country (though he's candid that too much immigration too fast tends to produce political and cultural backlash, and that the shift toward majority non-white immigration over the past 60 years has been a profound change), and that today's young generation celebrates difference — but a mosaic, he cautions, still needs glue to hold it together. Boomers, he notes, are the last living generation to experience America as something close to a monoculture, and the last to remember segregated America firsthand, which shapes their politics in ways younger generations struggle to understand. Taylor doesn't shy away from the harder verdicts: the generalization that Boomers are a narcissistic generation, he says, is fair. He and Todd explore the demographic time bomb of declining birth rates and an inverting age pyramid (and whether AI and robotics might paradoxically reduce the need for a baby boom), and trace a fascinating through-line from Gary Hart to Graham Platner on how the television era forced politicians to perform their character for the public — and how both Platner and Trump ultimately channel the same anger at a broken system. Taylor closes on a cautiously hopeful note that the next wave of American politics could be a backlash against the current divisiveness, even as he braces for the possibility that his fellow Boomers may not love what they read in his book. Finally, Chuck hops into the ToddCast Time Machine to revisit the Korean War and its lasting legacy on both American culture and geopolitics. He also answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment. Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order.   Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary.    Refresh your wardrobe with Quince. Go to https://Quince.com/chuck for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.    Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code CHUCKTODDCAST at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: https://incogni.com/chucktoddcast  Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 01:30 The reflecting pool has become a metaphor for Trump’s presidency 05:30 JD Vance attending latest round of Iran negotiations, Rubio MIA 07:30 MAGA is divided over the Iran war and support for Israel 08:45 Trump’s defenders stuck trying to explain away capitulation to Iran 09:30 Administration threatening to purge any critics of the Iran deal 10:30 Much of the administration is more populist, less pro-Israel 13:00 Growing movement of isolationism in both parties 14:30 Iranians have learned from Trump how to manipulate the markets 15:15 Iran will open and close the Strait whenever they need money 16:00 There will be no positives coming out of the Iran war 17:15 Will Republicans pretend Trump won, or will they start to speak out? 18:30 Trump has been a terrible role model for young American boys/men 19:30 Trump is the worst role model president we’ve ever had 20:15 Trump’s behavior is like an elementary school bully 21:15 Crypto.com bribed Trump to get out of legal trouble 21:45 UAE bribed Trump get export controls for chips dropped 22:45 Trump pardoned J6 rioters, then tried to reward them with slush fund 24:00 At least 40 pardoned J6ers have reoffended & been arrested again 25:00 Trump sent troops into cities to intimidate them like a playground bully 26:00 Trump, like a kid, tries to steal other people’s achievements 27:00 Trump’s remake of the reflecting pool has been a disaster 27:45 Paint is peeling off the concrete from the pool, Trump blames vandals 29:00 It’s clear Trump wasn’t parented at all, not given character tests 29:45 Trump gets a pass for behavior we wouldn’t tolerate from a child 30:30 How do we assess Obama’s legacy when Trump was elected after him? 31:15 Obama library ceremony reminded us about what he did best 31:45 Obama library vs Trump’s UFC showed sharp contrast between the two 32:45 The Obamas embodied the story of American meritocracy 33:15 Trump was born on 3rd base, and always trying to steal home 33:45 Both Obama and Trump’s stories are American stories 35:00 As time passes it becomes harder to separate Obama from Trump 35:45 By traditional measures, Obama was a successful president 36:30 The Democratic party weakened during Obama’s presidency 37:00 Three things Obama could have done to strengthen his party 37:30 Public was upset there was no accountability for financial crisis 38:00 Obama didn’t help identify and set up an heir apparent for success 39:00 22nd amendment a mistake? Would the country be better with 3 Obama terms? 39:30 Obama built a movement around himself, leaving party weaker 40:30 New York holds its primary on Tuesday with major implications  41:30 The Democratic Socialists of America trying to shift the party left 42:00 The Democratic party is splitting into 3 camps 42:45 “Progressive” used to cover both progressives and socialists 43:15 Tuesday’s primaries will tear the cover off the socialism facade 44:15 Mamdani believes he’s leading a movement, challenging establishment 44:45 Mamdani and AOC trying to lead DSA takeover of NY Democratic politics 45:45 Mamdani trying to remake the Democratic party in his image 46:30 Can the DSA brand work in the suburbs and outside the 5 boroughs? 47:15 Dem leadership treated Mamdani like a liability, socialism only sells in cities 48:15 The socialist label isn’t automatically fatal, but it scares suburban voters 49:00 Tuesday will force Democratic candidates to fit into one of the boxes 49:45 A faction of supporters is enough to hijack a political party 58:45 Paul Taylor (This Is Getting Old) joins the Chuck ToddCast 59:45 Voters keep electing presidents born in 1946 01:00:30 No generation has had political hegemony like the Boomers 01:01:30 Since the 80s, boomers have been biggest voting bloc 01:02:15 America in a dark place as it prepares to celebrate 250 01:03:45 Disneyland opened in the 50s but has lost its egalitarian culture 01:04:30 CEO pay has gone from 20-1 to 300-1, boomers facilitated that 01:05:15 Boomers’ decisions have led to a major populist backlash 01:06:45 Boomers came of age during a period of deep division in America 01:08:45 During the 60s, people believed the system was built to do good 01:09:15 Trump’s “rigged” worldview has been imprinted on the public 01:10:30 Boomers undermined confidence in institutions that benefitted them 01:12:15 There’s always been a class distinction in the boomer generation 01:13:15 Carter is the only Democrat to win majority of boomer vote in past 14 elections 01:14:45 U.S. is the only country where majority thinks fellow citizens are morally bad 01:16:15 Boomers grew up with a sense of triumphalism after World War 2 01:17:15 American exceptionalism didn’t start with the boomers 01:18:15 America has accepted far more immigrants than any other country 01:19:15 Too much immigration leads to political and cultural backlash 01:20:15 In the last 60 years, most immigrants have been non-white, a big change 01:21:15 Today’s young generation celebrates differences, but a mosaic needs glue 01:22:45 Boomers are the last generation to experience America as a monoculture 01:25:00 American is a creedal nation, not a “blood and soil” nation 01:27:30 Americans are misinformed, but generally pragmatic and collaborative 01:28:45 Hopefully the next wave of politics is a backlash to our current, divisive politics 01:29:30 Boomers are the last living generation to experience segregated America 01:31:30 Despite current tensions, progress for women and minorities has happened 01:32:45 Expanding minority rights is a hard thing to pull off 01:33:30 Why has it taken so long to push boomers out of leadership? 01:34:45 Women’s liberation has led to declining birth rates 01:36:15 Inverted demographic chart is going to create problems 01:37:15 Will we need a baby boom if AI & robotics will perform many of the jobs? 01:39:15 The generalization that boomers are a narcissistic generation is fair 01:40:00 Is there a thru line between Gary Hart and Graham Platner’s character issues? 01:43:00 The television era forced politicians to present themselves to the public 01:44:30 Mainers will have to decide about Platner’s shortcomings 01:45:45 Platner & Trump channel anger at the system 01:49:15 Will your fellow boomers hate what they read in this book?  01:51:45 Chuck’s thoughts on interview with Paul Taylor 01:52:00 ToddCast Time Machine - June 25th, 1950 01:52:15 The Korean War never ended 01:53:00 The Korean War has a strange place in American history 01:53:30 The Korean War memorial in DC is haunting 01:54:45 The Korean War produced a world we’re still living in 01:55:15 America’s approach to foreign intervention began in Korea 01:56:00 Before the war, South Korea was third world and impoverished 01:57:00 North Korea has become a repressive military regime, more dangerous 01:58:00 The fighting ended in an armistice, not a peace treaty 01:58:30 The DNZ is one of the most heavily fortified borders on earth 01:59:00 The first fighting between US and China was in Korea 01:59:30 Truman didn’t rely on congress for a formal declaration of war 02:00:30 Korea was really America’s first true “forever war” 02:01:30 Korea taught America to live with a problem rather than fix it 02:02:15 Korea was not a clear victory or a clear defeat 02:03:15 Ask Chuck 02:03:30 Where’s the best place to go for civics education for kids? 02:06:30 Have you thought about creating an “election manifesto”? 02:10:30 Are there guardrails around presidential interference in elections? 02:14:45 If you could warn the founders about one blind spot, what would it be? 02:18:00 What happens behind the scenes during a TV news anchor walk-off? 02:21:15 What has actually changed on the ground in Venezuela post-Maduro?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Paul Taylor — former executive vice president of the Pew Research Center and author of This Is Getting Old — joins the Chuck Toddcast for a sweeping, data-rich conversation about the generation that has dominated American political life longer than any other: the Baby Boomers. Taylor's framing is striking — voters keep electing presidents born in 1946, and no generation in American history has enjoyed the kind of political hegemony Boomers have held since becoming the largest voting bloc in the 1980s. He argues this dominance has had real consequences as America approaches its 250th birthday in a genuinely dark place: CEO pay has ballooned from a 20-to-1 ratio to 300-to-1 on the Boomers' watch, their decisions have fueled the very populist backlash now reshaping both parties, and — in a deep irony — they spent decades undermining public confidence in the very institutions that benefited them most, helping imprint Trump's "everything is rigged" worldview onto the broader public. Taylor offers a wealth of arresting data points: Jimmy Carter is the only Democrat to win a majority of the Boomer vote in the last 14 elections, and the United States is the only country on earth where a majority of citizens believe their fellow citizens are morally bad — a stunning measure of how thoroughly Americans have turned on one another. The conversation broadens into questions of national identity, demographics, and where the country goes from here. Taylor argues that America is fundamentally a creedal nation rather than a "blood and soil" one, that it has accepted far more immigrants than any other country (though he's candid that too much immigration too fast tends to produce political and cultural backlash, and that the shift toward majority non-white immigration over the past 60 years has been a profound change), and that today's young generation celebrates difference — but a mosaic, he cautions, still needs glue to hold it together. Boomers, he notes, are the last living generation to experience America as something close to a monoculture, and the last to remember segregated America firsthand, which shapes their politics in ways younger generations struggle to understand. Taylor doesn't shy away from the harder verdicts: the generalization that Boomers are a narcissistic generation, he says, is fair. He and Todd explore the demographic time bomb of declining birth rates and an inverting age pyramid (and whether AI and robotics might paradoxically reduce the need for a baby boom), and trace a fascinating through-line from Gary Hart to Graham Platner on how the television era forced politicians to perform their character for the public — and how both Platner and Trump ultimately channel the same anger at a broken system. Taylor closes on a cautiously hopeful note that the next wave of American politics could be a backlash against the current divisiveness, even as he braces for the possibility that his fellow Boomers may not love what they read in his book. Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order.   Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary.    Refresh your wardrobe with Quince. Go to https://Quince.com/chuck for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.  Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Paul Taylor (This Is Getting Old) joins the Chuck ToddCast 01:00 Voters keep electing presidents born in 1946 01:45 No generation has had political hegemony like the Boomers 02:45 Since the 80s, boomers have been biggest voting bloc 03:30 America in a dark place as it prepares to celebrate 250 05:00 Disneyland opened in the 50s but has lost its egalitarian culture 05:45 CEO pay has gone from 20-1 to 300-1, boomers facilitated that 06:30 Boomers’ decisions have led to a major populist backlash 08:00 Boomers came of age during a period of deep division in America 10:00 During the 60s, people believed the system was built to do good 10:30 Trump’s “rigged” worldview has been imprinted on the public 11:45 Boomers undermined confidence in institutions that benefitted them 13:30 There’s always been a class distinction in the boomer generation 14:30 Carter is the only Democrat to win majority of boomer vote in past 14 elections 16:00 U.S. is the only country where majority thinks fellow citizens are morally bad 17:30 Boomers grew up with a sense of triumphalism after World War 2 18:30 American exceptionalism didn’t start with the boomers 19:30 America has accepted far more immigrants than any other country 20:30 Too much immigration leads to political and cultural backlash 21:30 In the last 60 years, most immigrants have been non-white, a big change 22:30 Today’s young generation celebrates differences, but a mosaic needs glue 24:00 Boomers are the last generation to experience America as a monoculture 26:15 American is a creedal nation, not a “blood and soil” nation 28:45 Americans are misinformed, but generally pragmatic and collaborative 30:00 Hopefully the next wave of politics is a backlash to our current, divisive politics 30:45 Boomers are the last living generation to experience segregated America 32:45 Despite current tensions, progress for women and minorities has happened 34:00 Expanding minority rights is a hard thing to pull off 34:45 Why has it taken so long to push boomers out of leadership? 36:00 Women’s liberation has led to declining birth rates 37:30 Inverted demographic chart is going to create problems 38:30 Will we need a baby boom if AI & robotics will perform many of the jobs? 40:30 The generalization that boomers are a narcissistic generation is fair 41:15 Is there a thru line between Gary Hart and Graham Platner’s character issues? 44:15 The television era forced politicians to present themselves to the public 45:45 Mainers will have to decide about Platner’s shortcomings 47:00 Platner & Trump channel anger at the system 50:30 Will your fellow boomers hate what they read in this book?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck is joined by Eurasia Group founder Ian Bremmer for an in-depth conversation about the aftermath of the Iran war, the future of the Middle East, and the growing geopolitical uncertainty facing America's allies. Bremmer explains why he believes the conflict has fundamentally altered regional dynamics, creating competing power blocs led by the UAE and Israel on one side and Saudi Arabia and its partners on the other. He also discusses China's opportunities in the region, the future of Iran's regime, and why the biggest long-term consequence of the conflict may be an accelerated global shift away from oil and gas. The conversation then turns to Russia and Ukraine, where Bremmer delivers a stark warning: Vladimir Putin may now represent the world's most dangerous geopolitical risk. He explains why he is increasingly concerned about Putin's isolation, decision-making, and willingness to escalate as the war continues. Thank you Wildgrain for sponsoring. Visit http://wildgrain.com/TODDCAST and use the code "TODDCAST" at checkout to receive $30 off your first box PLUS free Croissants for life! Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary. Try ShipStation free for 60 days with full access to all features, No credit card needed! Go to https://ShipStation.com and use code TODDCAST for 60 days for free! Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code CHUCKTODDCAST at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: https://incogni.com/chucktoddcast   Timeline (Timestamps may vary due to advertisements) 02:21 Ian Bremmer Joins the Podcast06:03 Why the Iran Deal Is a Failure for Trump12:25 How the Middle East Is Reordering Itself20:19 The UAE, Saudi Arabia & Competing Power Blocs28:23 Iran's Future and the End of Oil Dominance35:50 China's Growing Influence in the Middle East42:23 North Korea, Putin & Global Security Risks49:46 Cuba, Trump, and the Western Hemisphere56:05 World Cup, Knicks & Closing ThoughtsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck opens the podcast with a wide-ranging look at what he sees as the long-term impact of the Trump administration's foreign policy. He argues that the United States has weakened many of the alliances and institutions that underpinned American influence for decades, raising questions about whether key partners in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East can still rely on Washington as a stable security partner. Then Chuck is joined by Eurasia Group founder Ian Bremmer for an in-depth conversation about the aftermath of the Iran war, the future of the Middle East, and the growing geopolitical uncertainty facing America's allies. Bremmer explains why he believes the conflict has fundamentally altered regional dynamics, creating competing power blocs led by the UAE and Israel on one side and Saudi Arabia and its partners on the other. He also discusses China's opportunities in the region, the future of Iran's regime, and why the biggest long-term consequence of the conflict may be an accelerated global shift away from oil and gas. The conversation then turns to Russia and Ukraine, where Bremmer delivers a stark warning: Vladimir Putin may now represent the world's most dangerous geopolitical risk. He explains why he is increasingly concerned about Putin's isolation, decision-making, and willingness to escalate as the war continues. In Ask Chuck, listeners ask about Democratic impeachment scenarios, presidential war powers, the future of the Republican Party, and other political questions shaping the road to 2028. Thank you Wildgrain for sponsoring. Visit http://wildgrain.com/TODDCAST and use the code "TODDCAST" at checkout to receive $30 off your first box PLUS free Croissants for life! Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary. Try ShipStation free for 60 days with full access to all features, No credit card needed! Go to https://ShipStation.com and use code TODDCAST for 60 days for free! Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code CHUCKTODDCAST at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: https://incogni.com/chucktoddcast   Timeline: (Timestamps may vary due to advertisements)02:21 Opening Thoughts: The Fallout from Iran07:53 Why Trump Isn't Really an Isolationist12:34 America's Alliances and the Cost of Dependency19:51 Three Major Takeaways Before Ian Bremmer23:34 Trump's Political Future, Cuba, and the Midterms32:23 Ian Bremmer Joins the Podcast35:47 Why the Iran Deal Looks Like a Strategic Failure38:06 Has America Broken Trust with Its Allies?41:52 The Gulf States Recalculate Their Security Strategy45:11 The Emerging UAE-Israel Alliance49:48 Saudi Arabia's New Geopolitical Path52:47 How the Middle East Is Splitting into Rival Blocs55:47 Qatar, Iran, and Regional Uncertainty58:05 Netanyahu's Political Challenges After the War1:02:19 Can the Iranian Regime Survive?1:06:49 The Global Shift Away from Oil and Gas1:09:29 China's Growing Influence in the Middle East1:11:01 North Korea's Rising Leverage1:15:01 Why Putin May Be More Dangerous Than Kim Jong-un1:18:25 Russia, Nuclear Risk, and Global Stability1:22:25 Russian Operations Against the West1:26:17 Ask Chuck1:28:23 Would Impeaching Trump Backfire on Democrats?1:33:40 Presidential War Powers Explained1:36:43 Additional Listener Questions1:45:51 The Future of Political Coalitions1:56:06 Baseball, the Nationals, and Weekend ThoughtsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck takes a wide-ranging look at what he sees as the long-term impact of the Trump administration's foreign policy. He argues that the United States has weakened many of the alliances and institutions that underpinned American influence for decades, raising questions about whether key partners in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East can still rely on Washington as a stable security partner. In Ask Chuck, listeners ask about Democratic impeachment scenarios, presidential war powers, the future of the Republican Party, and other political questions shaping the road to 2028. Thank you Wildgrain for sponsoring. Visit http://wildgrain.com/TODDCAST and use the code "TODDCAST" at checkout to receive $30 off your first box PLUS free Croissants for life! Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary. Try ShipStation free for 60 days with full access to all features, No credit card needed! Go to https://ShipStation.com and use code TODDCAST for 60 days for free! Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code CHUCKTODDCAST at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: https://incogni.com/chucktoddcast   Timeline:(Timestamps may vary due to advertisements) 02:21 Opening Thoughts: Did America Lose in Iran?07:21 Why Trump Isn't Really an Isolationist12:33 The Collapse of America's Global Security Architecture17:22 How Allies Are Learning to Live Without America20:51 The New Middle East Taking Shape24:18 Trump's Next Foreign Policy Target: Cuba27:34 Ask Chuck Begins28:23 Would Impeaching Trump Backfire on Democrats?33:40 Presidential War Powers Explained39:25 Can America Move Toward Coalition Politics?43:49 The Challenge of Verifying Information in Modern Media48:54 Are Swing Voters the Least Represented Americans?54:54 Why BYU Could Thrive in the NIL Era1:00:17 Great Man Theory vs. The Times Make the Leader1:06:36 Would a Democratic Cuba Change Florida Politics Forever?1:10:50 Chuck's Nationals Playoff Pitch & Closing ThoughtsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd and J.A. Adande talk with NBA Hall of Famer Chris Mullin to discuss the evolution of the Golden State Warriors from the Run TMC era to the Steph Curry dynasty. Mullin reflects on his time alongside Tim Hardaway and Mitch Richmond, explains why Run TMC was broken up before reaching its full potential, and shares how the We Believe Warriors helped reignite basketball in the Bay Area. As a former Warriors executive, he also takes us inside the moves that helped lay the foundation for one of the greatest dynasties in sports history. We also dive into Steph Curry's impact on basketball, the evolution of the three-point shot, the legendary 1992 Dream Team, the KD Warriors, and whether Golden State's championship teams will stand the test of time.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Historian Dominic Erdozain — author of To Love a Country — joins the Chuck Toddcast for a deeply thoughtful conversation about the difference between Americanism and the actual promise of America, and what it means to love a country honestly rather than mythologically. Erdozain argues that Joe Biden's "this is not who we are" framing of Trump-era nationalism was simply not accurate — the darker currents in American life are very much part of who we've always been, and pretending otherwise makes them harder to confront. He pushes back hard on the version of American exceptionalism that requires looking down on others, noting that while America was a genuine pioneer of democracy, it was painfully slow on feminism and racial equality, and that democracy itself can become a hollow shell for something tyrannical when it's imposed rather than consented to. Erdozain offers a fascinating historical excavation of how the South's distinct identity was forged by the Civil War, why that war seeded the worst possible conditions for Black freedom, and how Germany managed to avoid the "lost cause" mythology that still poisons American politics. He even takes aim at the Gettysburg Address — arguing its soaring language was later weaponized to justify wars it was never meant to bless, and that the enduring American myth that unity comes through blood and conflict is a dangerous one. The conversation broadens into a sweeping meditation on patriotism, war, and historical memory. Erdozain observes that today's reviled "elites" are essentially the "Yankees" of the 19th century in the Southern imagination, that the greatest war hawks tend to be people who never actually fought, and that America still hasn't reckoned with how profoundly 9/11 changed its society — pointing out that the people who championed the Iraq war have never been ostracized for it. He reflects on John F. Kennedy's hard-won realization that weapons alone were never the true guarantor of American security and Kennedy's deliberate effort to dampen American hatred of the Soviets, contrasts that with the "peace through strength" mantra of the Reagan era, and warns about the very real danger of a proxy conflict spiraling out of Ukraine. Erdozain argues that the "city on a hill" mentality, however flattering, inevitably curdles into nationalism — and that whenever a country fully embraces nationalism, someone always loses their freedom. But his book isn't a counsel of despair: he makes the case that America's singular ability to assimilate immigrants is one of its true superpowers, and that genuine patriotism means challenging the country to actually live up to the ideals it committed to paper. His closing pitch for why both a liberal and a conservative should read the book is the heart of the whole conversation — loving a country, like loving a person, means holding it to its highest self rather than excusing its worst instincts. Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary. Refresh your wardrobe with Quince. Go to https://Quince.com/chuck for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.  Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 01:46 Dominic Erdozain (To Love A Country) joins The Chuck ToddCast 03:46 Americanism vs. the promise of America 04:46 America’s founders believed in John Locke’s natural rights 06:01 2016 was traumatic between Brexit & election of Trump 07:01 Biden’s “This is not who we are” framing of nationalism wasn’t accurate 08:01 American exceptionalism can’t come with looking down on others 09:46 America is a pioneer democracy but slow on feminism & racial equality 11:01 Democracy can’t be imposed on others, it requires consent 12:16 Democracy can become a shell for something tyrannical 13:31 America’s “southern identity” was created by the civil war 14:16 The civil war seeded worst possible grounds for black freedom 15:16 How did Germany avoid “lost cause” mentality seen in American south? 16:31 What the Gettysburg address got wrong 17:31 The language of the address was used to justify many other wars 18:31 The myth is that unity comes through blood and conflict 19:16 Today’s “elites” are basically the “Yankees” of the 19th century 20:46 A civil society is one that’s in a state of peace 22:01 Avoiding a cult mentality when professing love of country 23:46 When a country embraces nationalism, someone loses freedoms 26:16 Accounts of history tend to be infused with the authors biases 28:16 The “patriotic myth” infused into cold war & Iraq war mythology 29:01 We create new myths to tell stories about ourselves 30:31 Kennedy tried to dampen down hatred of the soviets 32:46 Greatest war hawks tend to be people who never fought 34:01 We haven’t reckoned with the changes to American society post 9/11 35:31 The people who championed Iraq war haven’t been ostracized 37:31 JFK realized that weapons weren’t the guarantor of American security 39:16 America’s projection of soft power wasn’t purely altruistic 40:46 What does Reagan’s “peace through strength” mantra mean to you? 42:31 Fear the development of a proxy war that spirals out of Ukraine 44:46 The “city on a hill” mentality will lead to nationalism 47:46 America’s ability to assimilate immigrants is one of its superpowers 49:01 Book is challenging Americans to live up to the ideals we put on paper 50:31 Why should a liberal and a conservative read this book?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd reacts to Tuesday's elections and what the fallout means for both parties. Then he discusses the latest on the US-Iran deal and why it's already a failure for the Trump administration, and why the Kennedy Center and White House ballroom drama signals the beginning of the end for the Trump era. Also, he discusses the most underreported story of the week. Plus, the Top 5 most underrated elections and "Ask Chuck". Timeline: (Timestamps may vary due to advertisements): 01:42 - Election reaction 12:22 - Failure for Trump in Iran 23:59 - Beginning of end of Trump era 36:11 - Week's most underreported story 49:13 - Top 5 most underrated elections 58:43 - Ask Chuck      See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd reacts to Tuesday's elections and what the fallout means for both parties. Then he discusses the latest on the US-Iran deal and why it's already a failure for the Trump administration, and why the Kennedy Center and White House ballroom drama signals the beginning of the end for the Trump era. Plus, he discusses the most underreported story of the week.Then historian Dominic Erdozain — author of To Love a Country — joins the Chuck Toddcast for a deeply thoughtful conversation about the difference between Americanism and the actual promise of America, and what it means to love a country honestly rather than mythologically. Erdozain argues that Joe Biden's "this is not who we are" framing of Trump-era nationalism was simply not accurate — the darker currents in American life are very much part of who we've always been, and pretending otherwise makes them harder to confront. He pushes back hard on the version of American exceptionalism that requires looking down on others, noting that while America was a genuine pioneer of democracy, it was painfully slow on feminism and racial equality, and that democracy itself can become a hollow shell for something tyrannical when it's imposed rather than consented to. Erdozain offers a fascinating historical excavation of how the South's distinct identity was forged by the Civil War, why that war seeded the worst possible conditions for Black freedom, and how Germany managed to avoid the "lost cause" mythology that still poisons American politics. He even takes aim at the Gettysburg Address — arguing its soaring language was later weaponized to justify wars it was never meant to bless, and that the enduring American myth that unity comes through blood and conflict is a dangerous one.The conversation broadens into a sweeping meditation on patriotism, war, and historical memory. Erdozain observes that today's reviled "elites" are essentially the "Yankees" of the 19th century in the Southern imagination, that the greatest war hawks tend to be people who never actually fought, and that America still hasn't reckoned with how profoundly 9/11 changed its society — pointing out that the people who championed the Iraq war have never been ostracized for it. He reflects on John F. Kennedy's hard-won realization that weapons alone were never the true guarantor of American security and Kennedy's deliberate effort to dampen American hatred of the Soviets, contrasts that with the "peace through strength" mantra of the Reagan era, and warns about the very real danger of a proxy conflict spiraling out of Ukraine. Erdozain argues that the "city on a hill" mentality, however flattering, inevitably curdles into nationalism — and that whenever a country fully embraces nationalism, someone always loses their freedom. But his book isn't a counsel of despair: he makes the case that America's singular ability to assimilate immigrants is one of its true superpowers, and that genuine patriotism means challenging the country to actually live up to the ideals it committed to paper. His closing pitch for why both a liberal and a conservative should read the book is the heart of the whole conversation — loving a country, like loving a person, means holding it to its highest self rather than excusing its worst instincts.Finally, Chuck gives his Top 5 most overlooked races and then, in "Ask Chuck", he answers your questions about the U.S.-Iran situation and sports playoff systems. Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary. Refresh your wardrobe with Quince. Go to https://Quince.com/chuck for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.  Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 01:42 Election reaction 12:22 Failure for Trump in Iran 23:59 Beginning of end of Trump era 36:11 Week's most underreported story 49:13 Dominic Erdozain (To Love A Country) joins The Chuck ToddCast 51:13 Americanism vs. the promise of America 52:13 America’s founders believed in John Locke’s natural rights 53:28 2016 was traumatic between Brexit & election of Trump 54:28 Biden’s “This is not who we are” framing of nationalism wasn’t accurate 55:28 American exceptionalism can’t come with looking down on others 57:13 America is a pioneer democracy but slow on feminism & racial equality 58:28 Democracy can’t be imposed on others, it requires consent 59:43 Democracy can become a shell for something tyrannical 1:00:58 America’s “southern identity” was created by the civil war 1:01:43 The civil war seeded worst possible grounds for black freedom 1:02:43 How did Germany avoid “lost cause” mentality seen in American south? 1:03:58 What the Gettysburg address got wrong 1:04:58 The language of the address was used to justify many other wars 1:05:58 The myth is that unity comes through blood and conflict 1:06:43 Today’s “elites” are basically the “Yankees” of the 19th century 1:08:13 A civil society is one that’s in a state of peace 1:09:28 Avoiding a cult mentality when professing love of country 1:11:13 When a country embraces nationalism, someone loses freedoms 1:13:43 Accounts of history tend to be infused with the authors biases 1:15:43 The “patriotic myth” infused into cold war & Iraq war mythology 1:16:28 We create new myths to tell stories about ourselves 1:17:58 Kennedy tried to dampen down hatred of the Soviets 1:20:13 Greatest war hawks tend to be people who never fought 1:21:28 We haven’t reckoned with the changes to American society post 9/11 1:22:58 The people who championed Iraq war haven’t been ostracized 1:24:58 JFK realized that weapons weren’t the guarantor of American security 1:26:43 America’s projection of soft power wasn’t purely altruistic 1:28:13 What does Reagan’s “peace through strength” mantra mean to you? 1:29:58 Fear the development of a proxy war that spirals out of Ukraine 1:32:13 The “city on a hill” mentality will lead to nationalism 1:35:13 America’s ability to assimilate immigrants is one of its superpowers 1:36:28 Book is challenging Americans to live up to the ideals we put on paper 1:37:58 Why should a liberal and a conservative read this book? 1:43:50 - Top 5 Most Underrated Races 1:53:23 - Ask ChuckSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd opens on the surreal split-screen of a president desperate to manufacture a legacy: in the same stretch of days, Trump announced a "deal" with Iran, and hosted a UFC fight on the White House lawn. He argues the Iran deal is barely a deal at all — it's an agreement to begin a new negotiation, the diplomatic equivalent of trying to salvage a tie from a war that was always an own goal. The stated goal was to dismantle Iran's nuclear program; instead Iran never capitulated, will see roughly $24 billion in assets unfrozen along with oil export relief, and is essentially being paid off by the United States to reopen the Strait of Hormuz it closed in the first place. Chuck’s verdict is blunt: Iran didn't win the war outright, but it absolutely humiliated the United States, the deal looks far closer to an Iranian victory than an American one, it pointedly excludes Iran's proxies and effectively bails out Hezbollah, and it may actually increase Iran's incentive to pursue a nuclear weapon down the line — assuming the whole fragile arrangement doesn't simply fall apart by Friday. The biggest loser of the entire episode, Chuck argues, is Bibi Netanyahu, who alienated a generation of Democrats and thought he could manipulate Trump only to get burned, much as Trump assumed Iran would fold as easily as he believed Venezuela would. He gives Trump exactly one piece of credit — at least he knew when to fold, because the outcome could have been far worse — before pivoting to the deeper, sadder story underneath all of it: a president obsessed with celebrating himself and desperate for lasting recognition, who wants to define popular culture, slap his name on the federal government the way he does his golf courses, and who threw himself a grotesque UFC-fight birthday party on the White House lawn that's terrible politics. Finally, Chuck hops into the ToddCast Time Machine to revisit June 17th, 1994… when OJ Simpson was chased by police in his white Ford Broncos. He argues that news executives learned that sensationalized news coverage could create a large, reliable viewership… and this would change the news business forever. He also answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment. Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary.  Refresh your wardrobe with Quince. Go to https://Quince.com/chuck for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.  Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 03:30 Trump announces deal with Iran,  04:00 Trump hosts UFC fight on White House lawn 04:30 White House lashes out at the Weather Channel for storm forecast 05:15 Trump is trying so hard to leave his mark on history* 05:45 Deal is basically an agreement to begin a new negotiation 07:15 The Iran war was an own goal by Trump, can he salvage a tie? 08:00 Goal was to dismantle nuclear program, Iran hasn’t capitulated 08:45 Iran says that $24B in assets will be unfrozen & oil export relief 10:00 Trump is basically paying off Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz 10:30 Iran didn’t win the war, but they did humiliate the United States 11:00 The deal didn’t include proxies, and bails out Hezbollah 12:00 Deal looks closer to an Iranian victory than an American one 14:00 Iran will now be more incentivized to get a nuclear weapon 16:15 There’s a real chance this deal could fall apart by Friday 17:30 The biggest loser from the war/deal is Bibi Netanyahu 18:00 Bibi has alienated a generation of Democrats 19:00 Bibi thought he could manipulate Trump & it burned him 21:15 Trump thought Iran would be easy like Venezuela 22:00 At least Trump knew when to fold, outcome could be worse 24:00 Trump is obsessed with celebrating himself 24:30 Trump is desperate for lasting recognition 26:30 Trump wants to define popular culture himself 27:15 Like his golf courses, Trump wants to put his name on the government 28:30 Workers hid scaffolding when taking Trump’s name off Kennedy Center 30:00 The UFC fight at the White House just feels gross 30:30 The UFC fight is terrible politics, people don’t like it 31:30 Trump threw his own birthday because nobody else would 36:45 ToddCast Time Machine - June 17th, 1994 38:00 The OJ Bronco chase overshadowed the Knicks NBA Finals 40:15 The news business learned people came back for OJ coverage 41:15 OJ coverage became a format for the TV news business 42:15 Newsrooms felt financial pressure and OJ delivered ratings 42:45 The OJ chase got Super Bowl level TV ratings 43:30 The courtroom TV kept audiences coming back 44:30 The trial became like a daytime soap opera 45:00 CNN’s ratings exploded during the trial, made huge money 46:00 Fox & MSNBC launched after seeing CNN’s revenue 47:00 News viewership became a daily ritual for millions 49:30 Media sensationalized other stories the way they did OJ 51:15 Coverage began amplifying divisions & nationalized them 52:45 The trial led to the Kardashian’s becoming a media empire 53:45 Trial created the attention economy that Trump mastered 57:45 Ask Chuck 58:00 Why are votes counts released before the final tally? 01:01:15 Rick Jackson buying a crazy amount of TV spots? 01:06:00 Could war powers vote give Trump an offramp for Iran? 01:08:15 Why do our older leaders keep holding on to power? 01:14:00 Are there dividing lines in the college sports bill?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd opens on the surreal split-screen of a president desperate to manufacture a legacy: in the same stretch of days, Trump announced a "deal" with Iran, and hosted a UFC fight on the White House lawn. He argues the Iran deal is barely a deal at all — it's an agreement to begin a new negotiation, the diplomatic equivalent of trying to salvage a tie from a war that was always an own goal. The stated goal was to dismantle Iran's nuclear program; instead Iran never capitulated, will see roughly $24 billion in assets unfrozen along with oil export relief, and is essentially being paid off by the United States to reopen the Strait of Hormuz it closed in the first place. Chuck’s verdict is blunt: Iran didn't win the war outright, but it absolutely humiliated the United States, the deal looks far closer to an Iranian victory than an American one, it pointedly excludes Iran's proxies and effectively bails out Hezbollah, and it may actually increase Iran's incentive to pursue a nuclear weapon down the line — assuming the whole fragile arrangement doesn't simply fall apart by Friday. The biggest loser of the entire episode, Chuck argues, is Bibi Netanyahu, who alienated a generation of Democrats and thought he could manipulate Trump only to get burned, much as Trump assumed Iran would fold as easily as he believed Venezuela would. He gives Trump exactly one piece of credit — at least he knew when to fold, because the outcome could have been far worse — before pivoting to the deeper, sadder story underneath all of it: a president obsessed with celebrating himself and desperate for lasting recognition, who wants to define popular culture, slap his name on the federal government the way he does his golf courses, and who threw himself a grotesque UFC-fight birthday party on the White House lawn that's terrible politics. Then, Daniel Alegre — CEO of TelevisaUnivision, the largest Spanish-language media company in the world — joins the Chuck Toddcast for a genuinely revealing conversation about the single most misunderstood bloc in American politics: the Hispanic vote. Alegre's central argument is one both parties keep failing to internalize — the Hispanic vote is now an issues vote, not a reliably Democratic one, and Latino voters have become measurably more engaged precisely as they've started shopping their vote across abortion, democracy, the border, the economy, and immigration enforcement. He's blunt about 2024: the Trump campaign communicated with Hispanic voters far more effectively than Democrats did. Alegre offers a striking data point from Texas — James Talarico outspent Jasmine Crockett 8-to-1 on Hispanic outreach and won that demographic by roughly the same margin — and notes that Ted Cruz never actually won the Hispanic vote until he put in serious, sustained effort to reach them. The tactical lessons are sharp and counterintuitive: campaigns have to communicate with Hispanics differently than the general population, white politicians attempting to speak Spanish get a mixed reception at best, and sending a Spanish-speaking surrogate in your place is actually worse than not showing up at all. The conversation digs into the rich complexity beneath the catch-all term "Hispanic." Alegre explains that political leanings differ dramatically by country of origin (the network's biggest constituencies are Mexican, Cuban, and Venezuelan), that there are significant differences between first- and second-generation Latinos and the third and fourth generation, and that in more heavily Hispanic cities many families are actively maintaining their heritage rather than assimilating — even using AI now to translate content for the genuinely different variations of Spanish across Latin American communities. He shares polling that should reshape how candidates pitch themselves: two-thirds of Hispanics say they're barely getting by, 80% are lending money to family or community, and yet over 90% still want to live the American dream — which is exactly why optimistic messaging resonates with Latinos while doom-and-gloom falls flat. Alegre addresses the perennial accusations of bias against his network (he argues it moved not to the right but to the center after the Jorge Ramos era, with a goal of providing information and letting the audience decide), reflects on Mexico electing a Jewish woman in Claudia Sheinbaum, and explains the network's massive sports footprint — it broadcasts 70% of soccer games in the U.S. and holds major World Cup rights. His closing message is one neither party can afford to ignore heading into the midterms: Hispanics are the swing vote in America now, and any campaign that treats them as a monolith — or worse, as a constituency it already owns — is going to lose them. Finally, Chuck hops into the ToddCast Time Machine to revisit June 17th, 1994… when OJ Simpson was chased by police in his white Ford Broncos. He argues that news executives learned that sensationalized news coverage could create a large, reliable viewership… and this would change the news business forever. He also answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment. Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary.  Refresh your wardrobe with Quince. Go to https://Quince.com/chuck for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.  Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 03:30 Trump announces deal with Iran,  04:00 Trump hosts UFC fight on White House lawn 04:30 White House lashes out at the Weather Channel for storm forecast 05:15 Trump is trying so hard to leave his mark on history* 05:45 Deal is basically an agreement to begin a new negotiation 07:15 The Iran war was an own goal by Trump, can he salvage a tie? 08:00 Goal was to dismantle nuclear program, Iran hasn’t capitulated 08:45 Iran says that $24B in assets will be unfrozen & oil export relief 10:00 Trump is basically paying off Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz 10:30 Iran didn’t win the war, but they did humiliate the United States 11:00 The deal didn’t include proxies, and bails out Hezbollah 12:00 Deal looks closer to an Iranian victory than an American one 14:00 Iran will now be more incentivized to get a nuclear weapon 16:15 There’s a real chance this deal could fall apart by Friday 17:30 The biggest loser from the war/deal is Bibi Netanyahu 18:00 Bibi has alienated a generation of Democrats 19:00 Bibi thought he could manipulate Trump & it burned him 21:15 Trump thought Iran would be easy like Venezuela 22:00 At least Trump knew when to fold, outcome could be worse 24:00 Trump is obsessed with celebrating himself 24:30 Trump is desperate for lasting recognition 26:30 Trump wants to define popular culture himself 27:15 Like his golf courses, Trump wants to put his name on the government 28:30 Workers hid scaffolding when taking Trump’s name off Kennedy Center 30:00 The UFC fight at the White House just feels gross 30:30 The UFC fight is terrible politics, people don’t like it 31:30 Trump threw his own birthday because nobody else would 40:00 Daniel Alegre (TelevisaUnavision) joins the Chuck ToddCast 42:45 Distinctions between Telemundo and Univision post-merger? 44:30 Priority now is to create content that resonates with all hispanics 45:45 Adding English content doesn’t work when targeting spanish speakers 47:30 “Spanglish” is different for different Latin American communities 49:00 Using AI to translate for different variations of Spanish 50:30 Many overdubbed American media used same Spanish voice actor 52:00 Does instant translation tech diminish need for learning 2nd language? 53:00 People still want to connect with own language and community 55:30 Are politicians finally realizing they need to diversify their pitch to Latinos? 57:15 The Hispanic vote is now an issues vote, not a Democratic vote 58:15 Abortion, democracy, border are all key issues for Hispanics 59:15 Economic issues & immigration enforcement also key for Hispanics 01:01:30 Campaigns must communicate to Hispanics differently than general population 01:02:15 Trump campaign communicated to Hispanics much better than Dems in ‘24 01:03:30 Talarico outspent Crockett 8:1 communicating to Hispanics, won by same margin 01:04:30 Ted Cruz never won Hispanic vote until he put serious effort into reaching them 01:05:30 Over half of Latino vote in Los Angeles mayoral is still undecided 01:06:45 In a bilingual home, if parents switch to Spanish something serious happened 01:07:30 Significant differences between 1st-2nd gen hispanics and 3rd-4th gen 01:09:00 In more hispanic cities, many are maintaining heritage & not assimilating 01:11:45 Political leanings differ based on country of origin 01:13:00 Influx of immigrants at the border frustrated latinos in south Texas 01:14:15 Hispanics generally are very faith and family focused 01:15:45 Campaigns would do well to target the predominant section of hispanic vote 01:16:30 How well are white politicians received when they speak Spanish? 01:17:30 Sending Spanish speaking surrogates is worse than not showing up 01:19:00 Which candidates have impressed you with outreach to hispanics? 01:20:45 Trump campaign bookended messaging around Telemundo town halls 01:21:30 2/3rds of polled hispanics say they’re barely getting by 01:22:30 80% of people polled are lending money to family or their community 01:23:00 Over 90% want to live the American dream 01:24:30 Optimistic messaging resonates with Latinos rather than doom & gloom 01:27:00 Would a Latino presidential candidate overperform with Latinos? 01:28:15 As they’ve become issues voters, Latinos have become more engaged 01:29:45 Which community attacks your network the most over “bias”? 01:31:00 Jorge Ramos’s politics became defining for the network for viewers 01:32:15 The network moved right… to the center, not the right 01:33:30 Goal is to provide the information and let the audience decide 01:34:00 Mexico elected a jewish woman in Claudia Scheinbaum 01:35:15 Biggest constituencies for the network are Mexican, Cuban & Venezuelan 01:36:15 Have World Cup TV broadcasts in Mexico, and radio rights in U.S. 01:38:00 70% of soccer games in the U.S. are broadcast on the network 01:39:30 Hispanics are the swing vote and can’t be ignored  01:43:00 ToddCast Time Machine - June 17th, 1994 01:44:15 The OJ Bronco chase overshadowed the Knicks NBA Finals 01:46:30 The news business learned people came back for OJ coverage 01:47:30 OJ coverage became a format for the TV news business 01:48:30 Newsrooms felt financial pressure and OJ delivered ratings 01:49:00 The OJ chase got Super Bowl level TV ratings 01:49:45 The courtroom TV kept audiences coming back 01:50:45 The trial became like a daytime soap opera 01:51:15 CNN’s ratings exploded during the trial, made huge money 01:52:15 Fox & MSNBC launched after seeing CNN’s revenue 01:53:15 News viewership became a daily ritual for millions 01:55:45 Media sensationalized other stories the way they did OJ 01:57:30 Coverage began amplifying divisions & nationalized them 01:59:00 The trial led to the Kardashian’s becoming a media empire 02:00:00 Trial created the attention economy that Trump mastered 02:04:00 Ask Chuck 02:04:15 Why are votes counts released before the final tally? 02:07:30 Rick Jackson buying a crazy amount of TV spots? 02:12:15 Could war powers vote give Trump an offramp for Iran? 02:14:30 Why do our older leaders keep holding on to power? 02:20:15 Are there dividing lines in the college sports bill?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Daniel Alegre — CEO of TelevisaUnivision, the largest Spanish-language media company in the world — joins the Chuck Toddcast for a genuinely revealing conversation about the single most misunderstood bloc in American politics: the Hispanic vote. Alegre's central argument is one both parties keep failing to internalize — the Hispanic vote is now an issues vote, not a reliably Democratic one, and Latino voters have become measurably more engaged precisely as they've started shopping their vote across abortion, democracy, the border, the economy, and immigration enforcement. He's blunt about 2024: the Trump campaign communicated with Hispanic voters far more effectively than Democrats did, while Democrats took the community for granted. Alegre offers a striking data point from Texas — James Talarico outspent Jasmine Crockett 8-to-1 on Hispanic outreach and won that demographic by roughly the same margin — and notes that Ted Cruz never actually won the Hispanic vote until he put in serious, sustained effort to reach them. The tactical lessons are sharp and counterintuitive: campaigns have to communicate with Hispanics differently than the general population, white politicians attempting to speak Spanish get a mixed reception at best, and sending a Spanish-speaking surrogate in your place is actually worse than not showing up at all. The conversation digs into the rich complexity beneath the catch-all term "Hispanic." Alegre explains that political leanings differ dramatically by country of origin (the network's biggest constituencies are Mexican, Cuban, and Venezuelan), that there are significant differences between first- and second-generation Latinos and the third and fourth generation, and that in more heavily Hispanic cities many families are actively maintaining their heritage rather than assimilating — even using AI now to translate content for the genuinely different variations of Spanish across Latin American communities. He shares polling that should reshape how candidates pitch themselves: two-thirds of Hispanics say they're barely getting by, 80% are lending money to family or community, and yet over 90% still want to live the American dream — which is exactly why optimistic messaging resonates with Latinos while doom-and-gloom falls flat. Alegre addresses the perennial accusations of bias against his network (he argues it moved not to the right but to the center after the Jorge Ramos era, with a goal of providing information and letting the audience decide), reflects on Mexico electing a Jewish woman in Claudia Sheinbaum, and explains the network's massive sports footprint — it broadcasts 70% of soccer games in the U.S. and holds major World Cup rights. His closing message is one neither party can afford to ignore heading into the midterms: Hispanics are the swing vote in America now, and any campaign that treats them as a monolith — or worse, as a constituency it already owns — is going to lose them. Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary.  Refresh your wardrobe with Quince. Go to https://Quince.com/chuck for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.  Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Daniel Alegre (TelevisaUnavision) joins the Chuck ToddCast 02:45 Distinctions between Telemundo and Univision post-merger? 04:30 Priority now is to create content that resonates with all hispanics 05:45 Adding English content doesn’t work when targeting spanish speakers 07:30 “Spanglish” is different for different Latin American communities 09:00 Using AI to translate for different variations of Spanish 10:30 Many overdubbed American media used same Spanish voice actor 12:00 Does instant translation tech diminish need for learning 2nd language? 13:00 People still want to connect with own language and community 15:30 Are politicians finally realizing they need to diversify their pitch to Latinos? 17:15 The Hispanic vote is now an issues vote, not a Democratic vote 18:15 Abortion, democracy, border are all key issues for Hispanics 19:15 Economic issues & immigration enforcement also key for Hispanics 21:30 Campaigns must communicate to Hispanics differently than general population 22:15 Trump campaign communicated to Hispanics much better than Dems in ‘24 23:30 Talarico outspent Crockett 8:1 communicating to Hispanics, won by same margin 24:30 Ted Cruz never won Hispanic vote until he put serious effort into reaching them 25:30 Over half of Latino vote in Los Angeles mayoral is still undecided 26:45 In a bilingual home, if parents switch to Spanish something serious happened 27:30 Significant differences between 1st-2nd gen hispanics and 3rd-4th gen 29:00 In more hispanic cities, many are maintaining heritage & not assimilating 31:45 Political leanings differ based on country of origin 33:00 Influx of immigrants at the border frustrated latinos in south Texas 34:15 Hispanics generally are very faith and family focused 35:45 Campaigns would do well to target the predominant section of hispanic vote 36:30 How well are white politicians received when they speak Spanish? 37:30 Sending Spanish speaking surrogates is worse than not showing up 39:00 Which candidates have impressed you with outreach to hispanics? 40:45 Trump campaign bookended messaging around Telemundo town halls 41:30 2/3rds of polled hispanics say they’re barely getting by 42:30 80% of people polled are lending money to family or their community 43:00 Over 90% want to live the American dream 44:30 Optimistic messaging resonates with Latinos rather than doom & gloom 47:00 Would a Latino presidential candidate overperform with Latinos? 48:15 As they’ve become issues voters, Latinos have become more engaged 49:45 Which community attacks your network the most over “bias”? 51:00 Jorge Ramos’s politics became defining for the network for viewers 52:15 The network moved right… to the center, not the right 53:30 Goal is to provide the information and let the audience decide 54:00 Mexico elected a jewish woman in Claudia Scheinbaum 55:15 Biggest constituencies for the network are Mexican, Cuban & Venezuelan 56:15 Have World Cup TV broadcasts in Mexico, and radio rights in U.S. 58:00 70% of soccer games in the U.S. are broadcast on the network 59:30 Hispanics are the swing vote and can’t be ignoredSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd opens with the grim news that the Iran conflict is hot again as both sides resume exchanging strikes — and his blunt assessment is that nothing has actually changed since Trump was begging for a deal a month ago. He argues Trump has mismanaged this war from the very beginning with no clear goal, that he and Israel started it with vastly different objectives, and that he stubbornly refuses to accept a deal that looks like the one Obama got even though that's the only realistic off-ramp available. The brutal truth, Chuck says, is that Trump can't airstrike his way to victory, and if he was never willing to commit ground troops, he never should have started the war in the first place — the Iranians now hold more leverage than the United States, and it's entirely Trump's fault that they do. He delivers one of his sharpest character indictments yet, arguing Trump "failed upwards" to the most powerful job on earth and is now half-assing his way through the presidency the same way he half-assed his way through life, while Vance and Rubio scramble to avoid any ownership of the war.With inflation rising for a third straight month, Chuck sees no path for any of this to improve before the midterms.  But the heart of the episode is a deep, genuinely illuminating dive into a new Pew survey that Chuck calls possibly the best available tool for understanding the actual American electorate — one that shatters the illusion created by social media. The data reveals nine distinct political archetypes (three on the left, three in the middle, three on the right), that the ideological extremes make up only about 15% of the country and are the whitest segments, and that the loud, combative bases dominating online discourse aren't remotely close to a majority. The middle, he notes, is a full 38% of the electorate, with the center-left as the single largest group; the Reagan Republican coalition is measurably gone, reduced to just 11%; the civil war inside the American left is already underway with skeptical progressives who'll never vote Republican but may simply not vote at all; and the MAGA-religious right remains a fortress of reliable voters, with erosion showing up in exactly one place — younger voters. His takeaway is the one that should reshape how both parties think: the persuadable middle is repulsed most by the far left and far right, the party bases are precisely what cause the parties to struggle electorally, and the opportunity for independents has genuinely never been better — because what happens online simply is not reflective of who actually shows up to vote.  Finally, he answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment. Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order.   Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary. Timeline: 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 03:00 The conflict in Iran is active again as sides exchange strikes 04:00 Situation hasn’t changed since Trump begged for deal a month ago 04:45 Trump has mismanaged this war from the beginning, no clear goal 05:30 Trump refuses to accept a deal similar to the one Obama got 06:45 Trump + Israel started the war, but had vastly different objectives 08:45 New report shows inflation is going up for third straight month 09:45 Trump can’t airstrike his way into victory 11:00 If he wasn’t willing to commit ground troops, he shouldn’t have started war 11:45 Trump failed upwards to the most powerful job on earth 12:45 Trump half-assed his way through life, thinks he can do that as president 13:30 Vance & Rubio want no ownership of the Iran war 14:30 The Pentagon is instituting christian nationalist protocols 16:00 Trump is in a quagmire, Iranians know he needs a deal more than them 18:00 The Iranians have more leverage and it’s Trump’s fault that they do 19:30 There’s no way this gets better for the country by the midterms 21:15 New report categorizes Americans political views, most people in the middle 22:00 The extremes are only about 15% of the elecorate & are the whitest 22:45 The loudest parts of the bases aren’t close to the majority 23:30 Democrats have to win more moderate to win than the right 25:00 This Pew survey is possibly the best tool to understand the electorate  26:15 How the survey was conducted 29:15 The Reagan Republican coalition is measurably gone 30:30 There 9 different American political archetypes, 3 on left, middle & right 31:15 Breakdown of American left, which is 30% of the country 33:45 Breakdown of American right, core MAGA voters most likely to vote 35:30 The young right is a bit checked out on politics, don’t always vote 36:30 The middle is 38% of the electorate, center left is largest group 37:45 Remnants of the Reagan coalition is only 11% of the electorate 39:30 The “tuned out middle” is 9% of the electorate, minority of them vote 40:30 The civil war inside the American left is already underway 41:30 Progressives are still skeptical of the Democratic party 43:00 Progressives will never vote Republican, but may not vote 44:15 The MAGA + religious right is a fortress of voters that show up 45:15 Support for Trump amongst younger voters is the one place showing erosion 46:00 The establishment right is politically homeless and persuadable 48:45 The “polite right” demographically best reflects America, but is oldest 50:00 The “checked out middle” isn’t reachable or persuadable 50:30 The far left and right are most repulsive to the persuadable middle 51:15 The bases are what cause the parties to struggle electorally 53:00 The opportunity for independents has never been better 54:15 What happens online is not reflective of the majority of the electorate 1:02:45 Ask Chuck 1:03:00 Thoughts on private equity getting involved in college sports? 1:11:45 Why does ballot counting get overcovered by the media? 1:14:30 Will the incoming shortfall for social security affect the election? 1:18:00 How do you reconcile candidates with character shortfalls & their policies? 1:24:15 Should voters assess media narratives & bias in reporting about Platner? 1:29:45 Does the media need to do a better job explaining how votes come in? 1:35:15 How should presidents approach attending big sports events?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd opens with the grim news that the Iran conflict is hot again as both sides resume exchanging strikes — and his blunt assessment is that nothing has actually changed since Trump was begging for a deal a month ago. He argues Trump has mismanaged this war from the very beginning with no clear goal, that he and Israel started it with vastly different objectives, and that he stubbornly refuses to accept a deal that looks like the one Obama got even though that's the only realistic off-ramp available. The brutal truth, Chuck says, is that Trump can't airstrike his way to victory, and if he was never willing to commit ground troops, he never should have started the war in the first place — the Iranians now hold more leverage than the United States, and it's entirely Trump's fault that they do. He delivers one of his sharpest character indictments yet, arguing Trump "failed upwards" to the most powerful job on earth and is now half-assing his way through the presidency the same way he half-assed his way through life, while Vance and Rubio scramble to avoid any ownership of the war.With inflation rising for a third straight month, Chuck sees no path for any of this to improve before the midterms.  But the heart of the episode is a deep, genuinely illuminating dive into a new Pew survey that Chuck calls possibly the best available tool for understanding the actual American electorate — one that shatters the illusion created by social media. The data reveals nine distinct political archetypes (three on the left, three in the middle, three on the right), that the ideological extremes make up only about 15% of the country and are the whitest segments, and that the loud, combative bases dominating online discourse aren't remotely close to a majority. The middle, he notes, is a full 38% of the electorate, with the center-left as the single largest group; the Reagan Republican coalition is measurably gone, reduced to just 11%; the civil war inside the American left is already underway with skeptical progressives who'll never vote Republican but may simply not vote at all; and the MAGA-religious right remains a fortress of reliable voters, with erosion showing up in exactly one place — younger voters. His takeaway is the one that should reshape how both parties think: the persuadable middle is repulsed most by the far left and far right, the party bases are precisely what cause the parties to struggle electorally, and the opportunity for independents has genuinely never been better — because what happens online simply is not reflective of who actually shows up to vote.  Then, cultural critic Chuck Klosterman — author of But What If We're Wrong?, The Nineties, and now a new book simply titled Football — joins the Chuck Toddcast for a fascinating, genre-bending conversation that's part memoir, part sports analysis, and part thought experiment about how a singular American obsession will be remembered centuries from now. Klosterman frames the book as a "living obituary" for football, working from his signature premise that over enough time, almost everything fades until a single simplified narrative is all that survives — and that football, despite being the one true common denominator of the modern American experience (it overtook baseball as the most popular sport by the 1970s, even though people at the time didn't realize it), will almost certainly not remain central to the culture a few decades from now. He and Chuck explore how perception dramatically changes over time , how the internet has fundamentally altered our relationship with time itself, and why arguments against the internet today sound exactly like the arguments people once made against television. Klosterman, who only half-jokingly says his "beat" these days is simply reality, argues that we now consume social media on the working assumption that what we're seeing isn't real — a profound shift in how humans relate to information. The conversation winds through some genuinely original territory about why football works the way it does and what its eventual decline might look like. Klosterman argues football is a fundamentally cerebral sport with intense but widely dispersed moments of action (the Wall Street Journal famously found only 11 minutes of actual action in a three-hour broadcast), that its sheer complexity and total absence of free-flowing movement is exactly why it's never exported well, and that it nearly became a literal embodiment of American exceptionalism. He and Todd dig into whether the NFL can over-expand into a 12-month product, why football is the one American sport that could plausibly survive on pay-per-view, and how the league walks a razor's edge between the maximum physicality fans crave and the safety changes that are slowly, quietly trying to remove hitting from the game — even as the ever-present risk of injury is precisely what raises the stakes and makes it so engaging. There's a wonderful tangent on COVID and 9/11 as the two great timeline-dividing events of the modern era (one slow and shared globally, one sudden and strange), including Chuck's own reflection that the pandemic was unexpectedly a bonding experience with his kids. Klosterman closes by previewing his next book — an alternate history of rock and roll — and delivering a characteristically provocative argument that rock effectively ended as a meaningful art form in the 1990s, that having access to all the music ever recorded has paradoxically led people to listen to the same 600 songs, and that he genuinely regrets ever getting rid of his CD collection, because the day may come when streaming services are broken up and no longer contain all the music in the world. Finally, he answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment. Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary. Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 03:00 The conflict in Iran is active again as sides exchange strikes 04:00 Situation hasn’t changed since Trump begged for deal a month ago 04:45 Trump has mismanaged this war from the beginning, no clear goal 05:30 Trump refuses to accept a deal similar to the one Obama got 06:45 Trump + Israel started the war, but had vastly different objectives 08:45 New report shows inflation is going up for third straight month 09:45 Trump can’t airstrike his way into victory 11:00 If he wasn’t willing to commit ground troops, he shouldn’t have started war 11:45 Trump failed upwards to the most powerful job on earth 12:45 Trump half-assed his way through life, thinks he can do that as president 13:30 Vance & Rubio want no ownership of the Iran war 14:30 The Pentagon is instituting christian nationalist protocols 16:00 Trump is in a quagmire, Iranians know he needs a deal more than them 18:00 The Iranians have more leverage and it’s Trump’s fault that they do 19:30 There’s no way this gets better for the country by the midterms 21:15 New report categorizes Americans political views, most people in the middle 22:00 The extremes are only about 15% of the elecorate & are the whitest 22:45 The loudest parts of the bases aren’t close to the majority 23:30 Democrats have to win more moderate to win than the right 25:00 This Pew survey is possibly the best tool to understand the electorate  26:15 How the survey was conducted 29:15 The Reagan Republican coalition is measurably gone 30:30 There 9 different American political archetypes, 3 on left, middle & right 31:15 Breakdown of American left, which is 30% of the country 33:45 Breakdown of American right, core MAGA voters most likely to vote 35:30 The young right is a bit checked out on politics, don’t always vote 36:30 The middle is 38% of the electorate, center left is largest group 37:45 Remnants of the Reagan coalition is only 11% of the electorate 39:30 The “tuned out middle” is 9% of the electorate, minority of them vote 40:30 The civil war inside the American left is already underway 41:30 Progressives are still skeptical of the Democratic party 43:00 Progressives will never vote Republican, but may not vote 44:15 The MAGA + religious right is a fortress of voters that show up 45:15 Support for Trump amongst younger voters is the one place showing erosion 46:00 The establishment right is politically homeless and persuadable 48:45 The “polite right” demographically best reflects America, but is oldest 50:00 The “checked out middle” isn’t reachable or persuadable 50:30 The far left and right are most repulsive to the persuadable middle 51:15 The bases are what cause the parties to struggle electorally 53:00 The opportunity for independents has never been better 54:15 What happens online is not reflective of the majority of the electorate 1:04:00 Chuck Klosterman joins the Chuck ToddCast 1:05:00 Football is partially memoir, part description of football 1:07:30 The process of writing the book 1:09:00 It was like Chuck was “trying to build his brain in public” 1:11:15 The thought exercise of how football will be remembered in 200 years 1:12:00 Over time, some things stick and others fade away until one thing is left 1:12:45 It’s easier to understand a singular narrative 1:13:30 If something remains in the zeitgeist after 60 years, it has true staying power 1:16:00 Arguments against the internet sound like arguments against TV 1:17:45 What do you consider “your beat” these days? Reality. 1:19:00 Consuming social media with assumption what you’re seeing isn’t real 1:20:15 Book is a living obituary for football. Eventually, it won’t be central to culture 1:21:00 By the 1970’s football was the most popular sport, people thought it was baseball 1:22:15 Football is the one common denominator of the American experience 1:23:15 In a few decades, football will likely no longer be central to our society 1:24:30 The perception of Woodrow Wilson changed well after his death 1:26:00 Perception can dramatically change over time 1:26:45 How much time should pass before writing about a historical event? 1:28:15 The internet has changed our relationship with time 1:29:30 Diving the timeline into pre and post 9/11 and pre/post Covid 1:30:45 The COVID experience was slow, 9/11 happened suddenly 1:32:00 People forget how weird the two weeks after 9/11 were 1:33:30 Covid was a bizarre experience, everyone focused on same thing 1:34:15 Covid truly the first global event, shared by everyone 1:35:30 Covid was actually a bonding experience for Chuck Todd with his kids 1:37:30 History may look back at Covid very differently than we do now 1:42:15 Will football end as the cultural glue when television ends? 1:42:45 Cost of TV advertising is not worth the ROI for many companies 1:43:30 NFL + college football are of the mindset that they can only expand 1:44:30 Football is our only sport that could survive on a PPV basis 1:46:15 The majority of people who love football didn’t play it 1:47:00 Sports show how capitalism operates in a way that’s dangerous 1:49:45 Complexity has made American football hard to export 1:50:45 There’s no freedom of movement in football. It’s all planned 1:52:00 Why hasn’t Rugby caught on in America? 1:52:45 Football almost became an embodiment of American exceptionalism 1:53:45 WSJ studied football and found there’s only 11 mins of action in 3 hours 1:55:45 Football is a mostly cerebral sport with intense, dispersed moments of action 1:56:45 How important is it that football is in fall and winter? 1:57:30 People can now escape nature, but nature is very determinative in football 2:00:30 Most people don’t experience physicality and football demands it 2:01:30 Is it possible for the NFL to overexpand? Could it become a 12 month experience? 2:03:30 Owners want to host a Super Bowl, all stadiums will likely have a roof in 20 years 2:05:45 Football will have value as a distraction, but it needs meaning to stay powerful 2:07:00 Attending football games has gotten increasingly expensive 2:08:30 Safety changes have changed the nature of the game 2:09:00 The dream may be to slowly remove the hitting from the game 2:09:30 Fans used to revel in the hard hits, now they’re turning away 2:10:15 The risk of injury raises the stakes, makes it more engaging 2:12:15 NFL walks the line between max physicality and not turning fans off 2:15:00 What is your next book? Alternate history of Rock n Roll 2:17:45 Rock as a meaningful artform ended in the 90s 2:20:00 People have access to all the music in the world, listen to same 600 songs 2:22:30 Regret getting rid of the CD collection 2:23:15 Eventually streaming services could get broken up, not have all music  2:26:00 Chuck’s thoughts on interview with Chuck Klosterman 2:27:00 Ask Chuck 2:27:15 Thoughts on private equity getting involved in college sports? 2:36:00 Why does ballot counting get overcovered by the media? 2:38:45 Will the incoming shortfall for social security affect the election? 2:42:15 How do you reconcile candidates with character shortfalls & their policies? 2:48:30 Should voters assess media narratives & bias in reporting about Platner? 2:54:00 Does the media need to do a better job explaining how votes come in? 2:59:30 How should presidents approach attending big sports events?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Cultural critic Chuck Klosterman — author of But What If We're Wrong?, The Nineties, and now a new book simply titled Football — joins the Chuck Toddcast for a fascinating, genre-bending conversation that's part memoir, part sports analysis, and part thought experiment about how a singular American obsession will be remembered centuries from now. Klosterman frames the book as a "living obituary" for football, working from his signature premise that over enough time, almost everything fades until a single simplified narrative is all that survives — and that football, despite being the one true common denominator of the modern American experience (it overtook baseball as the most popular sport by the 1970s, even though people at the time didn't realize it), will almost certainly not remain central to the culture a few decades from now. He and Chuck explore how perception dramatically changes over time , how the internet has fundamentally altered our relationship with time itself, and why arguments against the internet today sound exactly like the arguments people once made against television. Klosterman, who only half-jokingly says his "beat" these days is simply reality, argues that we now consume social media on the working assumption that what we're seeing isn't real — a profound shift in how humans relate to information. The conversation winds through some genuinely original territory about why football works the way it does and what its eventual decline might look like. Klosterman argues football is a fundamentally cerebral sport with intense but widely dispersed moments of action (the Wall Street Journal famously found only 11 minutes of actual action in a three-hour broadcast), that its sheer complexity and total absence of free-flowing movement is exactly why it's never exported well, and that it nearly became a literal embodiment of American exceptionalism. He and Todd dig into whether the NFL can over-expand into a 12-month product, why football is the one American sport that could plausibly survive on pay-per-view, and how the league walks a razor's edge between the maximum physicality fans crave and the safety changes that are slowly, quietly trying to remove hitting from the game — even as the ever-present risk of injury is precisely what raises the stakes and makes it so engaging. There's a wonderful tangent on COVID and 9/11 as the two great timeline-dividing events of the modern era (one slow and shared globally, one sudden and strange), including Chuck's own reflection that the pandemic was unexpectedly a bonding experience with his kids. Klosterman closes by previewing his next book — an alternate history of rock and roll — and delivering a characteristically provocative argument that rock effectively ended as a meaningful art form in the 1990s, that having access to all the music ever recorded has paradoxically led people to listen to the same 600 songs, and that he genuinely regrets ever getting rid of his CD collection, because the day may come when streaming services are broken up and no longer contain all the music in the world. Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary. Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Klosterman joins the Chuck ToddCast 01:00 Football is partially memoir, part description of football 03:30 The process of writing the book 05:00 It was like Chuck was “trying to build his brain in public” 07:15 The thought exercise of how football will be remembered in 200 years 08:00 Over time, some things stick and others fade away until one thing is left 08:45 It’s easier to understand a singular narrative 09:30 If something remains in the zeitgeist after 60 years, it has true staying power 12:00 Arguments against the internet sound like arguments against TV 13:45 What do you consider “your beat” these days? Reality. 15:00 Consuming social media with assumption what you’re seeing isn’t real 16:15 Book is a living obituary for football. Eventually, it won’t be central to culture 17:00 By the 1970’s football was the most popular sport, people thought it was baseball 18:15 Football is the one common denominator of the American experience 19:15 In a few decades, football will likely no longer be central to our society 20:30 The perception of Woodrow Wilson changed well after his death 22:00 Perception can dramatically change over time 22:45 How much time should pass before writing about a historical event? 24:15 The internet has changed our relationship with time 25:30 Diving the timeline into pre and post 9/11 and pre/post Covid 26:45 The COVID experience was slow, 9/11 happened suddenly 28:00 People forget how weird the two weeks after 9/11 were 29:30 Covid was a bizarre experience, everyone focused on same thing 30:15 Covid truly the first global event, shared by everyone 31:30 Covid was actually a bonding experience for Chuck Todd with his kids 33:30 History may look back at Covid very differently than we do now 38:15 Will football end as the cultural glue when television ends? 38:45 Cost of TV advertising is not worth the ROI for many companies 39:30 NFL + college football are of the mindset that they can only expand 40:30 Football is our only sport that could survive on a PPV basis 42:15 The majority of people who love football didn’t play it 43:00 Sports show how capitalism operates in a way that’s dangerous 45:45 Complexity has made American football hard to export 46:45 There’s no freedom of movement in football. It’s all planned 48:00 Why hasn’t Rugby caught on in America? 48:45 Football almost became an embodiment of American exceptionalism 49:45 WSJ studied football and found there’s only 11 mins of action in 3 hours 51:45 Football is a mostly cerebral sport with intense, dispersed moments of action 52:45 How important is it that football is in fall and winter? 53:30 People can now escape nature, but nature is very determinative in football 56:30 Most people don’t experience physicality and football demands it 57:30 Is it possible for the NFL to overexpand? Could it become a 12 month experience? 59:30 Owners want to host a Super Bowl, all stadiums will likely have a roof in 20 years 1:01:45 Football will have value as a distraction, but it needs meaning to stay powerful 1:03:00 Attending football games has gotten increasingly expensive 1:04:30 Safety changes have changed the nature of the game 1:05:00 The dream may be to slowly remove the hitting from the game 1:05:30 Fans used to revel in the hard hits, now they’re turning away 1:06:15 The risk of injury raises the stakes, makes it more engaging 1:08:15 NFL walks the line between max physicality and not turning fans off 1:11:00 What is your next book? Alternate history of Rock n Roll 1:13:45 Rock as a meaningful artform ended in the 90s 1:16:00 People have access to all the music in the world, listen to same 600 songs 1:18:30 Regret getting rid of the CD collection 1:19:15 Eventually streaming services could get broken up, not have all musicSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd opens with the resolution of a story he's been tracking for weeks: Graham Platner cruised to victory in Maine, comfortably clearing 70% even with Janet Mills' name still on the ballot — which he says means the scandals that had Platner in "save my campaign" mode turned out to be far less than a five-alarm fire. The deeper lesson, Chuck argues, is uncomfortable but revealing: for a significant share of Democratic primary voters, high character has become a luxury item, because the base is so exhausted by losing and capitulating to the establishment that it will forgive a flawed candidate who actually seems willing to fight. He notes that Maine has gotten meaningfully bluer since Susan Collins was last on the ballot (Harris underperformed nationally but actually drew more raw votes in Maine than Biden did), that a generic Democrat should win this seat by six or seven points, and that the only real question left is how many squeamish Democrats sit the race out rather than pull the lever for Platner. He runs through the rest of the night — Lindsey Graham narrowly avoided a runoff in South Carolina, the GOP gubernatorial race there is headed to a runoff that knocked out both Nancy Mace and Ralph Norman — and pulls back to identify the defining theme of the entire 2026 cycle: everyone, in both parties, is running on a message of change, with no candidate anywhere running on restoration the way Biden did in 2020. The messaging this cycle is relentlessly future-focused, the exact opposite of Trump's nostalgia, and Chuck reiterates his running observation that the worst possible first name to have in politics right now is "congressman" — because Washington experience carries zero value to voters this cycle. The split-screen between the parties remains stark: Republican voters still reward confrontation while Democratic primary voters are gravitating toward electability and consensus, Democratic turnout is rising while GOP turnout is flat or falling, and the throughline that's held for a decade is only intensifying — voters are demanding major change, and they'll punish anyone who doesn't offer it.  Finally, Chuck updates his ToddCast Top 5 list of senate seats most likely to flip parties and answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment. Predict the action all the way through the finals. Sign up now for your twenty-five dollar bonus on https://fanduel.com/predicts   Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary. Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 03:15 Graham Platner cruised to victory will Janet Mills still on the ballot 04:15 Platner comfortably cleared 70%, it’s not a five alarm fire 05:45 Will there be more scandals from Platner? If so, what type? 06:30 For some primary voters, high character is a luxury item 08:15 The Democratic base is tired of losing & capitulating to establishment 08:45 A Platner election victory could change perception of the Democrats 10:30 Maine has gotten bluer since the last time Collins was on the ballot 11:30 Harris underperformed nationally, but had more raw vote in Maine than Biden 13:30 How many Dems will sit out the race rather than vote for Platner? 15:00 A generic Dem should win this race by 6-7 points 16:00 Lindsey Graham manages to avoid a runoff 16:45 South Carolina GOP gubernatorial race headed to runoff 17:15 Nancy Mace and Ralph Norman didn’t make the runoff 18:30 Everybody running in 2026 is running on a message of change 19:30 There’s no message of restoration similar to Biden’s campaign 20:30 Messaging is more future focused, the opposite of Trump 21:30 The worst first name to have in politics is congressman 24:45 Washington experience won’t carry value to voters this cycle 26:00 GOP voters still seemingly reward confrontation 27:00 Dem primary voters looking to electability/consensus candidates 28:45 Dem turnout on the rise, GOP turnout stagnant or down 29:30 For the past decade, voters are demanding major change 35:15 ToddCast Top 5 senate seats most likely to flip 36:30 More senate seats are creeping to “in play” status 38:45 #1 North Carolina 40:30 #2 Ohio 43:30 #3 Michigan 47:00 #4 Iowa 50:00 #5 Maine 55:00 Ask Chuck 55:15 Could politicians' investments be limited by law to index funds? 57:00 Correction on Jeri Ryan’s Star Trek series 58:30 If candidates like Platner and El-Sayed lose, could progressives change course? 1:04:30 Will Trump’s disciples try to be too much like him once he leaves politics? 1:08:15 Are you seeing a real shift in coverage from CBS News? 1:13:30 Thoughts on Brendan Soresby being reinstated after gambling on himselfSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd opens with the resolution of a story he's been tracking for weeks: Graham Platner cruised to victory in Maine, comfortably clearing 70% even with Janet Mills' name still on the ballot — which he says means the scandals that had Platner in "save my campaign" mode turned out to be far less than a five-alarm fire. The deeper lesson, Chuck argues, is uncomfortable but revealing: for a significant share of Democratic primary voters, high character has become a luxury item, because the base is so exhausted by losing and capitulating to the establishment that it will forgive a flawed candidate who actually seems willing to fight. He notes that Maine has gotten meaningfully bluer since Susan Collins was last on the ballot (Harris underperformed nationally but actually drew more raw votes in Maine than Biden did), that a generic Democrat should win this seat by six or seven points, and that the only real question left is how many squeamish Democrats sit the race out rather than pull the lever for Platner. He runs through the rest of the night — Lindsey Graham narrowly avoided a runoff in South Carolina, the GOP gubernatorial race there is headed to a runoff that knocked out both Nancy Mace and Ralph Norman — and pulls back to identify the defining theme of the entire 2026 cycle: everyone, in both parties, is running on a message of change, with no candidate anywhere running on restoration the way Biden did in 2020. The messaging this cycle is relentlessly future-focused, the exact opposite of Trump's nostalgia, and Chuck reiterates his running observation that the worst possible first name to have in politics right now is "congressman" — because Washington experience carries zero value to voters this cycle. The split-screen between the parties remains stark: Republican voters still reward confrontation while Democratic primary voters are gravitating toward electability and consensus, Democratic turnout is rising while GOP turnout is flat or falling, and the throughline that's held for a decade is only intensifying — voters are demanding major change, and they'll punish anyone who doesn't offer it.  Then, Lauren Pinkston — the independent candidate for governor of Tennessee — joins the Chuck Toddcast to make the case that the deepest problem in her state isn't left versus right, it's the near-total absence of two-party competition that has allowed one-party rule to calcify into something genuinely unhealthy. Pinkston, who was raised in an evangelical environment where she was taught that voting Democrat meant going to hell, offers a fascinating personal and political journey: she lived in communist Laos where people were persecuted for their faith, which gave her a firsthand understanding of why the Founders deliberately kept Christianity out of the Constitution, and she's now running explicitly against the kind of Christian nationalism that teaches America was divinely ordained. She argues Citizens United is a major reason Tennessee became so uncompetitive, walks through the mechanical difficulties of mounting a serious independent campaign, and contends that Marsha Blackburn isn't nearly as strong a candidate as she thinks she is. The conversation digs into Pinkston's actual governing vision and her theory of how an independent can build a winning coalition in one of the reddest states in the country. She wants to reform education and make teaching a genuinely fun profession again, and she's passionate about the way Nashville soaks up all the state's political investment while Memphis gets neglected — pointing out that crime in Memphis is at a 20-year low yet the city still can't attract investment, and that St. Jude is struggling to recruit talent because of H1-B visa denials. Pinkston is candid about the structural obstacles: Tennessee's constitution doesn't even allow for ballot measures, the GOP holds a stranglehold on the statehouse, and Republican leadership has been kicking moderate candidates off the ballot entirely. But she argues there's a real opening — Republicans in the state are looking for an offramp that isn't a Democrat, and even staunch Democrats are frustrated with their own party. Pinkston is energized about working with the Working Families Party and the Forward Party to build toward a more moderate, genuinely competitive two-party system, argues this is the strongest group of independent candidates to run in years, and wonders aloud whether being "too educated" has perversely become a negative quality in a candidate. She closes with a sharp observation that cuts to the heart of the whole project: Americans demand more than two options for literally everything in their lives except politics, politicians increasingly rely on performance over substance, and the stakes couldn't be higher. Finally, Chuck updates his ToddCast Top 5 list of senate seats most likely to flip parties and answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment. Predict the action all the way through the finals. Sign up now for your twenty-five dollar bonus on https://fanduel.com/predicts   Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary. Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 03:15 Graham Platner cruised to victory will Janet Mills still on the ballot 04:15 Platner comfortably cleared 70%, it’s not a five alarm fire 05:45 Will there be more scandals from Platner? If so, what type? 06:30 For some primary voters, high character is a luxury item 08:15 The Democratic base is tired of losing & capitulating to establishment 08:45 A Platner election victory could change perception of the Democrats 10:30 Maine has gotten bluer since the last time Collins was on the ballot 11:30 Harris underperformed nationally, but had more raw vote in Maine than Biden 13:30 How many Dems will sit out the race rather than vote for Platner? 15:00 A generic Dem should win this race by 6-7 points 16:00 Lindsey Graham manages to avoid a runoff 16:45 South Carolina GOP gubernatorial race headed to runoff 17:15 Nancy Mace and Ralph Norman didn’t make the runoff 18:30 Everybody running in 2026 is running on a message of change 19:30 There’s no message of restoration similar to Biden’s campaign 20:30 Messaging is more future focused, the opposite of Trump 21:30 The worst first name to have in politics is congressman 24:45 Washington experience won’t carry value to voters this cycle 26:00 GOP voters still seemingly reward confrontation 27:00 Dem primary voters looking to electability/consensus candidates 28:45 Dem turnout on the rise, GOP turnout stagnant or down 29:30 For a decade, voters are demanding major change 36:45 Lauren Pinkston joins the Chuck ToddCast 37:45 Why run for governor as an independent? 39:00 There’s a lack of two party competition in Tennessee 40:45 Some of the barriers for an insurgent candidacy have been removed 42:45 Citizen’s United was a big reason for TN becoming uncompetitive 43:30 Lauren was raised to feel that voting Dem meant going to hell 45:30 Politics has courted the evangelical vote & leaders for decades 46:15 Jimmy Carter’s pure faith made it harder for him to govern 47:00 Churches teach nationalism & that America was ordained by god 48:00 Founders specifically didn’t put christianity & religion into the constitution 49:00 Lauren lived in communist Laos, where people were persecuted for their faith 50:00 The mechanical difficulties of running as an independent 51:15 Businesses afraid to support a non-Republican candidate in TN 52:45 Democratic opponent has been receiving calls to drop out 54:00 Any chance Marsha Blackburn isn’t the GOP nominee? 54:45 Blackburn isn’t as strong of a candidate as she thinks she is 55:15 Three leading candidates are white women with colors in their name 56:45 What big ideas are you proposing that you hope stick with voters? 57:15 Want to reform education and make it a fun field for teachers to work 58:45 Nashville gets all the political support and Memphis gets neglected 59:30 Crime is at a 20 year low in Memphis, but it still doesn’t get investment 1:00:30 St. Jude struggling to recruit due to denial of H1-B visas 1:01:00 How would you govern with a Republican stranglehold on the statehouse? 1:01:45 State constitution doesn’t even allow for ballot measures 1:02:30 Need to invest in Chief Information Officers are the county level 1:04:00 Attracting support from disaffected Democrats and Republicans 1:06:30 There’s a deep history of good governance out of east Tennessee 1:07:45 Need leaders and not party puppets 1:08:45 GOP leadership in the state has kicked moderate candidates off the ballot 1:09:45 Republicans in the state are looking for an offramp that isn’t a Democrat 1:10:15 What does your winning coalition look like? 1:12:30 Can you succeed without winning? 1:13:00 Want to give people an onramp to political engagement 1:14:15 Excited about working with WFP and Forward Party 1:14:45 Want to create a more moderate two party system 1:16:30 Strongest group of independent candidates running in years 1:17:30 Possible that being too educated will be a negative quality in a candidate 1:19:00 Voter turnout is pretty low in both Nashville and Memphis 1:20:45 Even the most staunch Democrats are frustrated with their party 1:22:00 It will be hard to get either opponent to agree to a debate 1:24:00 People demand more than two options for everything except politics 1:26:00 Politicians rely more on performance now than substance 1:27:45 People will die if governing isn’t taken seriously  1:29:15 Lack of competition in one party states isn’t good for democracy 1:30:30 Independents have better chance to win in one party states 1:32:30 ToddCast Top 5 senate seats most likely to flip 1:33:45 More senate seats are creeping to “in play” status 1:36:00 #1 North Carolina 1:37:45 #2 Ohio 1:40:45 #3 Michigan 1:44:15 #4 Iowa 1:47:15 #5 Maine 1:52:15 Ask Chuck 1:52:30 Could politicians' investments be limited by law to index funds? 1:54:15 Correction on Jeri Ryan’s Star Trek series 1:55:45 If candidates like Platner and El-Sayed lose, could progressives change course? 2:01:45 Will Trump’s disciples try to be too much like him once he leaves politics? 2:05:30 Are you seeing a real shift in coverage from CBS News? 2:10:45 Thoughts on Brendan Soresby being reinstated after gambling on himselfSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Lauren Pinkston — the independent candidate for governor of Tennessee — joins the Chuck Toddcast to make the case that the deepest problem in her state isn't left versus right, it's the near-total absence of two-party competition that has allowed one-party rule to calcify into something genuinely unhealthy. Pinkston, who was raised in an evangelical environment where she was taught that voting Democrat meant going to hell, offers a fascinating personal and political journey: she lived in communist Laos where people were persecuted for their faith, which gave her a firsthand understanding of why the Founders deliberately kept Christianity out of the Constitution, and she's now running explicitly against the kind of Christian nationalism that teaches America was divinely ordained. She argues Citizens United is a major reason Tennessee became so uncompetitive, walks through the mechanical difficulties of mounting a serious independent campaign, and contends that Marsha Blackburn isn't nearly as strong a candidate as she thinks she is. The conversation digs into Pinkston's actual governing vision and her theory of how an independent can build a winning coalition in one of the reddest states in the country. She wants to reform education and make teaching a genuinely fun profession again, and she's passionate about the way Nashville soaks up all the state's political investment while Memphis gets neglected — pointing out that crime in Memphis is at a 20-year low yet the city still can't attract investment, and that St. Jude is struggling to recruit talent because of H1-B visa denials. Pinkston is candid about the structural obstacles: Tennessee's constitution doesn't even allow for ballot measures, the GOP holds a stranglehold on the statehouse, and Republican leadership has been kicking moderate candidates off the ballot entirely. But she argues there's a real opening — Republicans in the state are looking for an offramp that isn't a Democrat, and even staunch Democrats are frustrated with their own party. Pinkston is energized about working with the Working Families Party and the Forward Party to build toward a more moderate, genuinely competitive two-party system, argues this is the strongest group of independent candidates to run in years, and wonders aloud whether being "too educated" has perversely become a negative quality in a candidate. She closes with a sharp observation that cuts to the heart of the whole project: Americans demand more than two options for literally everything in their lives except politics, politicians increasingly rely on performance over substance, and the stakes couldn't be higher. Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary. Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Lauren Pinkston joins the Chuck ToddCast 01:00 Why run for governor as an independent? 02:15 There’s a lack of two party competition in Tennessee 04:00 Some of the barriers for an insurgent candidacy have been removed 06:00 Citizen’s United was a big reason for TN becoming uncompetitive 06:45 Lauren was raised to feel that voting Dem meant going to hell 08:45 Politics has courted the evangelical vote & leaders for decades 09:30 Jimmy Carter’s pure faith made it harder for him to govern 10:15 Churches teach nationalism & that America was ordained by god 11:15 Founders specifically didn’t put christianity & religion into the constitution 12:15 Lauren lived in communist Laos, where people were persecuted for their faith 13:15 The mechanical difficulties of running as an independent 14:30 Businesses afraid to support a non-Republican candidate in TN 16:00 Democratic opponent has been receiving calls to drop out 17:15 Any chance Marsha Blackburn isn’t the GOP nominee? 18:00 Blackburn isn’t as strong of a candidate as she thinks she is 18:30 Three leading candidates are white women with colors in their name 20:00 What big ideas are you proposing that you hope stick with voters? 20:30 Want to reform education and make it a fun field for teachers to work 22:00 Nashville gets all the political support and Memphis gets neglected 22:45 Crime is at a 20 year low in Memphis, but it still doesn’t get investment 23:45 St. Jude struggling to recruit due to denial of H1-B visas 24:15 How would you govern with a Republican stranglehold on the statehouse? 25:00 State constitution doesn’t even allow for ballot measures 25:45 Need to invest in Chief Information Officers are the county level 27:15 Attracting support from disaffected Democrats and Republicans 29:45 There’s a deep history of good governance out of east Tennessee 31:00 Need leaders and not party puppets 32:00 GOP leadership in the state has kicked moderate candidates off the ballot 33:00 Republicans in the state are looking for an offramp that isn’t a Democrat 33:30 What does your winning coalition look like? 35:45 Can you succeed without winning? 36:15 Want to give people an onramp to political engagement 37:30 Excited about working with WFP and Forward Party 38:00 Want to create a more moderate two party system 39:45 Strongest group of independent candidates running in years 40:45 Possible that being too educated will be a negative quality in a candidate 42:15 Voter turnout is pretty low in both Nashville and Memphis 44:00 Even the most staunch Democrats are frustrated with their party 45:15 It will be hard to get either opponent to agree to a debate 47:15 People demand more than two options for everything except politics 49:15 Politicians rely more on performance now than substance 51:00 People will die if governing isn’t taken seriouslySee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd opens with an uncomfortable truth Republicans are doing everything possible to avoid acknowledging: Trump turns 80 next week, his physical and mental decline is increasingly visible to anyone paying attention, and the GOP is now repeating exactly the same mistake Democrats made by ignoring Joe Biden's obvious deterioration. The cruelest irony: Trump literally built his entire 2024 campaign on the premise that his opponent was too old and too sleepy to do the job, but Biden's catastrophic debate finally broke the Democratic silence in a way the GOP shows no signs of replicating. Chuck argues Trump's behavior isn't unusual for an 80-year-old — it's deeply unusual for an American president. He warns that Senate Republicans made an enormous mistake by not killing the weaponization fund, that every GOP incumbent up for reelection is now vulnerable to extremely effective attack ads, and that acting DNI Bill Pulte is almost certainly holding that position illegally — the courts will probably step in to declare him ineligible. He previews Tuesday's primaries in Maine and South Carolina, where Lindsey Graham looks genuinely vulnerable, and notes that if Graham gets forced into a runoff, history says he's in real trouble. He's watching how much protest vote Janet Mills picks up in Maine, and on Graham Platner — who has been saying that the war "messed him up" —  Chuck offers a pointed observation: just because behavior is explainable doesn't always make it excusable.He closes with a sharp analysis of the Scott Pelley firing at 60 Minutes, arguing the real story isn't Pelley at all — it's the Ellisons, who are using 60 Minutes as a bargaining chip with Trump to get their Paramount merger approved. He believes 60 Minutes is a symbol with massive brand equity, and Trump wants to bring it to heel or topple it altogether.  Finally, Chuck hops into the ToddCast Time Machine to revisit the infamous quote “Have you no sense of decency” from the Army/McCarthy hearings, why McCarthy was one of the first American politicians to master the attention economy, and why that famous quote precipitated the decline of McCarthy’s influence. He also answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment.  Predict the action all the way through the finals. Sign up now for your twenty-five dollar bonus on https://fanduel.com/predicts   Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary. Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 05:30 Trump turns 80 in a week. Plans on celebrating himself with UFC fight 06:30 You can tell that Trump is not doing well physically/mentally 07:30 Republicans ignoring Trump’s decline like Dems did with Biden 10:00 Trump won’t do events where he has to stand, he sits now 11:30 Trump’s staff has been padding his schedule with private meetings 12:30 Trump built his campaign on premise his opponent was too old & sleepy 13:15 Biden’s debate broke the Dems silence, GOP hasn’t done same with Trump 14:30 Trump has influence and pull over his party that Biden didn’t 15:15 Trump’s behavior isn’t unusual for an 80 year, is unusual for a POTUS 16:00 Reinforces public perception that parties will say/defend anything for power 19:00 This will add to the credibility problems for the Republican party 19:30 Senate Republicans made huge mistake not killing the weaponization fund 20:15 Every Republican up for reelection is now vulnerable to easy attack ads 21:15 It’s probably illegal for Bill Pulte to hold the acting DNI position 23:00 Courts will likely step in to declare Pulte ineligible for position 25:30 Major primaries coming up on Tuesday including ME & SC 26:45 Lindsey Graham is vulnerable in South Carolina 27:45 Christian conservative right has always been skeptical of Graham 28:45 Outsiders have been ousting incumbents across the country 30:15 Since the Tea Party, GOP base has gone against the establishment 32:30 The anti-war vote will have qualms with Trump & Graham 33:15 Graham’s career is defined by being a political weathervane 35:00 If Graham is forced into a runoff, history says he’s in trouble 35:30 Will be interesting to see how much protest vote Janet Mills gets in ME 36:15 Platner says war messed him up… does he have the temperament for the job? 37:45 Just because behavior is explainable, doesn’t always make it excusable 38:15 Platner is in “save his campaign” mode 39:30 Bad actors will exploit California’s slow ballot counting process 40:30 Counting process requires people have faith in it, slowness hurts credibility 42:00 California has a duty to make citizens confident in the election 44:00 Thoughts on changes at 60 Minutes and Scott Pelley’s firing 44:30 Too much focus on Pelley and not enough on the Ellisons 45:00 Publicly traded media companies have all folded to & appeased Trump 47:30 Companies have a responsibility to shareholders, bad for news integrity 48:30 60 Minutes is a symbol, and Trump wants to bring it to heel/topple it 49:30 We don’t know the politics of the Ellisons, but they want their merger approved 50:30 Ellison’s know one 60 Minutes piece Trump dislikes could blow up merger 51:45 Bari Weiss is being used… is she comfortable being used? 53:00 Scott Pelley has the money to speak out and fight back 54:00 Journalists that stayed hoping to weather the storm & wait for new management 55:15 60 Minutes has incredible brand equity and is being gutted for the merger 56:45 The story is the Ellisons using 60 Minutes as a bargaining chip 1:02:15 ToddCast Time Machine - June 9th, 1954 1:02:45 “Have you no sense of decency?” quote becomes famous 1:03:30 Quote came during the Army/McCarthy hearings 1:04:00 The famous line didn’t end McCarthyism 1:04:45 The myth is that McCarthy created the Red Scare… he did not 1:05:30 The Cold War was not a distant abstraction, people were worried 1:06:00 McCarthy didn’t create the wave… he was surfing it 1:07:15 Mass media was growing in America and sped up the information wars 1:08:00 McCarthy understood media and how to create anticipation 1:09:30 McCarthy mastered the politics of attention, his and Trump’s mentor was Roy Cohn 1:11:30 The fear of communism still existed, but public confidence in McCarthy eroded 1:12:30 Television exposed McCarthy in a way quotes and newspapers couldn’t 1:14:00 Army/McCarthy hearings started as a personnel dispute for Roy Cohn ally 1:15:30 There were multiple institutions moving against McCarthy 1:16:30 Army chief counsel Joseph Welch spoke the infamous line 1:17:00 Welch gave words to a conclusion Americans were reaching on their own 1:19:45 Ask Chuck 1:20:00 When will congress actually hold cabinet members accountable? 1:26:45 Thoughts on DHS pulling CBP from sanctuary city airports? 1:30:45 Navigating the tension between voting for and against a candidate? 1:36:45 Thoughts on Democrats proposing a national gerrymandering ban?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd opens with an uncomfortable truth Republicans are doing everything possible to avoid acknowledging: Trump turns 80 next week, his physical and mental decline is increasingly visible to anyone paying attention, and the GOP is now repeating exactly the same mistake Democrats made by ignoring Joe Biden's obvious deterioration. The cruelest irony: Trump literally built his entire 2024 campaign on the premise that his opponent was too old and too sleepy to do the job, but Biden's catastrophic debate finally broke the Democratic silence in a way the GOP shows no signs of replicating. Chuck argues Trump's behavior isn't unusual for an 80-year-old — it's deeply unusual for an American president. He warns that Senate Republicans made an enormous mistake by not killing the weaponization fund, that every GOP incumbent up for reelection is now vulnerable to extremely effective attack ads, and that acting DNI Bill Pulte is almost certainly holding that position illegally — the courts will probably step in to declare him ineligible. He previews Tuesday's primaries in Maine and South Carolina, where Lindsey Graham looks genuinely vulnerable, and notes that if Graham gets forced into a runoff, history says he's in real trouble. He's watching how much protest vote Janet Mills picks up in Maine, and on Graham Platner — who has been saying that the war "messed him up" —  Chuck offers a pointed observation: just because behavior is explainable doesn't always make it excusable.He closes with a sharp analysis of the Scott Pelley firing at 60 Minutes, arguing the real story isn't Pelley at all — it's the Ellisons, who are using 60 Minutes as a bargaining chip with Trump to get their Paramount merger approved. He believes 60 Minutes is a symbol with massive brand equity, and Trump wants to bring it to heel or topple it altogether.  Then, David French — New York Times columnist, veteran constitutional attorney, and one of the sharpest legal thinkers writing today — joins the Chuck Toddcast for a riveting conversation about how the legal system is straining to handle a world being remade by AI, an out-of-control executive branch, and the slow erosion of America's basic constitutional architecture. French opens with the chilling case the Florida Attorney General has now brought against OpenAI in connection with the Florida State University shooter, who asked ChatGPT how to disengage his weapon's safety just three minutes before opening fire. French argues that if ChatGPT had been a human person, it would unquestionably have been charged as a co-conspirator — humans get prosecuted for encouraging suicide all the time — and that when ChatGPT is speaking, OpenAI is legally speaking, full stop. He walks through the murky liability questions the law is now scrambling to answer: Google Search has never been held to the same standard as ChatGPT, but ChatGPT actively generates new speech rather than just pointing users to existing content, and French argues that litigation needs to function as a meaningful deterrent rather than mere compensation — though ultimately Congress is going to have to actually legislate AI regulation rather than leave the entire field to civil lawsuits. The conversation turns to what French sees as a more immediate constitutional crisis: Trump's blanket immunity for tax violations and the "anti-weaponization" slush fund scheme, both of which French argues are flatly indefensible on legal grounds. He explains the deeper problem — Trump suing his own government creates a fiction of an adversarial proceeding when there isn't actually one, and Trump cares far more about the liability shield than the slush fund itself, because he's trying to remove himself from the operation of the law in essentially the same way a king would. The pardon power only covers federal crimes, not civil offenses, and Congress has clear authority to stop this if it had the will. French offers several concrete reforms: require congressional approval for legal settlements above a certain dollar threshold, force members of Congress to obtain a certification in the Constitution itself, and that political parties should perform comprehensive background checks for their candidates, On the question of whether the Founders intended a Christian nation, French is unequivocal: they didn't, and Madison rebuked Christian nationalism explicitly. The deeper structural problem behind the DOJ's loss of credibility is the unitary executive theory itself — Article II of the Constitution is dangerously vague, the executive was never meant to be a co-equal branch (Congress was supposed to be most powerful), and the only durable fix may require constitutional reform to formally remove the DOJ from executive control. French closes on a hopeful note: after every dark period in American history, the country has entered a major era of reform — and he believes one is coming again.  Finally, Chuck hops into the ToddCast Time Machine to revisit the infamous quote “Have you no sense of decency” from the Army/McCarthy hearings, why McCarthy was one of the first American politicians to master the attention economy, and why that famous quote precipitated the decline of McCarthy’s influence. He also answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment.  Predict the action all the way through the finals. Sign up now for your twenty-five dollar bonus on https://fanduel.com/predicts   Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary. Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 05:30 Trump turns 80 in a week. Plans on celebrating himself with UFC fight 06:30 You can tell that Trump is not doing well physically/mentally 07:30 Republicans ignoring Trump’s decline like Dems did with Biden 10:00 Trump won’t do events where he has to stand, he sits now 11:30 Trump’s staff has been padding his schedule with private meetings 12:30 Trump built his campaign on premise his opponent was too old & sleepy 13:15 Biden’s debate broke the Dems silence, GOP hasn’t done same with Trump 14:30 Trump has influence and pull over his party that Biden didn’t 15:15 Trump’s behavior isn’t unusual for an 80 year, is unusual for a POTUS 16:00 Reinforces public perception that parties will say/defend anything for power 19:00 This will add to the credibility problems for the Republican party 19:30 Senate Republicans made huge mistake not killing the weaponization fund 20:15 Every Republican up for reelection is now vulnerable to easy attack ads 21:15 It’s probably illegal for Bill Pulte to hold the acting DNI position 23:00 Courts will likely step in to declare Pulte ineligible for position 25:30 Major primaries coming up on Tuesday including ME & SC 26:45 Lindsey Graham is vulnerable in South Carolina 27:45 Christian conservative right has always been skeptical of Graham 28:45 Outsiders have been ousting incumbents across the country 30:15 Since the Tea Party, GOP base has gone against the establishment 32:30 The anti-war vote will have qualms with Trump & Graham 33:15 Graham’s career is defined by being a political weathervane 35:00 If Graham is forced into a runoff, history says he’s in trouble 35:30 Will be interesting to see how much protest vote Janet Mills gets in ME 36:15 Platner says war messed him up… does he have the temperament for the job? 37:45 Just because behavior is explainable, doesn’t always make it excusable 38:15 Platner is in “save his campaign” mode 39:30 Bad actors will exploit California’s slow ballot counting process 40:30 Counting process requires people have faith in it, slowness hurts credibility 42:00 California has a duty to make citizens confident in the election 44:00 Thoughts on changes at 60 Minutes and Scott Pelley’s firing 44:30 Too much focus on Pelley and not enough on the Ellisons 45:00 Publicly traded media companies have all folded to & appeased Trump 47:30 Companies have a responsibility to shareholders, bad for news integrity 48:30 60 Minutes is a symbol, and Trump wants to bring it to heel/topple it 49:30 We don’t know the politics of the Ellisons, but they want their merger approved 50:30 Ellison’s know one 60 Minutes piece Trump dislikes could blow up merger 51:45 Bari Weiss is being used… is she comfortable being used? 53:00 Scott Pelley has the money to speak out and fight back 54:00 Journalists that stayed hoping to weather the storm & wait for new management 55:15 60 Minutes has incredible brand equity and is being gutted for the merger 56:45 The story is the Ellisons using 60 Minutes as a bargaining chip 1:04:00 David French joins the Chuck ToddCast 1:05:30 Insurance companies & gambling companies have opposite incentives 1:08:00 States liberalized sports gambling and the public hasn’t liked it 1:09:45 Trying to regulate after the fact can be difficult 1:11:00 Common law concepts are starting to come into regulating AI 1:11:30 Florida AG has brought criminal case against OpenAI over FSU shooter 1:13:00 There has to always be human liability in AI cases 1:15:00 If ChatGPT was a human in FSU case, it would have be charged as co-conspirator 1:16:00 Shooter asked ChatGPT how to disengage the safety 3 mins before shooting 1:18:00 In Canadian school shooting, ChatGPT’s participation was overt 1:20:30 Determining liability is murky. Google search isn’t held to same standard as ChatGPT 1:22:00 Humans can be prosecuted for encouraging someone to commit suicide 1:23:15 There are circumstances where criminal liability could apply to AI 1:23:45 When ChatGPT is speaking, OpenAI is speaking 1:25:00 Litigation needs to be a deterrent, not just compensation for victims 1:27:30 We need to pass laws regulating AI, not just pressure via civil lawsuits 1:28:45 How is blanket immunity for Trump tax violations remotely legal? 1:29:45 Congress’s job to stop weaponization fund & Trump IRS immunity 1:30:45 Legal system rests on an adversarial relationship in court cases 1:31:45 There’s no adversarial proceeding when Trump sues his own government 1:32:30 Trump cares more about liability shield than the slush fund 1:33:30 Pardon power only applies to federal crimes, not civil offenses. Can be sued 1:34:15 Trump is trying to remove himself from the operation of the law like a king 1:35:00 How can congress stop Trump’s DOJ from issuing these settlements? 1:36:45 Congress should have to approve settlements above a certain amount of $ 1:38:30 Member of congress should have to get a certification in the constitution 1:39:45 Parties should force candidates to pass a comprehensive background check 1:41:00 Why aren’t state funded partisan primaries a violation of equal protection? 1:44:15 Partisan primaries are killing the political system 1:45:00 States can say that they’ll only fund open primaries 1:46:15 Campaign finance reforms and PACs have weakened party control 1:48:00 Did the founders intend for America to be a christian nation? 1:49:00 Founders were biblically literate, but not particularly devout 1:49:30 Founders intentionally did not create a christian nation 1:50:30 Madison argued against paying clergy with tax dollars 1:51:15 Madison rebuked christian nationalism and immigration restriction 1:53:45 DOJ has lost credibility, how can we separate the DOJ from the executive? 1:54:30 Problems with DOJ are downstream from the unitary executive theory 1:55:30 Article II of the constitution is vague and inexplicit 1:56:45 After dark period, America enters periods of reform, which we badly need 1:58:45 Never supposed to be co-equal branches. Congress should have most power 1:59:30 Have to remove executive’s ability to claw power to the top 2:00:30 Would likely need constitutional reform to pull DOJ out of executive branch 2:03:00 Past congressional leaders wouldn’t voluntarily cede power 2:04:45 In late 80’s - early 90’s, congress was incentivized to compromise 2:05:30 Changes to college basketball in one-and-done and NIL era 2:07:00 Transfer portal has created a new form of one-and-done 2:08:45 NBA can only improve regular season by reducing the 82 games 2:10:15 Regular season NBA games are more intense than 30 years ago  2:13:45 ToddCast Time Machine - June 9th, 1954 2:14:15 “Have you no sense of decency?” quote becomes famous 2:15:00 Quote came during the Army/McCarthy hearings 2:15:30 The famous line didn’t end McCarthyism 2:16:15 The myth is that McCarthy created the Red Scare… he did not 2:17:00 The Cold War was not a distant abstraction, people were worried 2:17:30 McCarthy didn’t create the wave… he was surfing it 2:18:45 Mass media was growing in America and sped up the information wars 2:19:30 McCarthy understood media and how to create anticipation 2:21:00 McCarthy mastered the politics of attention, his and Trump’s mentor was Roy Cohn 2:23:00 The fear of communism still existed, but public confidence in McCarthy eroded 2:24:00 Television exposed McCarthy in a way quotes and newspapers couldn’t 2:25:30 Army/McCarthy hearings started as a personnel dispute for Roy Cohn ally 2:27:00 There were multiple institutions moving against McCarthy 2:28:00 Army chief counsel Joseph Welch spoke the infamous line 2:28:30 Welch gave words to a conclusion Americans were reaching on their own 2:31:15 Ask Chuck 2:31:30 When will congress actually hold cabinet members accountable? 2:38:15 Thoughts on DHS pulling CBP from sanctuary city airports? 2:42:15 Navigating the tension between voting for and against a candidate? 2:48:15 Thoughts on Democrats proposing a national gerrymandering ban?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

David French — New York Times columnist, veteran constitutional attorney, and one of the sharpest legal thinkers writing today — joins the Chuck Toddcast for a riveting conversation about how the legal system is straining to handle a world being remade by AI, an out-of-control executive branch, and the slow erosion of America's basic constitutional architecture. French opens with the chilling case the Florida Attorney General has now brought against OpenAI in connection with the Florida State University shooter, who asked ChatGPT how to disengage his weapon's safety just three minutes before opening fire. French argues that if ChatGPT had been a human person, it would unquestionably have been charged as a co-conspirator — humans get prosecuted for encouraging suicide all the time — and that when ChatGPT is speaking, OpenAI is legally speaking, full stop. He walks through the murky liability questions the law is now scrambling to answer: Google Search has never been held to the same standard as ChatGPT, but ChatGPT actively generates new speech rather than just pointing users to existing content, and French argues that litigation needs to function as a meaningful deterrent rather than mere compensation — though ultimately Congress is going to have to actually legislate AI regulation rather than leave the entire field to civil lawsuits. The conversation turns to what French sees as a more immediate constitutional crisis: Trump's blanket immunity for tax violations and the "anti-weaponization" slush fund scheme, both of which French argues are flatly indefensible on legal grounds. He explains the deeper problem — Trump suing his own government creates a fiction of an adversarial proceeding when there isn't actually one, and Trump cares far more about the liability shield than the slush fund itself, because he's trying to remove himself from the operation of the law in essentially the same way a king would. The pardon power only covers federal crimes, not civil offenses, and Congress has clear authority to stop this if it had the will. French offers several concrete reforms: require congressional approval for legal settlements above a certain dollar threshold, force members of Congress to obtain a certification in the Constitution itself, and that political parties should perform comprehensive background checks for their candidates, On the question of whether the Founders intended a Christian nation, French is unequivocal: they didn't, and Madison rebuked Christian nationalism explicitly. The deeper structural problem behind the DOJ's loss of credibility is the unitary executive theory itself — Article II of the Constitution is dangerously vague, the executive was never meant to be a co-equal branch (Congress was supposed to be most powerful), and the only durable fix may require constitutional reform to formally remove the DOJ from executive control. French closes on a hopeful note: after every dark period in American history, the country has entered a major era of reform — and he believes one is coming again.  Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary. Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 David French joins the Chuck ToddCast 01:30 Insurance companies & gambling companies have opposite incentives 04:00 States liberalized sports gambling and the public hasn’t liked it 05:45 Trying to regulate after the fact can be difficult 07:00 Common law concepts are starting to come into regulating AI 07:30 Florida AG has brought criminal case against OpenAI over FSU shooter 09:00 There has to always be human liability in AI cases 11:00 If ChatGPT was a human in FSU case, it would have be charged as co-conspirator 12:00 Shooter asked ChatGPT how to disengage the safety 3 mins before shooting 14:00 In Canadian school shooting, ChatGPT’s participation was overt 16:30 Determining liability is murky. Google search isn’t held to same standard as ChatGPT 18:00 Humans can be prosecuted for encouraging someone to commit suicide 19:15 There are circumstances where criminal liability could apply to AI 19:45 When ChatGPT is speaking, OpenAI is speaking 21:00 Litigation needs to be a deterrent, not just compensation for victims 23:30 We need to pass laws regulating AI, not just pressure via civil lawsuits 24:45 How is blanket immunity for Trump tax violations remotely legal? 25:45 Congress’s job to stop weaponization fund & Trump IRS immunity 26:45 Legal system rests on an adversarial relationship in court cases 27:45 There’s no adversarial proceeding when Trump sues his own government 28:30 Trump cares more about liability shield than the slush fund 29:30 Pardon power only applies to federal crimes, not civil offenses. Can be sued 30:15 Trump is trying to remove himself from the operation of the law like a king 31:00 How can congress stop Trump’s DOJ from issuing these settlements? 32:45 Congress should have to approve settlements above a certain amount of $ 34:30 Member of congress should have to get a certification in the constitution 35:45 Parties should force candidates to pass a comprehensive background check 37:00 Why aren’t state funded partisan primaries a violation of equal protection? 40:15 Partisan primaries are killing the political system 41:00 States can say that they’ll only fund open primaries 42:15 Campaign finance reforms and PACs have weakened party control 44:00 Did the founders intend for America to be a christian nation? 45:00 Founders were biblically literate, but not particularly devout 45:30 Founders intentionally did not create a christian nation 46:30 Madison argued against paying clergy with tax dollars 47:15 Madison rebuked christian nationalism and immigration restriction 49:45 DOJ has lost credibility, how can we separate the DOJ from the executive? 50:30 Problems with DOJ are downstream from the unitary executive theory 51:30 Article II of the constitution is vague and inexplicit  52:45 After dark period, America enters periods of reform, which we badly need 54:45 Never supposed to be co-equal branches. Congress should have most power 55:30 Have to remove executive’s ability to claw power to the top 56:30 Would likely need constitutional reform to pull DOJ out of executive branch 59:00 Past congressional leaders wouldn’t voluntarily cede power 1:00:45 In late 80’s - early 90’s, congress was incentivized to compromise 1:01:30 Changes to college basketball in one-and-done and NIL era 1:03:00 Transfer portal has created a new form of one-and-done 1:04:45 NBA can only improve regular season by reducing the 82 games 1:06:15 Regular season NBA games are more intense than 30 years agoSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd revisits his interview with Iowa Democratic senate candidate and four-time Paralympian and gold medalist Josh Turek for a deeply personal and politically sharp conversation. Josh shares his remarkable journey—from being born with spina bifida caused by his father’s exposure to Agent Orange, to discovering wheelchair basketball as a pathway to college, to becoming one of the winningest athletes in Paralympic history. He opens up about the emotional challenge of leaving the sport he loved and what ultimately pushed him toward public service. Together, Chuck and Josh explore how the ADA reshaped life for disabled Americans, why adaptive and women’s sports remain undervalued, and how equal access—not guaranteed equal outcomes—remains the core civil rights debate for the disability community. The conversation widens into an unvarnished look at rural politics, Iowa’s sharp rightward turn, and the policies reshaping life in small towns. Josh breaks down why Medicaid denials have exploded, how school choice is quietly devastating rural school districts, and why tariffs—when used chaotically—are crushing family farms. He tackles complex cultural issues such as religion’s decline, the trans sports debate, and why Democrats shouldn’t cede Christianity or populism to the right. They also cover climate messaging, the stakes for U.S. policy in Israel and Ukraine, and whether Congress should step in to regulate collegiate athletics. With insights on Iowa’s political future, the 2026 Democratic opportunity, and even some NBA talk (yes—Jokić and Jordan both make an appearance), Josh Turek offers one of the most candid, wide-ranging conversations you’ll hear about the Midwest, disability rights, and the future of American politics. Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 1:45 Josh Turek joins the Chuck ToddCast 3:15 Josh’s journey as a gold medal winning Paralympian 4:30 Josh’s fathers exposure to agent orange caused his spina bifida 6:15 Wheelchair basketball was his pathway to college 7:30 What do we not value adaptive & female sports in America? 9:45 How hard was it to walk away from basketball? 11:30 What inspired the decision to go into politics? 12:45 There was a 1000% increase in Medicaid denials in Iowa 14:15 The ADA made things better, still a long ways to go 15:30 The ADA gave disabled Americans an onramp to society 18:15 The debate over equal access vs. equal outcome 19:00 Who is the Turek/Trump voter? 21:30 The difficulty of breaking through as a Democrat in rural America 23:30 Iowa has shifted rightward, but could shift back to swing state status 26:45 The right candidate with the right message can win red Iowa counties 29:00 School choice sounds great, but is a huge problem for rural America 30:30 Rural schools are struggling and closing under school choice policies 32:00 There are no standards for private schools spending tax dollars 34:45 Not all tariffs are bad, but Trump’s tariff regime is chaotic 35:45 Tariffs are crushing family farms 36:45 What’s the plan to keep people in Iowa and reverse brain drain? 39:30 How has the decline in religious participation affected Iowa? 40:45 Pushing back against the narrative that Democrats can’t be Christian 41:15 What’s fair to the trans community when it comes to organized sports? 42:30 Politicians shouldn’t be involved in the trans sports conversation 43:15 Why have many Democrats turned to socialism over capitalism? 