The Chuck ToddCast

Chuck’s Commentary - Voters Don’t Like Democrats… But They Want To Fire The Republicans + Pete Hegseth Needs To Be Impeached

October 5, 2026·1h 48m
Episode Description from the Publisher

A month out from the midterms, Chuck Todd separates the garbage polls from the real ones and lands on the NYT/Siena swing-state data: Democrats are winning or tied in Alaska, Iowa, and Kansas, Talarico is over 50, and Rob Sand holds a double-digit lead. His key insight is that voters aren't embracing Democrats — they're firing Republicans, with affordability driving everything and millennials the most squeezed group in the country. He also hits a Ken Paxton ad that basically says "support the team" without ever mentioning Paxton, Trump doxxing Tom Cotton over daylight saving time, and Hegseth's new Pentagon Office of Religious Affairs, announced at Quantico with the line that "the real battle is spiritual." Chuck calls that last one what happens in theocracies, and says Hegseth deserves impeachment.    Finally, Chuck hops into the ToddCast Time Machine to revisit Earl Warren’s appointment as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and why it’s important for justices to have experience in the political system  as elected officials. He also answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment and recaps the weekend in college football.    Timeline: 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 06:00 Separating the real polls from the garbage 09:15 Inside the NYT/Siena swing state numbers 13:00 Voters aren't embracing Democrats — they're firing Republicans 16:45 Millennials, Gen Z, and the generational split 20:00 The Democratic brand problem nobody has solved 23:30 Paxton's "support the team" ad and the rot in Republican politics 27:00 Trump's denial, Hassett's spin, and the $90 Medicare checks 31:45 Trump doxxes Tom Cotton over daylight saving time 35:30 The Atlantic on Kash Patel and the 2020 fraud hunt 41:45 Hegseth's Office of Religious Affairs and an ideological military  57:30 ToddCast Time Machine  Earl Warren sworn in as chief justice 58:00 We’re suffering from a lack of diversity of experience on SCOTUS 1:00:30 Last elected politician on the court left 50 years ago. Earl warren 1:02:00 Eisenhower offered Warren a quid pro quo for seat 1:05:00 Warren knew Brown v Board needed to be 9-0 1:08:30 Eisenhower came to regret appointing Warren 1:10:30 Warren court reshaped constitutional law & expanded rights 1:15:45 We’ve screened out political experience for SCOTUS justices 1:17:15 Last Democrat to install a chief justice was Harry Truman 1:21:00 Ask Chuck 1:21:15 Can’t get into baseball… what am I missing? 1:26:00 Best comedic political impressions? 1:29:45 What do you make of Carnegie Mellon’s expansion into Miami 1:33:00 Thank you for interview about Marian Anderson 1:34:30 Could commit to constituent service be persuasive? 1:38:45 College football recap 18+ only. Restrictions and eligibility requirements apply. Event contract trading involves significant risk and is not appropriate for everyone. Please carefully consider if it is appropriate for you in light of your personal financial circumstances. Kalshi products are not available in all jurisdictions. See kalshi.com/regulatory for more information. Sign up today to get $25 in bonuses when you trade $25: CHUCKTODD http://kalshi.com/r/CHUCKTODD 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. 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.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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