Chuck Todd opens by correcting Jon Stewart, who made him a punchline Monday — before turning to the circus at Tuesday's Jack Smith hearing. Missouri Sen. Eric Schmitt, a potential 2028 VP pick, thought he'd caught Smith perjuring himself with text messages placing him at an Atlanta Hawks game the day after the Fani Willis affair broke. Smith was at an Iowa Hawkeyes women's game in Maryland. Klobuchar spotted the mix-up, Schmitt never backtracked, and Chuck's point is the deeper one: Schmitt decided the conclusion before the evidence and displayed exactly the confirmation bias he was accusing Smith of. If evidence can't change your worldview, what's the point of evidence? The second half is a substantive argument that the voucher experiment has hit a dead end — it never moved low-income kids into private schools, it mostly subsidized families already paying tuition, and school funding may be a real reason Republicans lose in November. He also explains why focusing on improving pre-k through 3rd grade education should be a national project.  

Then, CNN chief political correspondent Dana Bash joins the Chuck ToddCast to discuss The Elections That Changed the World, out September 22nd, which she wrote with David Fisher. The fifteen elections she chose stretch from Julius Caesar — who ran partly because he was deeply indebted and didn't want to be prosecuted — to Nelson Mandela, and "election" is defined loosely enough to include Pope John XXIII's selection and Martin Luther King's informal elevation to lead the Montgomery bus boycott. The through-line is money: wealth shaped nearly every one of them, from the Magna Carta to Caesar effectively buying votes. Bash's larger point is that you rarely know in the moment how consequential a vote will be — Germany in 1932 was a revolution disguised as an election. Plus her five favorite 2026 races, why Michigan is fascinating, and what it's like covering a second-term Trump White House. 

Finally, Chuck presents his ToddCast Top 5 2026 midterm results that will most impact the 2028 race and answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment. 

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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.

Timeline:

(Timestamps may vary based on advertisements)

00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction

01:45 Jon Stewart, NBC, and setting the record straight

03:15 Which Republicans will actually campaign with Trump

09:15 The Schmitt-Jack Smith hearing debacle

13:15 Confirmation bias and what evidence is even for

16:15 What Jack Smith was actually investigating

22:45 Public education as an American advantage

25:30 The voucher experiment and whether competition worked

30:00 What Mississippi got right, and why pre-K through 3rd grade is everything

40:45 Vouchers hit a dead end — and the political price

47:30 Alabama's TikTok settlement and the limits of blaming teachers 

58:45 Dana Bash joins The Chuck ToddCast

59:45 Why write "The Elections That Changed the World"

1:44:30 Caesar, Hitler, and the cautionary tales

1:46:45 Wealth as the through-line from the Magna Carta forward

1:15:15 Sun Yat-Sen and the bridge between imperial China and Mao

1:21:15 Pope John XXIII and modernizing the Catholic Church

1:25:15 Kasturba Gandhi, Golda Meir, and women leading democracies

1:32:30 Mandela's election and the limits of judging history in real time

1:43:45 2026 races to watch: Michigan, Lawler, Iowa, Texas

1:58:15 Covering a second-term Trump White House

2:04:45 ToddCast Top 5 2026 results that will most impact 2028

2:05:00 #5 Does an independent break through?

2:09:30 #4 California’s wealth tax

2:08:45 #3 Texas senate

2:10:15 #2 Texas governor

2:11:45 #1 Michigan senate

2:13:45 Ask Chuck

2:14:00 How would a mega-tsunami election affect committee assignments?

2:18:45 Is there a value in running uphill races beyond winning?

2:23:15 Will Republicans act with more independence from Trump after midterms?

2:25:45 If enough independents won and didn’t caucus, who would have control?

2:30:30 Favorite sports + political movies? Should Trump impeachment have been broader?