44:15 We need regulated capitalism and a progressive tax structure 45:00 We are living in a country of have’s and have nots 46:30 Addressing climate change without scaring voters about the economy 48:00 What’s your position on Israel? 49:00 The U.S. should stand in solidarity with Ukraine & aid them 50:00 Does Congress need to get involved in regulating collegiate sports? 53:15 We need more genuine populists in congress to push back against oligarchs 55:00 Nikola Jokic is Josh’s favorite basketball player to watch 56:30 Michael Jordan is the GOAT 57:30 Historic opportunity for Democrats in Iowa in ‘26 58:45 Democrats focused too much on identity in Iowa 1:01:15 Public schools will be a huge issue for Iowa voters 1:03:00 If Democrats can’t win Iowa in this environment, it could take a generation 1:07:15 There are three great candidates for the Iowa Democratic senate seat 1:08:15 Primaries sharpen candidates and improve party registrationSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd & J.A. Adande tell the complete history of The Golden State Warriors, who certainly didn't become a dynasty overnight. Long before Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and the NBA's greatest three-point revolution, the Warriors were one of the most fascinating—and frustrating—franchises in professional sports. Chuck & J.A. take you from their origins as one of the NBA's founding franchises to the rise of Wilt Chamberlain, the 1975 championship team led by Rick Barry, the Run TMC era, the We Believe Warriors, and ultimately the dynasty that changed basketball forever.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd opens with what he calls the unmistakable arrival of a "YOLO caucus" in the Senate — a growing number of congressional Republicans who are simply done capitulating to Trump, evidenced by John Thune publicly declaring there's no need to "weaponize" the DNI position and by the broader sense that the non-Trump part of the GOP is openly preparing to move on. He argues Trump is doing everything possible to accelerate his own lame duck status: he's politicizing America's 250th anniversary in ways that genuinely alarm vulnerable Republicans, he failed to engage any of the former presidents in the 250th planning, and he's creating Marie Antoinette-style "let them eat cake" optics by celebrating himself at a moment of real economic pain for ordinary Americans. Trump's treatment of CNN's Kaitlan Collins was outrageous, his cranky behavior with the press is a tell that things aren't going well, and his decision to formally nominate Todd Blanche for Attorney General has essentially zero chance of confirmation — Blanche has burned his bridges in the Senate and the doomed January 6th weaponization fund was reportedly his idea in the first place. It's almost as if Trump is begging to put a neon "I'm a lame duck" sign on the White House. Chuck then turns to California, where ballots are still being counted at a pace that he says is actively eroding public trust in the democratic process itself — the state desperately needs to find a way to count faster — and notes that CA-06 was drawn as a safe Democratic seat but the top two finishers right now are both Republicans, while Spencer Pratt looks safer in the LA mayoral race than Steve Hilton does in the governor's race. He closes with a fascinating analysis of the Graham Platner situation in Maine, where Janet Mills' decision to leave her name on the ballot has created a Nikki Haley-style protest vote opportunity for nervous Democrats — Mills didn't bow out in disgrace so her floor is high, and if she pulls 25% or more in the primary, Chuck predicts very real conversations about replacing Platner will begin. The number to watch is ME-02: if Platner underperforms there, it's the clearest red flag that a candidate Democrats once viewed as a slam-dunk pickup is now in serious trouble.  Finally, Chuck answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment and spends a few minutes reflecting on the life of his grandmother who passed away this week.  Predict the action all the way through the finals. Sign up now for your twenty-five dollar bonus on https://fanduel.com/predicts   Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Thank you Wildgrain for sponsoring. Visit http://wildgrain.com/TODDCAST and use the code "TODDCAST" at checkout to receive $30 off your first box PLUS free Croissants for life! Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 06:45 Increasing # of congressional Republicans done capitulating to Trump 07:30 John Thune said we don’t need “weaponization” of DNI position 08:30 There’s a growing “YOLO caucus” in the senate 09:30 The non-Trump part of the GOP is ready to move on from Trump 10:00 Trump’s treatment of Kaitlin Collins is outrageous 11:45 Trump gets cranky with the press when things aren’t going well 12:30 Trump is a terrible negotiator 13:00 Trump is creating huge political risk politicizing America 250 13:45 Trump should have put the UFC on the national mall, not WH 15:00 Trump is celebrating himself for 250, terrible move politically 16:15 Trump didn’t engage with the former presidents for 250 17:00 Trump is creating Marie Antoinette “let them eat cake” optics  18:30 Vulnerable Republicans may fear attending Trump’s 250 events 19:00 Trump is looking to formally nominate Todd Blanche for AG 19:30 There is zero chance Todd Blanche can get confirmed 20:15 Blanche hasn’t made friends. Weaponization fund was his idea 22:15 Trump may be done listening to any rational advice 23:30 It’s like Trump wants to put a neon “I’m a lame duck” sign on WH 24:15 California ballots are still being counted. Can Steyer and Raman catch up? 26:15 Pratt seems to have a more comfortable lead than Hilton 27:30 CA-06 was drawn to be Democratic, top two so far are Republican 29:45 California desperately needs to find a way to count ballots faster 30:30 Slow count erodes trust is democracy and counting process 33:15 Graham Platner visit to D.C. went ok, but there’s trepidation 35:30 Platner wants to drive the narrative he’s still ahead of Collins 36:30 Polling has shown Platner with a massive lead over Collins for weeks 38:15 Platner’s recent scandals have him in trouble, can’t take much more 39:30 New polling shows Platner took a hit, but it’s recoverable 40:00 Janet Mills chose to keep her name on the ballot for uneasy Dems 41:00 Maine is one of the easier states to replace a candidate 42:30 How votes for Mills should be read 44:15 Mills didn’t bow out in disgrace, her floor is higher 45:30 Mills could become a protest vote for Platner, similar to Nikki Haley 47:00 If Maine voters are nervous about Platner, they can vote for Mills 49:00 If Mills gets 25% or more, then there will be talks of replacing Platner 51:15 If Platner underperforms in ME-02, that’s a red flag 55:45 Chuck’s thoughts on interview with Todd Ricketts 57:15 Salary cap proposal for MLB revealed 58:30 Salary cap could be much higher than expected to buy time 59:45 Willingness to pool local revenue is a big deal 1:00:00 Ask Chuck 1:00:15 Is voting for a candidate an indictment of the character of the voter? 1:19:15 How would the logistics work for expanding the house? 1:23:15 How much should a candidate’s private behavior affect their electability? 1:31:00 How does a state with no income tax like Florida fund services? 1:35:45 With government agreeing to large settlements, won’t future admins do the same? 1:44:30 Chuck’s eulogy for his grandmotherSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd opens with what he calls the unmistakable arrival of a "YOLO caucus" in the Senate — a growing number of congressional Republicans who are simply done capitulating to Trump, evidenced by John Thune publicly declaring there's no need to "weaponize" the DNI position and by the broader sense that the non-Trump part of the GOP is openly preparing to move on. He argues Trump is doing everything possible to accelerate his own lame duck status: he's politicizing America's 250th anniversary in ways that genuinely alarm vulnerable Republicans, he failed to engage any of the former presidents in the 250th planning, and he's creating Marie Antoinette-style "let them eat cake" optics by celebrating himself at a moment of real economic pain for ordinary Americans. Trump's treatment of CNN's Kaitlan Collins was outrageous, his cranky behavior with the press is a tell that things aren't going well, and his decision to formally nominate Todd Blanche for Attorney General has essentially zero chance of confirmation — Blanche has burned his bridges in the Senate and the doomed January 6th weaponization fund was reportedly his idea in the first place. It's almost as if Trump is begging to put a neon "I'm a lame duck" sign on the White House. Chuck then turns to California, where ballots are still being counted at a pace that he says is actively eroding public trust in the democratic process itself — the state desperately needs to find a way to count faster — and notes that CA-06 was drawn as a safe Democratic seat but the top two finishers right now are both Republicans, while Spencer Pratt looks safer in the LA mayoral race than Steve Hilton does in the governor's race. He closes with a fascinating analysis of the Graham Platner situation in Maine, where Janet Mills' decision to leave her name on the ballot has created a Nikki Haley-style protest vote opportunity for nervous Democrats — Mills didn't bow out in disgrace so her floor is high, and if she pulls 25% or more in the primary, Chuck predicts very real conversations about replacing Platner will begin. The number to watch is ME-02: if Platner underperforms there, it's the clearest red flag that a candidate Democrats once viewed as a slam-dunk pickup is now in serious trouble.  Then, Todd Ricketts — Chicago Cubs co-owner and founder of Freespoke, the search engine that labels news sources with media bias ratings — joins the Chuck Toddcast for a wide-ranging conversation that bridges the increasingly intertwined worlds of media, technology, and professional sports. Ricketts makes the case that when people are given genuinely good information from across the ideological spectrum, they tend to arrive at good answers — and that Freespoke's mission is to present all sides and then get out of the way, rather than letting ad sales determine what news you see. He pushes back on the idea that the market alone can solve the data privacy crisis, arguing data may eventually need to be regulated like a utility but that nothing changes until there's a major "event" that creates real public groundswell. Ricketts is candid about Freespoke's challenges — paywalls remain a real obstacle, the left/right labeling is imperfect and done by outside groups, and the political landscape itself is shifting in ways that scramble the traditional categories . He observes that podcasts have become a primary news source because people clearly hunger for long-form content with nuance, that politicians are now visibly afraid of giving long answers because they might get clipped, and that legacy media still doesn't seem to understand why its audience has migrated elsewhere. The second half pivots into the business of running a baseball team, and Ricketts brings the same straight-talking pragmatism to MLB's looming economic crisis. He argues you cannot sell a salary cap to MLB owners without genuine revenue sharing, because if the league itself isn't competitive then everyone eventually loses — including the owners writing the biggest checks. Players currently take roughly 48% of revenue, a number he expects to climb to around 52% in the next deal, and Ricketts is honest that half of MLB's franchises are still essentially mom-and-pop operations even as private equity money is rapidly entering the sport. He talks about the difficulty of running any sports team in 2026 because fans genuinely feel like they own the franchise, why ownership groups are increasingly building entire entertainment districts around their ballparks to control the fan experience end-to-end, and the painful broadcast rights question every team is wrestling with: fans have cut the cord, the old TV economics no longer work, and ownership has to be flexible with new broadcast partners even as they ask themselves whether season ticket holders should be entitled to free access to every game. Ricketts closes by laying out what would qualify as a disappointing season for the Cubs — a sober assessment from an owner who has watched the economics of his sport, and the media landscape his business depends on, both transform at the same time. Finally, Chuck answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment and spends a few minutes reflecting on the life of his grandmother who passed away this week.  Predict the action all the way through the finals. Sign up now for your twenty-five dollar bonus on https://fanduel.com/predicts   Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Thank you Wildgrain for sponsoring. Visit http://wildgrain.com/TODDCAST and use the code "TODDCAST" at checkout to receive $30 off your first box PLUS free Croissants for life! Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 06:45 Increasing # of congressional Republicans done capitulating to Trump 07:30 John Thune said we don’t need “weaponization” of DNI position 08:30 There’s a growing “YOLO caucus” in the senate 09:30 The non-Trump part of the GOP is ready to move on from Trump 10:00 Trump’s treatment of Kaitlin Collins is outrageous 11:45 Trump gets cranky with the press when things aren’t going well 12:30 Trump is a terrible negotiator 13:00 Trump is creating huge political risk politicizing America 250 13:45 Trump should have put the UFC on the national mall, not WH 15:00 Trump is celebrating himself for 250, terrible move politically 16:15 Trump didn’t engage with the former presidents for 250 17:00 Trump is creating Marie Antoinette “let them eat cake” optics  18:30 Vulnerable Republicans may fear attending Trump’s 250 events 19:00 Trump is looking to formally nominate Todd Blanche for AG 19:30 There is zero chance Todd Blanche can get confirmed 20:15 Blanche hasn’t made friends. Weaponization fund was his idea 22:15 Trump may be done listening to any rational advice 23:30 It’s like Trump wants to put a neon “I’m a lame duck” sign on WH 24:15 California ballots are still being counted. Can Steyer and Raman catch up? 26:15 Pratt seems to have a more comfortable lead than Hilton 27:30 CA-06 was drawn to be Democratic, top two so far are Republican 29:45 California desperately needs to find a way to count ballots faster 30:30 Slow count erodes trust is democracy and counting process 33:15 Graham Platner visit to D.C. went ok, but there’s trepidation 35:30 Platner wants to drive the narrative he’s still ahead of Collins 36:30 Polling has shown Platner with a massive lead over Collins for weeks 38:15 Platner’s recent scandals have him in trouble, can’t take much more 39:30 New polling shows Platner took a hit, but it’s recoverable 40:00 Janet Mills chose to keep her name on the ballot for uneasy Dems 41:00 Maine is one of the easier states to replace a candidate 42:30 How votes for Mills should be read 44:15 Mills didn’t bow out in disgrace, her floor is higher 45:30 Mills could become a protest vote for Platner, similar to Nikki Haley 47:00 If Maine voters are nervous about Platner, they can vote for Mills 49:00 If Mills gets 25% or more, then there will be talks of replacing Platner 51:15 If Platner underperforms in ME-02, that’s a red flag 59:45 Todd Ricketts joins the Chuck ToddCast 1:00:30 Providing media bias ratings for online news sources 1:03:00 When people are given good info, they come up with good answers 1:03:30 Goal is to present all sides, then let people make up their mind 1:04:45 You don’t want ad sales for search to determine your information 1:07:00 Can the market fix data sales, or does the government need to regulate? 1:08:45 Should data be regulated like a utility? 1:09:15 There will need to be an “event” to cause groundswell over data privacy 1:10:15 Does Freespoke labeling news left/right cause users to seek their preferred source? 1:13:15 Politics are shifting and what used to be a “left” issue is now a right issue etc 1:14:00 Protectionism has become right and free trade has become left 1:15:45 How would someone like George Will be labled? 1:17:15 Labeling is done by outside groups and the labeling isn’t perfect 1:17:45 The company is for-profit, sells ads and has subscription model 1:18:30 All the search is AI curated, but people curate the current events page 1:19:15 Bing and Google are the direct competitors 1:20:00 The Freespoke algorithm tries to strip out bias 1:21:30 Some topics get a ton of content from one side & none from the other 1:23:00 People are informing themselves via podcasts instead of legacy news 1:23:45 Legacy media needs to understand why audience is going elsewhere 1:25:30 Popularity of podcasts show people like long form content 1:26:45 Politicians are afraid of long answers & nuance in case they get clipped 1:27:15 Paywalls are a challenge for Freespoke, but sources are still included 1:28:15 Why are there left/right labels on sports coverage? 1:29:45 What is Freespoke’s position on mis and disinformation? 1:30:30 What does Freespoke 2.0 look like? 1:31:45 AI is only as good as the people & information that train it 1:32:45 Will you get into the newsletter business? 1:34:30 Can you sell a salary cap to MLB owners without total revenue sharing? 1:35:45 If the league isn’t competitive, then everyone will eventually lose 1:37:00 Players currently get 48% of revenue, may move up to about 52% 1:38:15 Running a sports team is hard because fans feel like they own the team 1:40:15 What have you learned from running the Cubs? 1:41:45 Half the teams are still mom & pop operations, but PE is coming in 1:43:00 Ownership wants to control fan experience, building entertainment districts 1:44:00 Should teams always be available on free TV? 1:44:30 Fans have cut the cord, have to be flexible with broadcast partners 1:46:15 Should season ticket holders be able to get all game broadcasts for free? 1:47:00 What would qualify this season as disappointing for the Cubs?  1:49:45 Chuck’s thoughts on interview with Todd Ricketts 1:51:15 Salary cap proposal for MLB revealed 1:52:30 Salary cap could be much higher than expected to buy time 1:53:45 Willingness to pool local revenue is a big deal 1:54:00 Ask Chuck 1:54:15 Is voting for a candidate an indictment of the character of the voter? 2:13:15 How would the logistics work for expanding the house? 2:17:15 How much should a candidate’s private behavior affect their electability? 2:25:00 How does a state with no income tax like Florida fund services? 2:29:45 With government agreeing to large settlements, won’t future admins do the same? 2:38:30 Chuck’s eulogy for his grandmotherSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Todd Ricketts — Chicago Cubs co-owner and founder of Freespoke, the search engine that labels news sources with media bias ratings — joins the Chuck Toddcast for a wide-ranging conversation that bridges the increasingly intertwined worlds of media, technology, and professional sports. Ricketts makes the case that when people are given genuinely good information from across the ideological spectrum, they tend to arrive at good answers — and that Freespoke's mission is to present all sides and then get out of the way, rather than letting ad sales determine what news you see. He pushes back on the idea that the market alone can solve the data privacy crisis, arguing data may eventually need to be regulated like a utility but that nothing changes until there's a major "event" that creates real public groundswell. Ricketts is candid about Freespoke's challenges — paywalls remain a real obstacle, the left/right labeling is imperfect and done by outside groups, and the political landscape itself is shifting in ways that scramble the traditional categories . He observes that podcasts have become a primary news source because people clearly hunger for long-form content with nuance, that politicians are now visibly afraid of giving long answers because they might get clipped, and that legacy media still doesn't seem to understand why its audience has migrated elsewhere. The second half pivots into the business of running a baseball team, and Ricketts brings the same straight-talking pragmatism to MLB's looming economic crisis. He argues you cannot sell a salary cap to MLB owners without genuine revenue sharing, because if the league itself isn't competitive then everyone eventually loses — including the owners writing the biggest checks. Players currently take roughly 48% of revenue, a number he expects to climb to around 52% in the next deal, and Ricketts is honest that half of MLB's franchises are still essentially mom-and-pop operations even as private equity money is rapidly entering the sport. He talks about the difficulty of running any sports team in 2026 because fans genuinely feel like they own the franchise, why ownership groups are increasingly building entire entertainment districts around their ballparks to control the fan experience end-to-end, and the painful broadcast rights question every team is wrestling with: fans have cut the cord, the old TV economics no longer work, and ownership has to be flexible with new broadcast partners even as they ask themselves whether season ticket holders should be entitled to free access to every game. Ricketts closes by laying out what would qualify as a disappointing season for the Cubs — a sober assessment from an owner who has watched the economics of his sport, and the media landscape his business depends on, both transform at the same time. Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Thank you Wildgrain for sponsoring. Visit http://wildgrain.com/TODDCAST and use the code "TODDCAST" at checkout to receive $30 off your first box PLUS free Croissants for life! Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Todd Ricketts joins the Chuck ToddCast 00:45 Providing media bias ratings for online news sources 03:15 When people are given good info, they come up with good answers 03:45 Goal is to present all sides, then let people make up their mind 05:00 You don’t want ad sales for search to determine your information 07:15 Can the market fix data sales, or does the government need to regulate? 09:00 Should data be regulated like a utility? 09:30 There will need to be an “event” to cause groundswell over data privacy 10:30 Does Freespoke labeling news left/right cause users to seek their preferred source? 13:30 Politics are shifting and what used to be a “left” issue is now a right issue etc 14:15 Protectionism has become right and free trade has become left 16:00 How would someone like George Will be labled? 17:30 Labeling is done by outside groups and the labeling isn’t perfect 18:00 The company is for-profit, sells ads and has subscription model 18:45 All the search is AI curated, but people curate the current events page 19:30 Bing and Google are the direct competitors 20:15 The Freespoke algorithm tries to strip out bias 21:45 Some topics get a ton of content from one side & none from the other 23:15 People are informing themselves via podcasts instead of legacy news 24:00 Legacy media needs to understand why audience is going elsewhere 25:45 Popularity of podcasts show people like long form content 27:00 Politicians are afraid of long answers & nuance in case they get clipped 27:30 Paywalls are a challenge for Freespoke, but sources are still included 28:30 Why are there left/right labels on sports coverage? 30:00 What is Freespoke’s position on mis and disinformation? 30:45 What does Freespoke 2.0 look like? 32:00 AI is only as good as the people & information that train it 33:00 Will you get into the newsletter business? 34:45 Can you sell a salary cap to MLB owners without total revenue sharing? 36:00 If the league isn’t competitive, then everyone will eventually lose 37:15 Players currently get 48% of revenue, may move up to about 52% 38:30 Running a sports team is hard because fans feel like they own the team 40:30 What have you learned from running the Cubs? 42:00 Half the teams are still mom & pop operations, but PE is coming in 43:15 Ownership wants to control fan experience, building entertainment districts 44:15 Should teams always be available on free TV? 44:45 Fans have cut the cord, have to be flexible with broadcast partners 46:30 Should season ticket holders be able to get all game broadcasts for free? 47:15 What would qualify this season as disappointing for the Cubs?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd walks through a primary night that was, in his words, a really good night for Democrats — and one that may have just answered whether 2026 is shaping up as a genuine blue wave. The night's biggest single story came out of Iowa, where Zach Lahn pulled off a stunning upset of Randy Feenstra in what Chuck characterizes as a "MAHA vs. MAGA" race — Trump endorsed the establishment Feenstra and lost, which Chuck predicts will drive the president absolutely nuts. Iowa Democrats also got a substantial ticket boost when Josh Turek blew out Zach Wahls in the Senate primary, and combined with the surprisingly strong gubernatorial candidacy of Rob Sand, Iowa is now the cleanest test case in the country for whether the political wind has truly shifted — a right-leaning state where the politics are visibly in flux. Chuck flags that Lahn can probably be painted as too far right in a general, that having "congressman" as your first name has become a real disadvantage in 2026, and that the night was an unambiguous positive for Democrats nationally. He also walks through results elsewhere: New Jersey's seventh district will see Tom Keane (still mysteriously MIA from his own campaign) face Rebecca Bennett; South Dakota's gubernatorial race is headed to its first-ever runoff after four candidates each cleared 20%, and Deb Haaland is on track to become the first Native American woman governor in U.S. history. The conversation then turns to California, where Chuck warns it will be days before we have full primary results but where turnout is already on pace to exceed 2022. He cautions viewers about the inevitable early "red mirage" from the mail-vote curve, predicts Hilton has enough of a lead over Steyer that he likely survives, and argues Xavier Becerra would much rather face Hilton than Steyer in a general — though a potential scandal is looming over Becerra that could reshape the whole race. Chuck argues a Becerra-Hilton race would be a conventional Democrat-versus-Republican contest, that Steyer has spent $500 million across his last two campaigns and still has a low ceiling because he's created a genuine sense of voter exhaustion, and that the single most fascinating race in the state right now is CA-06 and Kevin Kiley. The Los Angeles mayoral picture is clarifying too: Karen Bass and Spencer Pratt appear set to advance, which Todd argues is exactly what Bass wanted — it will be far easier to turn Pratt into a Trump acolyte in a general election than to face the formidable Nithya Raman. He notes that Matt Mahan became known as "big tech's candidate" in ways that genuinely hurt him, and closes with one to watch in Montana, where independent Seth Bodner is quietly hoping the Democratic candidate eventually bows out so he can consolidate the anti-incumbent vote into a real challenge. Finally, Chuck presents his ToddCast Top 5 list of instances that Republicans have rebuked Donald Trump in his second term, and answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment. Predict the action all the way through the finals. Sign up now for your twenty-five dollar bonus on https://fanduel.com/predicts   Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Thank you Wildgrain for sponsoring. Visit http://wildgrain.com/TODDCAST and use the code "TODDCAST" at checkout to receive $30 off your first box PLUS free Croissants for life! Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 01:00 Tuesday was a REALLY good night for Democrats nationally 01:30 Tom Keane still MIA, will face Rebecca Bennett in NJ-07 04:00 Iowa results made Democratic ticket substantially stronger 04:30 Josh Turek blew out Zach Wahls in Iowa 05:30 Biggest upset of the night was Zach Lahn beating Randy Feenstra 08:15 Lahn vs. Feenstra was a MAHA vs. MAGA race 08:45 Iowa is a right leaning state, but the state’s politics are in flux 09:45 Having a first name of “congressman” is a major disadvantage 11:30 Rob Sand is a very strong Democratic candidate for governor in Iowa 13:15 It’s possible Lahn can be painted as too far to the right 14:15 Iowa will be the test of whether 2026 is a blue wave election 15:30 Iowa was a huge positive development for team blue 16:45 Trump endorsing Feenstra then losing will drive Trump nuts 19:00 South Dakota governor’s race headed to runoff for first time 20:45 Four candidates in SD gubernatorial race received 20% of vote 23:00 Voters keep rewarding political bomb throwers 24:00 Trump endorsed the least Trump-like candidate, voters chose the Trumpy one 25:00 Deb Haaland on track to be the first Native American woman governor 25:30 It will be days before we know the full results of California primaries 27:30 California turnout will exceed turnout in 2022 28:30 Early on there will be a red mirage in California due to early vote 31:00 Hilton has enough of a lead over Steyer that he likely hangs on 32:15 Becerra would rather run against Hilton than Steyer 32:45 Steyer has created a sense of exhaustion 33:45 A Becerra v Hilton race would be a conventional D vs. R race 34:15 Potential scandal looms over Becerra 35:45 Most fascinating race is CA-06 and Kevin Kiley 38:15 It looks like Karen Bass & Spencer Pratt will move on in LA mayoral 40:30 It will be easier for Bass to turn Pratt into a Trump acolyte than face Raman 41:45 Steyer has a low ceiling, and has spent $500M in last two campaigns 43:30 Matt Mahan became known as “big tech’s candidate” and that hurt him 46:00 Independent Seth Bodner hoping Democratic candidate bows out in Montana 54:15 Trump replacing Tulsi Gabbard with Bill Pulte for DNI 55:15 Republicans immediately starting pushing back on Pulte as nominee 56:45 No need for NDI. CIA has won the intel agency turf battle 57:30 Bill Pulte makes Tulsi Gabbard look qualified for DNI role 59:45 ToddCast Top 5 instances Republicans successfully rebuked Trump 1:00:00 #5 The Epstein files 1:01:30 #4 Trump’s threat to take over Greenland 1:02:30 #3 Fed chair Jay Powell 1:03:45 #2 Matt Gaetz nomination for AG 1:05:45 #1 Death of Trump’s anti-weaponization slush fund 1:11:30 Ask Chuck 1:11:45 Thoughts on potential reforms, how realistic are they? 1:19:00 Why do you call Democrats the party that’s held to a higher standard? 1:22:45 Do you see Wes Moore as a top Democratic contender in ‘28? 1:27:45 Is Mike Johnson’s speakership at risk? Would he be the minority leader? 1:30:00 Can Keir Starmer survive as PM? Will Nigel Farage be PM? 1:35:00 Do you think a more virtual governance model rather than in-person would work?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd walks through a primary night that was, in his words, a really good night for Democrats — and one that may have just answered whether 2026 is shaping up as a genuine blue wave. The night's biggest single story came out of Iowa, where Zach Lahn pulled off a stunning upset of Randy Feenstra in what Chuck characterizes as a "MAHA vs. MAGA" race — Trump endorsed the establishment Feenstra and lost, which Chuck predicts will drive the president absolutely nuts. Iowa Democrats also got a substantial ticket boost when Josh Turek blew out Zach Wahls in the Senate primary, and combined with the surprisingly strong gubernatorial candidacy of Rob Sand, Iowa is now the cleanest test case in the country for whether the political wind has truly shifted — a right-leaning state where the politics are visibly in flux. Chuck flags that Lahn can probably be painted as too far right in a general, that having "congressman" as your first name has become a real disadvantage in 2026, and that the night was an unambiguous positive for Democrats nationally. He also walks through results elsewhere: New Jersey's seventh district will see Tom Keane (still mysteriously MIA from his own campaign) face Rebecca Bennett; South Dakota's gubernatorial race is headed to its first-ever runoff after four candidates each cleared 20%, and Deb Haaland is on track to become the first Native American woman governor in U.S. history. The conversation then turns to California, where Chuck warns it will be days before we have full primary results but where turnout is already on pace to exceed 2022. He cautions viewers about the inevitable early "red mirage" from the mail-vote curve, predicts Hilton has enough of a lead over Steyer that he likely survives, and argues Xavier Becerra would much rather face Hilton than Steyer in a general — though a potential scandal is looming over Becerra that could reshape the whole race. Chuck argues a Becerra-Hilton race would be a conventional Democrat-versus-Republican contest, that Steyer has spent $500 million across his last two campaigns and still has a low ceiling because he's created a genuine sense of voter exhaustion, and that the single most fascinating race in the state right now is CA-06 and Kevin Kiley. The Los Angeles mayoral picture is clarifying too: Karen Bass and Spencer Pratt appear set to advance, which Todd argues is exactly what Bass wanted — it will be far easier to turn Pratt into a Trump acolyte in a general election than to face the formidable Nithya Raman. He notes that Matt Mahan became known as "big tech's candidate" in ways that genuinely hurt him, and closes with one to watch in Montana, where independent Seth Bodner is quietly hoping the Democratic candidate eventually bows out so he can consolidate the anti-incumbent vote into a real challenge. Then, Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings — the former Orlando police chief turned local executive who is now running for governor of Florida — joins the Chuck Toddcast for a candid conversation about the challenges of being a Democrat in modern Florida and the lessons his unusual career path (accountant, then cop, then mayor) brings to executive leadership. Demings reveals that Governor Ron DeSantis personally threatened to remove him from office over his opposition to ICE operations in Orange County, and uses that experience as the entry point to a broader discussion about what's gone wrong with American law enforcement. He argues you cannot solve police shortages by lowering recruiting standards — exactly what he says ICE did when it ramped up so quickly that screening and training went out the window, with the predictable consequence that ICE has now begun poaching trained officers from state and local departments. Demings makes the case that we have to get criminals off the streets but it has to be done lawfully, that state law enforcement should not be doing immigration work, and that being elected sheriff as a partisan position creates real tensions because the actual responsibilities of the job aren't partisan at all. He pushes back on the idea that he's running to be a "performance politician" and frames his candidacy as wanting to bring competent local-government experience to a state level that he says is suffering from leaders chasing viral moments rather than delivering services. The conversation turns to the structural challenges facing Florida and the deeper question of why Democrats can't win statewide in a state that's growing more diverse by the year. Demings argues Florida's underpaid state legislators simply don't attract quality talent, that many longtime Florida Democrats have left the party out of pure frustration, and that the party's central task is to restore basic public belief in government's capacity to function. He's willing to give DeSantis credit for diversifying and growing Florida's economy, but argues the state needs to find efficiencies rather than continually burdening local governments with expenses it should be covering itself — and points to slashed state mental health funding as a direct driver of the violent crime he sees in his community. Demings is sharp on Florida's climate exposure, arguing the state is building in places it absolutely should not be building, and that hurricane-hardened construction standards need a major overhaul, He flags the NAACP's call for athletes to avoid schools in remapping states as the kind of extreme response that extreme government actions inevitably provoke, and warns that the politics of division are starting to genuinely threaten Florida's tourism economy — meaning the state's longtime economic engine may finally be running into the consequences of the culture wars its leaders have spent the past decade fueling. Finally, Chuck presents his ToddCast Top 5 list of instances that Republicans have rebuked Donald Trump in his second term, and answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment. Predict the action all the way through the finals. Sign up now for your twenty-five dollar bonus on https://fanduel.com/predicts     Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order.   Thank you Wildgrain for sponsoring. Visit http://wildgrain.com/TODDCAST and use the code "TODDCAST" at checkout to receive $30 off your first box PLUS free Croissants for life!   Timeline: 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 01:00 Tuesday was a REALLY good night for Democrats nationally 01:30 Tom Keane still MIA, will face Rebecca Bennett in NJ-07 04:00 Iowa results made Democratic ticket substantially stronger 04:30 Josh Turek blew out Zach Wahls in Iowa 05:30 Biggest upset of the night was Zach Lahn beating Randy Feenstra 08:15 Lahn vs. Feenstra was a MAHA vs. MAGA race 08:45 Iowa is a right leaning state, but the state’s politics are in flux 09:45 Having a first name of “congressman” is a major disadvantage 11:30 Rob Sand is a very strong Democratic candidate for governor in Iowa 13:15 It’s possible Lahn can be painted as too far to the right 14:15 Iowa will be the test of whether 2026 is a blue wave election 15:30 Iowa was a huge positive development for team blue 16:45 Trump endorsing Feenstra then losing will drive Trump nuts 19:00 South Dakota governor’s race headed to runoff for first time 20:45 Four candidates in SD gubernatorial race received 20% of vote 23:00 Voters keep rewarding political bomb throwers 24:00 Trump endorsed the least Trump-like candidate, voters chose the Trumpy one 25:00 Deb Haaland on track to be the first Native American woman governor 25:30 It will be days before we know the full results of California primaries 27:30 California turnout will exceed turnout in 2022 28:30 Early on there will be a red mirage in California due to early vote 31:00 Hilton has enough of a lead over Steyer that he likely hangs on 32:15 Becerra would rather run against Hilton than Steyer 32:45 Steyer has created a sense of exhaustion 33:45 A Becerra v Hilton race would be a conventional D vs. R race 34:15 Potential scandal looms over Becerra 35:45 Most fascinating race is CA-06 and Kevin Kiley 38:15 It looks like Karen Bass & Spencer Pratt will move on in LA mayoral 40:30 It will be easier for Bass to turn Pratt into a Trump acolyte than face Raman 41:45 Steyer has a low ceiling, and has spent $500M in last two campaigns 43:30 Matt Mahan became known as “big tech’s candidate” and that hurt him 46:00 Independent Seth Bodner hoping Democratic candidate bows out in Montana 54:30 Jerry Demings joins the Chuck ToddCast 55:30 How did you go from accountant to police to mayor? 56:45 Accounting background helped with managing the city budget 58:00 How has Orlando changed since the time you were a police officer in the 80s? 59:30 Working on police reform both locally and nationally 1:00:45 Should the focus for police be better recruiting or better training? 1:01:30 Lowering recruiting standards can’t be the answer to police shortages 1:02:15 ICE was forced to ramp up so fast they didn’t screen or train recruits properly 1:03:45 We have to get criminals off the street, but it has be done lawfully 1:04:30 What were the unintended consequences of ICE’s questionable recruitment? 1:05:45 ICE began poaching state and local police officers 1:07:45 Should county sheriff be an elected position? 1:09:00 Political considerations do enter the equation when you’re elected 1:10:30 Size of jurisdiction does matter when it comes to appointed vs. elected 1:11:30 Sheriff is elected as a partisan position, but the responsibilities aren’t partisan 1:12:30 Why did you want to run for governor? 1:15:00 Want to take experience at local level government to a larger level 1:15:45 Ron DeSantis threatened to remove him over opposition to ICE 1:18:30 How would you work with the Republican dominated legislature? 1:20:30 Republicans have a large voter registration advantage in Florida 1:21:45 Not interested in being a performance politician 1:23:00 Why have Democrats been unable to elect a governor in Florida? 1:23:30 Florida’s legislators are underpaid, don’t attract quality talent 1:25:15 Many Florida Democrats left the party due to their frustration 1:27:00 Democrats need to restore belief in government 1:28:30 What has Ron DeSantis done right? Diversified & grown the economy 1:30:45 Does Florida need more tax revenue and how do you acquire it? 1:32:30 Government should always look to find inefficiencies & fix them 1:33:30 The state keeps burdening local governments with expenses 1:35:00 State has slashed funding for mental health, leading to violent crime 1:38:00 There is a lot of fraudulent claims made in Florida, state bad at investigating 1:39:00 State law enforcement shouldn’t be doing immigration enforcement 1:39:45 Florida is building in places they shouldn’t be, not factoring climate change 1:40:45 Florida should be hardening their building and infrastructure 1:42:00 Should Florida ban manufactured housing? 1:43:15 Florida needs housing construction standards that make sense 1:44:30 NAACP calling on athletes to not attend schools in remapping states 1:45:30 Extreme actions by the government elicit extreme responses 1:47:30 Tourism in Florida is being threatened by politics 1:49:45 Politics is dividing people by racial lines  1:51:45 Chuck’s thoughts on interview with Jerry Demings 1:53:45 DeSantis trying to ram through property tax cut before November 1:55:45 Trump replacing Tulsi Gabbard with Bill Pulte for DNI 1:56:45 Republicans immediately starting pushing back on Pulte as nominee 1:58:15 No need for NDI. CIA has won the intel agency turf battle 1:59:00 Bill Pulte makes Tulsi Gabbard look qualified for DNI role 2:01:15 ToddCast Top 5 instances Republicans successfully rebuked Trump 2:01:30 #5 The Epstein files 2:03:00 #4 Trump’s threat to take over Greenland 2:04:00 #3 Fed chair Jay Powell 2:05:15 #2 Matt Gaetz nomination for AG 2:07:15 #1 Death of Trump’s anti-weaponization slush fund 2:13:00 Ask Chuck 2:13:15 Thoughts on potential reforms, how realistic are they? 2:20:30 Why do you call Democrats the party that’s held to a higher standard? 2:24:15 Do you see Wes Moore as a top Democratic contender in ‘28? 2:29:15 Is Mike Johnson’s speakership at risk? Would he be the minority leader? 2:31:30 Can Keir Starmer survive as PM? Will Nigel Farage be PM? 2:36:30 Do you think a more virtual governance model rather than in-person would work?  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings — the former Orlando police chief turned local executive who is now running for governor of Florida — joins the Chuck Toddcast for a candid conversation about the challenges of being a Democrat in modern Florida and the lessons his unusual career path (accountant, then cop, then mayor) brings to executive leadership. Demings reveals that Governor Ron DeSantis personally threatened to remove him from office over his opposition to ICE operations in Orange County, and uses that experience as the entry point to a broader discussion about what's gone wrong with American law enforcement. He argues you cannot solve police shortages by lowering recruiting standards — exactly what he says ICE did when it ramped up so quickly that screening and training went out the window, with the predictable consequence that ICE has now begun poaching trained officers from state and local departments. Demings makes the case that we have to get criminals off the streets but it has to be done lawfully, that state law enforcement should not be doing immigration work, and that being elected sheriff as a partisan position creates real tensions because the actual responsibilities of the job aren't partisan at all. He pushes back on the idea that he's running to be a "performance politician" and frames his candidacy as wanting to bring competent local-government experience to a state level that he says is suffering from leaders chasing viral moments rather than delivering services. The conversation turns to the structural challenges facing Florida and the deeper question of why Democrats can't win statewide in a state that's growing more diverse by the year. Demings argues Florida's underpaid state legislators simply don't attract quality talent, that many longtime Florida Democrats have left the party out of pure frustration, and that the party's central task is to restore basic public belief in government's capacity to function. He's willing to give DeSantis credit for diversifying and growing Florida's economy, but argues the state needs to find efficiencies rather than continually burdening local governments with expenses it should be covering itself — and points to slashed state mental health funding as a direct driver of the violent crime he sees in his community. Demings is sharp on Florida's climate exposure, arguing the state is building in places it absolutely should not be building, and that hurricane-hardened construction standards need a major overhaul, He flags the NAACP's call for athletes to avoid schools in remapping states as the kind of extreme response that extreme government actions inevitably provoke, and warns that the politics of division are starting to genuinely threaten Florida's tourism economy — meaning the state's longtime economic engine may finally be running into the consequences of the culture wars its leaders have spent the past decade fueling. Predict the action all the way through the finals. Sign up now for your twenty-five dollar bonus on https://fanduel.com/predicts   Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Thank you Wildgrain for sponsoring. Visit http://wildgrain.com/TODDCAST and use the code "TODDCAST" at checkout to receive $30 off your first box PLUS free Croissants for life! Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Jerry Demings joins the Chuck ToddCast 01:00 How did you go from accountant to police to mayor? 02:15 Accounting background helped with managing the city budget 03:30 How has Orlando changed since the time you were a police officer in the 80s? 05:00 Working on police reform both locally and nationally 06:15 Should the focus for police be better recruiting or better training? 07:00 Lowering recruiting standards can’t be the answer to police shortages 07:45 ICE was forced to ramp up so fast they didn’t screen or train recruits properly 09:15 We have to get criminals off the street, but it has be done lawfully 10:00 What were the unintended consequences of ICE’s questionable recruitment? 11:15 ICE began poaching state and local police officers 13:15 Should county sheriff be an elected position? 14:30 Political considerations do enter the equation when you’re elected 16:00 Size of jurisdiction does matter when it comes to appointed vs. elected 17:00 Sheriff is elected as a partisan position, but the responsibilities aren’t partisan 18:00 Why did you want to run for governor? 20:30 Want to take experience at local level government to a larger level 21:15 Ron DeSantis threatened to remove him over opposition to ICE 24:00 How would you work with the Republican dominated legislature? 26:00 Republicans have a large voter registration advantage in Florida 27:15 Not interested in being a performance politician 28:30 Why have Democrats been unable to elect a governor in Florida? 29:00 Florida’s legislators are underpaid, don’t attract quality talent 30:45 Many Florida Democrats left the party due to their frustration 32:30 Democrats need to restore belief in government 34:00 What has Ron DeSantis done right? Diversified & grown the economy 36:15 Does Florida need more tax revenue and how do you acquire it? 38:00 Government should always look to find inefficiencies & fix them 39:00 The state keeps burdening local governments with expenses 40:30 State has slashed funding for mental health, leading to violent crime 43:30 There is a lot of fraudulent claims made in Florida, state bad at investigating 44:30 State law enforcement shouldn’t be doing immigration enforcement 45:15 Florida is building in places they shouldn’t be, not factoring climate change 46:15 Florida should be hardening their building and infrastructure 47:30 Should Florida ban manufactured housing? 48:45 Florida needs housing construction standards that make sense 50:00 NAACP calling on athletes to not attend schools in remapping states 51:00 Extreme actions by the government elicit extreme responses 53:00 Tourism in Florida is being threatened by politics 55:15 Politics is dividing people by racial linesSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd opens with the latest from the Iran war's increasingly costly stalemate, arguing Trump doesn't actually want a deal — he wants the ability to declare an accomplishment without ever looking like he capitulated, the same trick he ran with NAFTA and the JCPOA where he ripped up agreements only to sign nearly identical ones under new names. June, Chuck warns, is when the energy shock will start showing up in domestic prices, every day Hormuz stays closed exponentially increases the damage, consumers may begin behaving irrationally and hoarding, and a single bad natural disaster on top of all this could trigger a genuine crisis. But the heart of the episode is Chuck’s meditation on a single phrase: character is destiny in politics. It's not whether character flaws exist — everyone has them — but when those flaws become public and start affecting the people you were elected to serve. Trump's character problems were on display long before he ever became president, but his defenders now include the exact same Rubios and Grahams who used to blast him as morally unfit. And the most uncomfortable part of Chuck argument for the Democratic base: the same progressives who mocked Trump supporters for excusing his behavior are now using essentially identical defenses for Maine's Graham Platner — who has been accused of sexting in 2023, behavior that isn't youthful indiscretion and isn't going away. Chuck argues political parties used to function as imperfect but real vetting organizations, that once voters become emotionally invested in a candidate they will defend literally anything, that running for office sometimes becomes a substitute for therapy rather than a vehicle for service, and that democracy itself depends on elected officials being able to separate their personal motivations from their public obligations — something Biden failed at when his family obligations led to those preemptive pardons. He notes the Bidens were genuinely beloved before the election but Biden's ambition did real harm to his party, his family, and his own legacy. Todd points to Pope Leo as a potential moral leader Americans seem desperate for at exactly the moment when neither party seems remotely interested in finding the best possible actors. He observes that Platner vs. Collins is starting to feel like a rerun of Trump vs. Clinton in 2016 — two candidates voters genuinely don't want to choose between — and closes with quick hits on Jill Biden's forthcoming memoir, the California gubernatorial primary (where Xavier Becerra and Tom Steyer could finish in the top two), and the increasingly strange Los Angeles mayoral race in which Karen Bass appears to be deliberately ignoring Spencer Pratt because she would much rather face him in a general election than the genuinely formidable Nithya Raman. Finally, Chuck hops into the ToddCast Time Machine to revisit two stories that occurred on the same day… the Tiananmen square massacre, and Poland’s first post-soviet elections. He also answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment. Predict the action all the way through the finals. Sign up now for your twenty-five dollar bonus on https://fanduel.com/predicts   Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Thank you Wildgrain for sponsoring. Visit http://wildgrain.com/TODDCAST and use the code "TODDCAST" at checkout to receive $30 off your first box PLUS free Croissants for life! Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 05:30 Iran war/ceasefire has settled into a costly stalemate 06:45 Trump doesn’t want a deal, just ability to declare an accomplishment 07:30 Trump doesn’t want to look like he capitulated 08:00 Trump ripped up other deals, then got same deals with new names 09:15 June will be when the impacts of energy shock show up domestically 10:30 Every day Hormuz remains closed exponentially increases the damage 11:30 Consumers may begin to behave irrationally, start hoarding 12:30 If a natural disaster hits during energy shock, it could be major crisis 13:45 Pulling out of WHO has exacerbated Ebola outbreak 15:00 We can’t foresee all negative impacts, we just know they’re coming 16:15 Character is always destiny in politics, it’s a matter of when people see it 18:00 Everybody has their own motivation for voting, character isn’t always important 18:45 People defending character flaws are a huge part of the problem 20:00 Rubio & Graham used to blast Trump’s character, now defend it 20:30 People criticizing Trump’s behavior are now defending Graham Platner’s 22:00 People run for office for a variety of reasons, and sometimes not good ones 23:15 Sometimes entering politics become a substitute for therapy 24:30 Character matters because it’s predictive 25:30 Trump’s character flaws did not stay private, they became public 26:30 Biden ran for office when his kids were in crisis 27:30 Biden’s family obligations competed with public ones, gave preemptive pardons 28:15 Democracy depends on elected officials separating personal & public 29:15 Political parties used to be vetting organizations, even if imperfect 30:00 Once people become emotionally invested in a candidate, they defend them 30:45 Character flaws don’t just disappear, they show up… and affect us all 33:00 Democrats in a difficult spot having to defend Graham Platner 33:45 Plater accused of sexting in 2023, these aren’t youthful indiscretions 34:45 Eric Swalwell’s indiscretions were ignored until they became too much to ignore 37:15 Platner can still win, Susan Collins has worn out her welcome 38:00 Progressives may have put blinders on for Platner 38:45 People who mocked support for Trump using same defenses for Platner 40:00 At some point credibility will matter to a majority of voters 42:30 Trump’s bad behavior has alienated 1/3rd of Republican voters 44:30 Trump is politicizing celebrating America 250…making it hard to celebrate 45:45 Trump’s character flaws were on display well before he became president 46:30 The Pope may become the moral leader Americans are desperate for 48:30 Parties don’t seem to be worried about finding the best possible actors 49:30 Platner vs. Collins feels like a rerun of Trump vs. Clinton in 2016 51:15 Jill Biden to release new memoir - Bidens seem insulated from public opinion 52:15 Before election, the Biden family was fairly beloved by most 52:45 Biden’s ambition did real harm to the party, family and their legacy 53:30 The Bidens are good people and people were willing to overlook their flaws 54:30 Xavier Becerra & Tom Steyer could finish in Top 2 spots in CA gov primary 56:30 Karen Bass has mostly ignored Spencer Pratt in LA mayoral race 57:00 Bass wants to face Pratt rather than Nithya Raman 1:05:00 ToddCast Time Machine - June 4th, 1989 - Tiananmen Square massacre 1:05:30 The image of a man standing in front of a tank is iconic 1:06:30 On the same day, Polish citizens were casting ballots in a post soviet election 1:07:00 One communist system responded with elections, another responded with force 1:08:00 The Chinese students protesting were easy to empathize with 1:08:45 At the time it felt like freedom was advancing and communism was retreating 1:09:45 The elections in Poland humiliated the communist government 1:10:30 Chinese leaders closely watched events in Europe 1:11:15 Protest movement in China was one of the largest in their history 1:12:45 Chinese government cracked down on reformers and protest movement 1:13:30 Martial law was declared and troops moved into Beijing 1:14:15 We don’t have an accounting of the total death toll of protestors 1:14:45 The image we all remember is “tank man” 1:15:15 The incorrect assumption was that China’s middle class would demand rights 1:16:30 China proved that their model could survive and remain durable 1:18:30 Tiananmen ultimately was the birth of the current bipolar world 1:19:30 Poland chose the ballot box, China chose the tank 1:20:00 Ask Chuck 1:20:15 Would you ever consider running for president? Colbert as a running mate? 1:23:30 Do you think Paxton heads into the general overconfident? 1:30:15 Could the “Wyoming Rule” be a more realistic step than expanding house? 1:33:15 Any lesser known founding fathers that deserve more credit? 1:38:15 Thoughts on the Catholic church as a source of moral authority? 1:42:15 Any advice for people needing to step back from news while staying informed?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd opens with the latest from the Iran war's increasingly costly stalemate, arguing Trump doesn't actually want a deal — he wants the ability to declare an accomplishment without ever looking like he capitulated, the same trick he ran with NAFTA and the JCPOA where he ripped up agreements only to sign nearly identical ones under new names. June, Chuck warns, is when the energy shock will start showing up in domestic prices, every day Hormuz stays closed exponentially increases the damage, consumers may begin behaving irrationally and hoarding, and a single bad natural disaster on top of all this could trigger a genuine crisis. But the heart of the episode is Chuck’s meditation on a single phrase: character is destiny in politics. It's not whether character flaws exist — everyone has them — but when those flaws become public and start affecting the people you were elected to serve. Trump's character problems were on display long before he ever became president, but his defenders now include the exact same Rubios and Grahams who used to blast him as morally unfit. And the most uncomfortable part of Chuck argument for the Democratic base: the same progressives who mocked Trump supporters for excusing his behavior are now using essentially identical defenses for Maine's Graham Platner — who has been accused of sexting in 2023, behavior that isn't youthful indiscretion and isn't going away. Chuck argues political parties used to function as imperfect but real vetting organizations, that once voters become emotionally invested in a candidate they will defend literally anything, that running for office sometimes becomes a substitute for therapy rather than a vehicle for service, and that democracy itself depends on elected officials being able to separate their personal motivations from their public obligations — something Biden failed at when his family obligations led to those preemptive pardons. He notes the Bidens were genuinely beloved before the election but Biden's ambition did real harm to his party, his family, and his own legacy. Todd points to Pope Leo as a potential moral leader Americans seem desperate for at exactly the moment when neither party seems remotely interested in finding the best possible actors. He observes that Platner vs. Collins is starting to feel like a rerun of Trump vs. Clinton in 2016 — two candidates voters genuinely don't want to choose between — and closes with quick hits on Jill Biden's forthcoming memoir, the California gubernatorial primary (where Xavier Becerra and Tom Steyer could finish in the top two), and the increasingly strange Los Angeles mayoral race in which Karen Bass appears to be deliberately ignoring Spencer Pratt because she would much rather face him in a general election than the genuinely formidable Nithya Raman. Then, Colorado Springs Mayor Yemi Mobolade — the independent who won a culturally conservative city by running as a true centrist who refuses to be boxed into either party — joins the Chuck Toddcast to make the case that quality-of-life governance still beats partisanship when voters are actually given the chance to choose it. Mobolade, who adapted his governing principles from Abraham Lincoln, argues that there's a genuine and growing appetite for leadership that isn't red or blue — but warns that working for unity is incredibly hard and tiring work that few politicians want to do anymore. He walks through Colorado Springs' fight to retain Space Command after Trump and Biden moved the headquarters back and forth between Colorado Springs and Huntsville, Alabama, and explains why he ultimately chose not to sue over the relocation (the decision was within the president's purview, and burning that bridge would have cost the city more than it gained). Mobolade describes hiring his own mayoral opponent Wayne Williams after the campaign — a move he calls part of his "radical collaboration" approach — and argues that mayors don't have the luxury of partisan posturing because their job is fundamentally about producing deliverables for actual residents who want safer streets, better services, and a higher quality of life. The conversation moves into the practical challenges facing every American mayor in 2026, with data centers emerging as the political pain point in nearly every community across the country. Mobolade describes calling an emergency meeting to develop a data center strategy for Colorado Springs, walks through the balanced-but-responsible-growth framework his team has settled on, and explains the tradeoffs honestly: residents are worried about quality-of-life impacts, but the tax revenue from data centers is exactly what cities need to fund essential services. Larger data centers in his city are now forced to pay impact fees to offset their costs, some are being placed on military bases for security purposes, and Mobolade is candid with residents that they cannot have the services they demand without the revenue base to pay for them. The conversation turns to Colorado Springs' housing shortage — the city has been named one of the best places for young people, but only if young people can actually afford to live there — and Mobolade discusses his work with HUD to expand supply, his belief that the country needs genuine innovation in finding cheaper ways to build, and his frustration with a Colorado political landscape that he says no longer has room for center-left and center-right voices the way it used to. His closing argument is the one that ties the whole episode together: the country needs more independent leadership, not because partisanship is bad in theory, but because the current version of it is incapable of delivering the basics that voters actually care about. Finally, Chuck hops into the ToddCast Time Machine to revisit two stories that occurred on the same day… the Tiananmen square massacre, and Poland’s first post-soviet elections. He also answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment. Predict the action all the way through the finals. Sign up now for your twenty-five dollar bonus on https://fanduel.com/predicts   Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Thank you Wildgrain for sponsoring. Visit http://wildgrain.com/TODDCAST and use the code "TODDCAST" at checkout to receive $30 off your first box PLUS free Croissants for life! Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 05:30 Iran war/ceasefire has settled into a costly stalemate 06:45 Trump doesn’t want a deal, just ability to declare an accomplishment 07:30 Trump doesn’t want to look like he capitulated 08:00 Trump ripped up other deals, then got same deals with new names 09:15 June will be when the impacts of energy shock show up domestically 10:30 Every day Hormuz remains closed exponentially increases the damage 11:30 Consumers may begin to behave irrationally, start hoarding 12:30 If a natural disaster hits during energy shock, it could be major crisis 13:45 Pulling out of WHO has exacerbated Ebola outbreak 15:00 We can’t foresee all negative impacts, we just know they’re coming 16:15 Character is always destiny in politics, it’s a matter of when people see it 18:00 Everybody has their own motivation for voting, character isn’t always important 18:45 People defending character flaws are a huge part of the problem 20:00 Rubio & Graham used to blast Trump’s character, now defend it 20:30 People criticizing Trump’s behavior are now defending Graham Platner’s 22:00 People run for office for a variety of reasons, and sometimes not good ones 23:15 Sometimes entering politics become a substitute for therapy 24:30 Character matters because it’s predictive 25:30 Trump’s character flaws did not stay private, they became public 26:30 Biden ran for office when his kids were in crisis 27:30 Biden’s family obligations competed with public ones, gave preemptive pardons 28:15 Democracy depends on elected officials separating personal & public 29:15 Political parties used to be vetting organizations, even if imperfect 30:00 Once people become emotionally invested in a candidate, they defend them 30:45 Character flaws don’t just disappear, they show up… and affect us all 33:00 Democrats in a difficult spot having to defend Graham Platner 33:45 Plater accused of sexting in 2023, these aren’t youthful indiscretions 34:45 Eric Swalwell’s indiscretions were ignored until they became too much to ignore 37:15 Platner can still win, Susan Collins has worn out her welcome 38:00 Progressives may have put blinders on for Platner 38:45 People who mocked support for Trump using same defenses for Platner 40:00 At some point credibility will matter to a majority of voters 42:30 Trump’s bad behavior has alienated 1/3rd of Republican voters 44:30 Trump is politicizing celebrating America 250…making it hard to celebrate 45:45 Trump’s character flaws were on display well before he became president 46:30 The Pope may become the moral leader Americans are desperate for 48:30 Parties don’t seem to be worried about finding the best possible actors 49:30 Platner vs. Collins feels like a rerun of Trump vs. Clinton in 2016 51:15 Jill Biden to release new memoir - Bidens seem insulated from public opinion 52:15 Before election, the Biden family was fairly beloved by most 52:45 Biden’s ambition did real harm to the party, family and their legacy 53:30 The Bidens are good people and people were willing to overlook their flaws 54:30 Xavier Becerra & Tom Steyer could finish in Top 2 spots in CA gov primary 56:30 Karen Bass has mostly ignored Spencer Pratt in LA mayoral race 57:00 Bass wants to face Pratt rather than Nithya Raman 1:07:00 Mayor Yemi Mobolade joins the Chuck ToddCast 1:08:30 The people care more about quality of life than partisanship 1:09:45 Adapted governing principles from Abraham Lincoln 1:10:45 Colorado Springs is culturally conservative, yet elected an independent 1:12:30 Ran as a true centrist, hard to box in his politics 1:13:45 There’s an appetite for leadership that isn’t red or blue 1:14:30 Trump & Biden moved space command back and forth from Co. Springs 1:15:45 The city fought hard to keep space command 1:16:30 Worked with the mayor of Huntsville to ensure smooth transition 1:17:30 Why did you decide not to sue over relocation of space command? 1:18:15 The decision was within the president’s purview 1:19:30 The city is safer now than when he took office 1:20:45 A mayor’s job is to produce deliverables for the people 1:22:45 There’s a lack of competition of ideas in Colorado politics 1:23:45 Have a good relationship with the governor and statehouse 1:24:30 People get too stuck in their partisan lanes 1:25:00 Working for unity is incredibly hard and tiring 1:27:15 There used to be room for center-left and center-right in Colorado 1:28:15 Hired his mayoral opponent Wayne Williams 1:28:45 Wayne ran a more traditional campaign, Yemi ran on different leadership 1:30:00 The goal was radical collaboration and the community embraced it 1:30:45 Data centers are a political pain point of every local community 1:31:30 Called an emergency meeting to discuss data center strategy 1:32:15 The sweet spot of data center policy is balanced but responsible growth 1:33:00 Residents are worried data centers will lower their quality of life 1:34:30 Data centers being placed on military bases for security 1:36:30 Larger data centers are forced to pay a fee to offset impact 1:40:00 Data centers bring in much needed tax dollars 1:41:00 The city budget needs the revenue to provide essential services 1:41:30 Residents want services but no data centers… can’t have it both ways 1:43:30 Colorado Springs also struggling with a housing shortage 1:45:30 Working with HUD to try to increase housing supply 1:46:15 Colorado Springs named one of the best cities for young people 1:47:45 Need innovation in housing construction, find cheaper ways to build 1:49:30 The country needs more independent leadership  1:50:30 ToddCast Time Machine - June 4th, 1989 - Tiananmen Square massacre 1:51:00 The image of a man standing in front of a tank is iconic 1:52:00 On the same day, Polish citizens were casting ballots in a post soviet election 1:52:30 One communist system responded with elections, another responded with force 1:53:30 The Chinese students protesting were easy to empathize with 1:54:15 At the time it felt like freedom was advancing and communism was retreating 1:55:15 The elections in Poland humiliated the communist government 1:56:00 Chinese leaders closely watched events in Europe 1:56:45 Protest movement in China was one of the largest in their history 1:58:15 Chinese government cracked down on reformers and protest movement 1:59:00 Martial law was declared and troops moved into Beijing 1:59:45 We don’t have an accounting of the total death toll of protestors 2:00:15 The image we all remember is “tank man” 2:00:45 The incorrect assumption was that China’s middle class would demand rights 2:02:00 China proved that their model could survive and remain durable 2:04:00 Tiananmen ultimately was the birth of the current bipolar world 2:05:00 Poland chose the ballot box, China chose the tank 2:05:30 Ask Chuck 2:05:45 Would you ever consider running for president? Colbert as a running mate? 2:09:00 Do you think Paxton heads into the general overconfident? 2:15:45 Could the “Wyoming Rule” be a more realistic step than expanding house? 2:18:45 Any lesser known founding fathers that deserve more credit? 2:23:45 Thoughts on the Catholic church as a source of moral authority? 2:27:45 Any advice for people needing to step back from news while staying informed?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Colorado Springs Mayor Yemi Mobolade — the independent who won a culturally conservative city by running as a true centrist who refuses to be boxed into either party — joins the Chuck Toddcast to make the case that quality-of-life governance still beats partisanship when voters are actually given the chance to choose it. Mobolade, who adapted his governing principles from Abraham Lincoln, argues that there's a genuine and growing appetite for leadership that isn't red or blue — but warns that working for unity is incredibly hard and tiring work that few politicians want to do anymore. He walks through Colorado Springs' fight to retain Space Command after Trump and Biden moved the headquarters back and forth between Colorado Springs and Huntsville, Alabama, and explains why he ultimately chose not to sue over the relocation (the decision was within the president's purview, and burning that bridge would have cost the city more than it gained). Mobolade describes hiring his own mayoral opponent Wayne Williams after the campaign — a move he calls part of his "radical collaboration" approach — and argues that mayors don't have the luxury of partisan posturing because their job is fundamentally about producing deliverables for actual residents who want safer streets, better services, and a higher quality of life. The conversation moves into the practical challenges facing every American mayor in 2026, with data centers emerging as the political pain point in nearly every community across the country. Mobolade describes calling an emergency meeting to develop a data center strategy for Colorado Springs, walks through the balanced-but-responsible-growth framework his team has settled on, and explains the tradeoffs honestly: residents are worried about quality-of-life impacts, but the tax revenue from data centers is exactly what cities need to fund essential services. Larger data centers in his city are now forced to pay impact fees to offset their costs, some are being placed on military bases for security purposes, and Mobolade is candid with residents that they cannot have the services they demand without the revenue base to pay for them. The conversation turns to Colorado Springs' housing shortage — the city has been named one of the best places for young people, but only if young people can actually afford to live there — and Mobolade discusses his work with HUD to expand supply, his belief that the country needs genuine innovation in finding cheaper ways to build, and his frustration with a Colorado political landscape that he says no longer has room for center-left and center-right voices the way it used to. His closing argument is the one that ties the whole episode together: the country needs more independent leadership, not because partisanship is bad in theory, but because the current version of it is incapable of delivering the basics that voters actually care about. Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Thank you Wildgrain for sponsoring. Visit http://wildgrain.com/TODDCAST and use the code "TODDCAST" at checkout to receive $30 off your first box PLUS free Croissants for life! Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Mayor Yemi Mobolade joins the Chuck ToddCast 01:30 The people care more about quality of life than partisanship 02:45 Adapted governing principles from Abraham Lincoln 03:45 Colorado Springs is culturally conservative, yet elected an independent 05:30 Ran as a true centrist, hard to box in his politics 06:45 There’s an appetite for leadership that isn’t red or blue 7:30 Trump & Biden moved space command back and forth from Co. Springs 08:45 The city fought hard to keep space command  09:30 Worked with the mayor of Huntsville to ensure smooth transition 10:30 Why did you decide not to sue over relocation of space command? 11:15 The decision was within the president’s purview 12:30 The city is safer now than when he took office 13:45 A mayor’s job is to produce deliverables for the people 15:45 There’s a lack of competition of ideas in Colorado politics 16:45 Have a good relationship with the governor and statehouse 17:30 People get too stuck in their partisan lanes 18:00 Working for unity is incredibly hard and tiring 20:15 There used to be room for center-left and center-right in Colorado 21:15 Hired his mayoral opponent Wayne Williams 21:45 Wayne ran a more traditional campaign, Yemi ran on different leadership 23:00 The goal was radical collaboration and the community embraced it 23:45 Data centers are a political pain point of every local community 24:30 Called an emergency meeting to discuss data center strategy 25:15 The sweet spot of data center policy is balanced but responsible growth 26:00 Residents are worried data centers will lower their quality of life 27:30 Data centers being placed on military bases for security 29:30 Larger data centers are forced to pay a fee to offset impact 33:00 Data centers bring in much needed tax dollars 34:00 The city budget needs the revenue to provide essential services 34:30 Residents want services but no data centers… can’t have it both ways 36:30 Colorado Springs also struggling with a housing shortage 38:30 Working with HUD to try to increase housing supply 39:15 Colorado Springs named one of the best cities for young people 40:45 Need innovation in housing construction, find cheaper ways to build 42:30 The country needs more independent leadershipSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd uses the fallout from the Texas runoff to identify a much bigger pattern emerging across the Sun Belt — and argues we may be watching a generational realignment of American politics in real time. For decades, Southern states moved steadily from blue to red, with the Sun Belt providing the demographic engine of every Republican majority and Democrats traditionally finding their path to power through the upper Midwest. But Trump's GOP has now moved so far right that it's quietly opening the door for Democrats across the South — the blue shift we've seen in Georgia over the past decade is starting to happen in Texas, and the Trump brand has badly complicated things for the centrist voters who used to keep these states reliably Republican. Chuck argues that successful Southern Republican governors of the past spent enormous energy doing coalition management — keeping their activist wing at bay while delivering for swing voters — but Republicans misread their recent electoral dominance and started catering exclusively to their base instead.The data is clear: election deniers consistently lose in Georgia, and when every single issue becomes a loyalty test, you bleed exactly the kind of voters you need to actually win.  But Chuck’s larger argument is that Democrats are blowing the opportunity. He argues the Democratic path back to power is genuinely simple — economic inequality and the concentration of corporate power are causing virtually all of America's ills, and there's a coherent coalition waiting to be built around those issues — but progressives behave like they've already won the intellectual argument and refuse to do the actual work of persuasion. There's no "pure" way to win, Chuck says: winning coalitions are inherently messy, both party bases want movement politics, but the actual electorate consistently rewards coalition politics. Americans increasingly dislike both parties for very different reasons — moderate voters think Democrats are weak and Republicans are too extreme — and what they're actually hungry for is a coalition that is stable and visibly capable of governing.  Finally, he answers listeners' questions in the "Ask Chuck" segment.  Predict the action all the way through the finals. Sign up now for your twenty-five dollar bonus on https://fanduel.com/predicts   Link in bio or go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Thank you Wildgrain for sponsoring. Visit http://wildgrain.com/TODDCAST and use the code "TODDCAST" at checkout to receive $30 off your first box PLUS free Croissants for life! Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 0:15 Fallout from Texas runoff - We’re seeing a pattern in the Sun Belt 1:00 For decades, southern states have been transitioning from blue to red 2:00 Sun belt states have powered the Republican majority 3:15 Democrats path to power used to be the midwest, now is moving south 4:00 Republicans move to the right has created Dem opportunities in Sun Belt 5:30 The shift to blue we’ve seen in Georgia is starting to happen in Texas 6:30 The Trump brand has complicated things for centrist voters in the south 7:15 Will Ken Paxton be the Mark Robinson of Texas? 8:15 Southern governors were able to keep their activist wing at bay 9:45 GOP leaders in the south had to perform coalition management 11:00 Republicans misunderstood election dominance, then catered to base 12:00 Florida GOP has purged most of its institutional wing 13:15 Loudest activists have set the tone for the Republican party 14:00 Arizona GOP went way too far to the right, less competitive now 16:00 Election deniers have consistently lost in Georgia 17:00 When every issue becomes a loyalty test, you bleed voters 18:15 Texas election will test if the Texas GOP went too far right 20:15 Dems path to power is simple, but have to be willing to take it 22:00 Economic inequality & concentration of power are causing all of our ills 22:30 Progressives behave like they’ve won the intellectual argument 23:15 It’s hard to convince most dedicated supporters what the winning path is 24:15 Republicans are losing due to Trump’s purging of the party 26:30 There’s no “pure” way to win, winning coalitions are messy 27:45 Both bases want movement politics, electorate rewards coalition politics 29:15 Americans increasingly dislike both parties for different reasons 31:15 Base Democrats are taking the wrong lessons from Trump 32:00 Moderate voters think Dems are weak, and GOP is too extreme 33:15 Voters want a coalition that’s stable and capable of governing 35:30 Biden governed differently than he campaign and voters punished him  41:30 Ask Chuck 41:45 Taking the high road in politics doesn’t always work, worth the trade off? 47:15 How do you see election results in 2026 shaping the gerrymandering fight? 50:15 Are presidential approval polls too limited or not comprehensive enough? 54:30 Do you see a path forward for people who believe in healing our politics? 1:01:15 Would it make sense to draw districts without humans involved using metrics? 1:08:45 Is expanding the house realistic considering politics & public perception?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.