The Chuck ToddCast

Former Agriculture Secretary and two-term Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack — the longest-serving USDA secretary of the modern era, now CEO of the World Food Prize Foundation — joins the Chuck ToddCast to explain what's actually happening in farm country. The Iran war has driven up input costs while deportations gut the labor supply, farmers get blamed for high prices despite capturing the smallest share of every agricultural dollar, and importing beef only discourages domestic ranchers from staying in business. Vilsack notes America has lost a million farming operations since 1973, with most federal support flowing to the top 10%. He argues food security is national security, that SNAP cuts are income cuts for farmers, and that Iowans are tired enough of watching their kids leave the state to vote for change — with Rob Sand's authenticity, not his party label, the reason he's connecting.
Timeline:
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00:00 Tom Vilsack joins The Chuck ToddCast
02:00 Pirates baseball and why national media misses agriculture
05:45 The Iran war, input costs, and a deported labor force
10:00 What can actually lower beef prices
16:00 A million lost farms and who federal support really reaches
22:00 Food security is national security
29:45 SNAP cuts, rural schools, and the Senate map in the Midwest
36:00 Rob Sand, authenticity, and why Iowa may vote for change
45:00 Should 2028 Democrats spend time in Iowa?
52:45 Data centers, a bio-based farm economy, and what a good night looks like
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Chuck Todd zeroes in on a president who has become the entire election: Trump spent the weekend at a football game and a golf tournament while Americans struggle, announced he'd rejected an Iran deal as though he holds all the cards, and now sits at 37% approval in a new WSJ poll — the lowest for any president heading into a midterm in their polling since 1990, with 11% of his own 2024 voters saying they regret the vote. Chuck is appalled by a cultish government-produced TV ad made with taxpayer dollars, notes Republicans don't want Trump campaigning for them (he's being routed to Oklahoma and Alabama), and points to Charlie Cook's framing that this isn't a blue wave so much as a red undertow. His race of the cycle: Gina Hinojosa in Texas, running as a populist rather than a socialist, airing an ad with a former January 6th defendant, and now leading Abbott in a Marist poll.
Then, former Agriculture Secretary and two-term Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack — the longest-serving USDA secretary of the modern era, joins the Chuck ToddCast to explain what's actually happening in farm country. The Iran war has driven up input costs while deportations gut the labor supply, farmers get blamed for high prices despite capturing the smallest share of every agricultural dollar, and importing beef only discourages domestic ranchers from staying in business. Vilsack notes America has lost a million farming operations since 1973, with most federal support flowing to the top 10%. He argues food security is national security, that SNAP cuts are income cuts for farmers, and that Iowans are tired enough of watching their kids leave the state to vote for change — with Rob Sand's authenticity, not his party label, the reason he's connecting.

Finally, Chuck hops into the ToddCast Time Machine to revisit Woodrow Wilson suffering a debilitating stroke, the efforts to cover it up by his White House and the eerie parallels we’ve seen in the behavior of both the Biden and Trump staffers. He also answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment and recaps the weekend in football.
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Timeline:
00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction
04:45 Trump as the focal point of the entire election
06:30 The Iran war drags on while Trump seems disinterested
14:45 Trump hits 37% in the new WSJ poll
16:15 The cultish taxpayer-funded TV ad
21:15 Republicans who don't want Trump campaigning for them
26:15 Charlie Cook's red undertow, and a GOP retreat that skipped Texas
31:45 Gina Hinojosa is running the smartest campaign in red America
40:45 Why the Senate and governor maps look nothing alike
45:00 Tuberville's furries floor speech and Beshear's opportunity
59:00 Tom Vilsack joins The Chuck ToddCast
1:01:00 Pirates baseball and why national media misses agriculture
1:04:45 The Iran war, input costs, and a deported labor force
1:09:00 What can actually lower beef prices
1:15:00 A million lost farms and who federal support really reaches
1:21:00 Food security is national security
1:28:45 SNAP cuts, rural schools, and the Senate map in the Midwest
1:35:00 Rob Sand, authenticity, and why Iowa may vote for change
1:44:00 Should 2028 Democrats spend time in Iowa?
1:51:45 Data centers, a bio-based farm economy, and what a good night looks like
1:58:00 ToddCast Time Machine - October 2nd, 1919
1:59:15 Wilson was trying to ratify the League of Nations
2:00:30 Wilson collapsed, suffered a massive stroke
2:02:45 Wilson’s doctor wouldn’t declare him incapacitated
2:04:15 Nobody was able to remove Wilson
2:06:00 States ratified the 25th amendment
2:07:45 Aides for Wilson and Trump lacked candor
2:09:30 We’re seeing boxy bulges under Trump’s pants with no explanation
2:10:30 Trump’s doctors say he’s fine, but impossible to know
2:13:45 Congress should create independent body for 25th amendment
2:17:00 Ask Chuck
2:17:15 Could Democrats use vanity plays to bargain with Trump?
