Chuck Todd digs into ProPublica's bombshell on Susan Collins, which details how her office steered millions in federal contracts to defense firm Navatek while her campaign operation pumped CEO Martin Kao's network for donations — sometimes cut within 24 hours of the defense spending bill clearing a Senate hurdle — and how the FBI's pay-to-play investigation died after Trump's purge of the bureau. Chuck’s argument is that the legality is precisely the point: Washington in 2026 is a legalized influence marketplace, Collins is no outlier, and what's needed is a post-Watergate-style transparency revolution — if money is speech, it shouldn't be allowed to hide. 

Finally, Chuck presents his ToddCast Top 5 list of the worst issues a candidate can campaign on for the midterms and answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment.

Timeline:

(Timestamps may vary based on advertisements)

00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction

02:30 The ProPublica story and what it says about Susan Collins

07:00 The FBI investigation Trump's bureau shut down

08:15 The bigger story: how normal this kind of corruption has become

18:00 Crypto's $30 million play in Ohio and the threat of outside money

21:30 The transparency revolution we actually need

34:45 Iran waiting out the midterms, Mamdani, and Xi's visit

38:45 New Pew data on data centers — and where the money is going

44:30 AOC hints at 2028, and the GOP's Senate spending advantage

51:30 The Paramount settlement with California 

58:00 ToddCast Top 5 most unpopular campaign issues

58:45 #5 A candidate endorsed by Donald Trump

59:00 #4 Wanting to abolish ICE

59:30 #3 Supporting weapons and funding for Israel

59:45 #2 Supporting the war in Iran

1:00:15 #1 Supporting for building data centers

1:02:00 Ask Chuck

1:02:15 What prevents a journalist from pivoting during a TV interview?

1:06:15 Advice for helping with kidney stones

1:07:30 What factors are behind Kansas suddenly becoming competitive?

1:14:15 If you could ask Trump one question, what would it be?

1:16:30 Could a future congress pursue financial penalties for pardoned officials?

1:19:00 Shout out to the Nats