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 Isolationist
12:33 The Collapse of America's Global Security Architecture
17:22 How Allies Are Learning to Live Without America
20:51 The New Middle East Taking Shape
24:18 Trump's Next Foreign Policy Target: Cuba
27:34 Ask Chuck Begins
28:23 Would Impeaching Trump Backfire on Democrats?
33:40 Presidential War Powers Explained
39:25 Can America Move Toward Coalition Politics?
43:49 The Challenge of Verifying Information in Modern Media
48:54 Are Swing Voters the Least Represented Americans?
54:54 Why BYU Could Thrive in the NIL Era
1:00:17 Great Man Theory vs. The Times Make the Leader
1:06:36 Would a Democratic Cuba Change Florida Politics Forever?
1:10:50 Chuck's Nationals Playoff Pitch & Closing Thoughts

See 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 Iran
07:53 Why Trump Isn't Really an Isolationist
12:34 America's Alliances and the Cost of Dependency
19:51 Three Major Takeaways Before Ian Bremmer
23:34 Trump's Political Future, Cuba, and the Midterms
32:23 Ian Bremmer Joins the Podcast
35:47 Why the Iran Deal Looks Like a Strategic Failure
38:06 Has America Broken Trust with Its Allies?
41:52 The Gulf States Recalculate Their Security Strategy
45:11 The Emerging UAE-Israel Alliance
49:48 Saudi Arabia's New Geopolitical Path
52:47 How the Middle East Is Splitting into Rival Blocs
55:47 Qatar, Iran, and Regional Uncertainty
58:05 Netanyahu's Political Challenges After the War
1:02:19 Can the Iranian Regime Survive?
1:06:49 The Global Shift Away from Oil and Gas
1:09:29 China's Growing Influence in the Middle East
1:11:01 North Korea's Rising Leverage
1:15:01 Why Putin May Be More Dangerous Than Kim Jong-un
1:18:25 Russia, Nuclear Risk, and Global Stability
1:22:25 Russian Operations Against the West
1:26:17 Ask Chuck
1:28:23 Would Impeaching Trump Backfire on Democrats?
1:33:40 Presidential War Powers Explained
1:36:43 Additional Listener Questions
1:45:51 The Future of Political Coalitions
1:56:06 Baseball, the Nationals, and Weekend Thoughts

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 Podcast
06:03 Why the Iran Deal Is a Failure for Trump
12:25 How the Middle East Is Reordering Itself
20:19 The UAE, Saudi Arabia & Competing Power Blocs
28:23 Iran's Future and the End of Oil Dominance
35:50 China's Growing Influence in the Middle East
42:23 North Korea, Putin & Global Security Risks
49:46 Cuba, Trump, and the Western Hemisphere
56:05 World Cup, Knicks & Closing Thoughts

See 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. 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 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. 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.

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 ignored

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.

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.

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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.

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 music

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.