2:21:45 Could voters challenge use of Missouri’s new map after midterms?
2:26:30 Did Trump deliberately ban media to coincide with meeting with Xi?
2:28:45 What role do you expect Obama to play in the midterms?
2:31:45 NFL/College football recap
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd zeroes in on a president who has become the entire election: Trump spent the weekend at a football game and a golf tournament while Americans struggle, announced he'd rejected an Iran deal as though he holds all the cards, and now sits at 37% approval in a new WSJ poll — the lowest for any president heading into a midterm in their polling since 1990, with 11% of his own 2024 voters saying they regret the vote. Chuck is appalled by a cultish government-produced TV ad made with taxpayer dollars, notes Republicans don't want Trump campaigning for them (he's being routed to Oklahoma and Alabama), and points to Charlie Cook's framing that this isn't a blue wave so much as a red undertow. His race of the cycle: Gina Hinojosa in Texas, running as a populist rather than a socialist, airing an ad with a former January 6th defendant, and now leading Abbott in a Marist poll.
Finally, Chuck hops into the ToddCast Time Machine to revisit Woodrow Wilson suffering a debilitating stroke, the efforts to cover it up by his White House and the eerie parallels we’ve seen in the behavior of both the Biden and Trump staffers. He also answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment and recaps the weekend in football.
Sign up link: nextpredict.io/summits/the-worlds-prediction-markets-summit
Timeline:
00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction
04:45 Trump as the focal point of the entire election
06:30 The Iran war drags on while Trump seems disinterested
14:45 Trump hits 37% in the new WSJ poll
16:15 The cultish taxpayer-funded TV ad
21:15 Republicans who don't want Trump campaigning for them
26:15 Charlie Cook's red undertow, and a GOP retreat that skipped Texas
31:45 Gina Hinojosa is running the smartest campaign in red America
40:45 Why the Senate and governor maps look nothing alike
45:00 Tuberville's furries floor speech and Beshear's opportunity
57:30 ToddCast Time Machine - October 2nd, 1919
58:45 Wilson was trying to ratify the League of Nations
1:00:00 Wilson collapsed, suffered a massive stroke
1:02:15 Wilson’s doctor wouldn’t declare him incapacitated
1:03:45 Nobody was able to remove Wilson
1:05:30 States ratified the 25th amendment
1:07:15 Aides for Wilson and Trump lacked candor
1:09:00 We’re seeing boxy bulges under Trump’s pants with no explanation
1:10:00 Trump’s doctors say he’s fine, but impossible to know
1:13:15 Congress should create independent body for 25th amendment
1:16:30 Ask Chuck
1:16:45 Could Democrats use vanity plays to bargain with Trump?
1:21:15 Could voters challenge use of Missouri’s new map after midterms?
1:26:00 Did Trump deliberately ban media to coincide with meeting with Xi?
1:28:15 What role do you expect Obama to play in the midterms?
1:31:15 NFL/College football recap
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd and J.A. Adande go back to the unlikely beginnings of one of the NFL’s most iconic franchises. From Curly Lambeau and the team’s unusual origin story to the community ownership structure that helped keep the Packers in Green Bay, they explore how a small Wisconsin city survived while other early NFL towns disappeared.
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Chuck Todd argues you don't need a poll to read the midterms — Republican behavior tells you everything. JD Vance is conceding things aren't going well, nobody's buying that it's Biden's economy anymore, and Tim Scott told the NRSC they're in "the fight for their lives," though his 2022 comparison misses that Democrats had Dobbs and Republicans have no equivalent in 2026. Todd's larger argument runs through Trump's UN speech, where the president justified seizing Venezuelan oil with "to the victor go the spoils" — a permission slip Todd says the rest of the world will happily accept. Between unilaterally inviting Putin to the G20, rolling out the red carpet for Xi, and a military stretched thin by Iran, America is now seen as an unreliable partner: one Trump presidency was an aberration, two changes the equation, and it'll take multiple presidents from both parties to win that trust back. Finally, he answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment and previews the upcoming weekend in college football.
Timeline:
00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction
06:15 You don't need a poll — Republican behavior tells the story
11:00 Tim Scott's "fight for our lives" and the missing Dobbs equivalent
17:45 The diesel export ban and Trump's scramble for an Iran deal
23:15 Where Democrats are short on money — and which races are slipping
29:00 "To the victor go the spoils": Trump's UN speech on Venezuela
32:45 A stretched military and allies who no longer trust us
38:30 Xi's red carpet, Putin at the G20, and unilateralism's costs
44:00 Dismantling the system that made America richer and safer
50:30 Ask Chuck
50:45 Any parallels from Nixon’s career that Harris could take in future run?
54:15 What are the five issues a Dem majority should tackle in 2027?
59:15 Why should fans believe this version of college football is sustainable?
1:05:15 Could congress turn AI concerns into meaningful legislation?
1:08:30 If Dems retake congress, can they force WH to change course?
1:13:15 College football preview
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.