Chuck Todd opens by correcting Jon Stewart, who made him a punchline Monday &mdash; before turning to the circus at Tuesday's Jack Smith hearing. Missouri Sen. Eric Schmitt, a potential 2028 VP pick, thought he'd caught Smith perjuring himself with text messages placing him at an Atlanta Hawks game the day after the Fani Willis affair broke. Smith was at an Iowa Hawkeyes women's game in Maryland. Klobuchar spotted the mix-up, Schmitt never backtracked, and Chuck's point is the deeper one: Schmitt decided the conclusion before the evidence and displayed exactly the confirmation bias he was accusing Smith of. If evidence can't change your worldview, what's the point of evidence? The second half is a substantive argument that the voucher experiment has hit a dead end &mdash; it never moved low-income kids into private schools, it mostly subsidized families already paying tuition, and school funding may be a real reason Republicans lose in November. He also explains why focusing on improving pre-k through 3rd grade education should be a national project.&nbsp;&nbsp;
Then, CNN chief political correspondent Dana Bash joins the Chuck ToddCast to discuss The Elections That Changed the World, out September 22nd, which she wrote with David Fisher. The fifteen elections she chose stretch from Julius Caesar &mdash; who ran partly because he was deeply indebted and didn't want to be prosecuted &mdash; to Nelson Mandela, and "election" is defined loosely enough to include Pope John XXIII's selection and Martin Luther King's informal elevation to lead the Montgomery bus boycott. The through-line is money: wealth shaped nearly every one of them, from the Magna Carta to Caesar effectively buying votes. Bash's larger point is that you rarely know in the moment how consequential a vote will be &mdash; Germany in 1932 was a revolution disguised as an election. Plus her five favorite 2026 races, why Michigan is fascinating, and what it's like covering a second-term Trump White House.&nbsp;
Finally, Chuck presents his ToddCast Top 5 2026 midterm results that will most impact the 2028 race and answers listeners&rsquo; questions in the &ldquo;Ask Chuck&rdquo; segment.&nbsp;
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 <a href="http://kalshi.com/regulatory">kalshi.com/regulatory</a> for more information. Sign up today to get $25 in bonuses when you trade $25: CHUCKTODD
<a href="http://kalshi.com/r/SUPERTUESDAYS">http://kalshi.com/r/</a>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 <a href="http://askchapter.org/chuck">askchapter.org/chuck</a> <a href="http://askchapter.org/realdana">/</a>&nbsp; *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&rsquo;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&rsquo;t directly offer. You can contact a licensed Chapter agent to find out the number of products available in your specific area.
Timeline:
(Timestamps may vary based on advertisements)
00:00 Chuck Todd&rsquo;s introduction
01:45 Jon Stewart, NBC, and setting the record straight
03:15 Which Republicans will actually campaign with Trump
09:15 The Schmitt-Jack Smith hearing debacle
13:15 Confirmation bias and what evidence is even for
16:15 What Jack Smith was actually investigating
22:45 Public education as an American advantage
25:30 The voucher experiment and whether competition worked
30:00 What Mississippi got right, and why pre-K through 3rd grade is everything
40:45 Vouchers hit a dead end &mdash; and the political price
47:30 Alabama's TikTok settlement and the limits of blaming teachers&nbsp;
58:45 Dana Bash joins The Chuck ToddCast
59:45 Why write "The Elections That Changed the World"
1:44:30 Caesar, Hitler, and the cautionary tales
1:46:45 Wealth as the through-line from the Magna Carta forward
1:15:15 Sun Yat-Sen and the bridge between imperial China and Mao
1:21:15 Pope John XXIII and modernizing the Catholic Church
1:25:15 Kasturba Gandhi, Golda Meir, and women leading democracies
1:32:30 Mandela's election and the limits of judging history in real time
1:43:45 2026 races to watch: Michigan, Lawler, Iowa, Texas
1:58:15 Covering a second-term Trump White House
2:04:45 ToddCast Top 5 2026 results that will most impact 2028
2:05:00 #5 Does an independent break through?
2:09:30 #4 California&rsquo;s wealth tax
2:08:45 #3 Texas senate
2:10:15 #2 Texas governor
2:11:45 #1 Michigan senate
2:13:45 Ask Chuck
2:14:00 How would a mega-tsunami election affect committee assignments?
2:18:45 Is there a value in running uphill races beyond winning?
2:23:15 Will Republicans act with more independence from Trump after midterms?
2:25:45 If enough independents won and didn&rsquo;t caucus, who would have control?
2:30:30 Favorite sports + political movies? Should Trump impeachment have been broader?

The Chuck ToddCast is back! If you're looking for smart, no-nonsense political conversation, you've come to the right place. The Chuck ToddCast goes beyond the headlines, featuring conversations with top reporters, insiders, and newsmakers from D.C. to the heartland. No scripts, no spin—just real discussions about what’s shaping our politics and why it matters.

The Chuck ToddCast

Full Episode - The Circus In The Senate Judiciary Committee + The Elections That Changed The World

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/7f48324f-5339-4899-bb66-b4d50017080e/transcript