Chuck Todd opens with the Greenland oil expedition, an episode so strange it borders on parody: an American oil company drilling in defiance of another country's laws, with Trump's blessing, and — the detail that breaks the brain — Dr. Phil hired to document the whole thing. It's a fitting overture for a week in which the Senate confirmed Todd Blanche as Attorney General 50-49 at four in the morning before fleeing town for recess, with only Collins and Murkowski defecting. Chuck admits he was wrong; he never thought Blanche would actually get there. What galls him is the surrender it represents. Bill Cassidy's rationale — that Trump "needs someone to tell him no" — is laughable given that Blanche has said outright that the rule of law belongs to Trump and the DOJ won't be independent. John Cornyn's shrug that "there's nothing we can do to rein in the president" is, Chuck argues, the confession of a coward: senators possess the authority and simply refuse to use it, giving away what little leverage they had. The debate has now been reduced to whether the Attorney General is the people's lawyer or the president's.

Then takes on the question of why Democratic voters keep rewarding progressives whose politics they don't actually share, and his answer is that half the Democratic electorate did not suddenly become socialist — they're furious about 2024, and specifically about leadership deciding the nominee for them. They didn't dislike Harris; they wanted a choice, and they'd watched the establishment coalesce around Biden in 2020 to produce a presidency that ended with Trump's return. Progressives are the only Democrats willing to say the party screwed up, and voters will give you enormous latitude on the cure if they trust your diagnosis. Chuck illustrates it with a Washington Post story about the Conn brass instrument factory in Ohio, bought by Trump-supporting, tariff-championing investor John Paulson and now closing as production moves offshore — where the disillusioned employees don't plan to vote at all, because they feel the system has failed them for decades. He believes the opening in American politics right now isn't centrism, it's breaking up an establishment that voters believe is more worried about losing donors than losing their votes. He wonders aloud whether the answer is a military leader — he's intrigued by retired General Chris Donahue, essentially Captain America on paper, pushed out by Trump and Hegseth, with credibility across the aisle. Americans are exhausted by being told the other half of the country is the bad guy, they're desperate for honesty and a reboot of a captured government, and the space is wide open for someone to fill it. But Chuck’s closing caution matters: the system is badly screwed up, and that still isn't a reason to burn it all down.

Then, Oscar-nominated documentarian Rory Kennedy joins the Chuck Toddcast to discuss Freefall: A Reckoning for Boeing, her Netflix follow-up to 2022's Downfall premiering August 19th — a film built around the death of whistleblower John Barnett and the current and former employees who came forward after it. Kennedy's central finding is damning in its simplicity: at the end of Downfall, Boeing swore it had learned its lesson and changed its ways. It hadn't. More incidents followed, whistleblowers reached out to tell her conditions had actually gotten worse, and she says she believes Boeing bears responsibility for Barnett's death. Kennedy walks Chuck through the structural rot she sees behind the headlines — a near-total lack of competition, a revolving door between the FAA and the company it's supposed to regulate, a McDonnell Douglas merger that reoriented the entire culture around quarterly earnings instead of engineering excellence, and the decision to leave Seattle in search of a non-union workforce — which matters enormously, she notes, because unions are what give workers real whistleblower protection. Boeing is simultaneously one of the most heavily subsidized companies in American history and, right now, one that isn't being held accountable in any meaningful way.

Kennedy is unusually direct about the practical takeaway: she won't fly on a 737 MAX and actively chooses flights on other aircraft, pointing out the counterintuitive reality that older model planes are often the safer bet — a consumer shift that has hit budget airlines hardest. She and Chuck get into the incidents that never made national news, including oxygen masks that failed to work, and she's blunt that the Trump administration hasn't provided anything resembling adequate regulatory oversight while families of the 346 crash victims are still fighting to hold the company responsible. Kennedy sees this fall's elections as a genuine chance to put people in place who care about the flying public, and reflects candidly on how she's feeling about American politics generally — that this administration is making choices that are hurting a lot of people. There's also a lovely detour into Ethel, her documentary about her mother, which she says holds a special place in her heart, plus a look at what she's working on next.

Finally, Chuck hops into the ToddCast Time Machine to revisit two different but related events: the signing of the Social Security Act by FDR, and Richard Nixon announcing price and wage controls to combat inflation. Chuck argues that America has always flirted with socialism even if we call it by another name. He also 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

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Timeline:

00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction

00:30 Trump’s crazy Greenland oil adventure 

01:15 Trump is just ignoring the laws of another country

01:45 Craziest detail is oil company hired Dr. Phil to document the expedition

02:15 Trump has gone out of his way to alienate European allies

02:45 Oprah gave us Dr. Oz & Dr. Phil… which is not a good thing

06:45 U.S. senate leaves town for recess after passing funding bill

07:15 Todd Blanche is now the confirmed AG for the United States

08:00 Republicans passed none of the things they said are priorities

09:00 GOP has a trifecta and still can’t get anything done

10:00 Was wrong about Blanche, didn’t think he’d actually get confirmed

10:45 Confirmed 50-49, not surprising Collins & Murkowski defected

11:45 Cassidy’s rationale was “Trump needs someone to tell him no”

12:15 Cassidy’s rationale is laughable

13:15 Even Bill Barr had a line he wouldn’t cross with Trump

14:45 The senate gave away what little leverage they have with Trump

16:00 John Cornyn says “there’s nothing we can do to rein in the president”

16:30 These Republicans are cowards, won’t exercise their authority*

17:00 These senators need to do their job

18:00 Blanche said the rule of law belongs to Trump, DOJ won’t be independent

19:00 Debate is now if AG is the people’s lawyer or the president’s lawyer

19:45 If he were alive, Trump would have nominated Roy Cohn

20:30 You don’t want presidents deciding who gets investigated

21:30 Trump got involved with Reflecting Pool vandal case THIS WEEK

22:30 Trump’s entire life has been about wearing people down

23:15 Republicans have politicized DOJ more than any previous admin

23:45 MAGA’s premise is that two wrongs do make a right

24:15 Does anybody in congress understand the constitution?

25:30 Confirming Blanche will cause more public distrust in DOJ

26:30 Founders never wanted the president to determine rule of law

27:00 Senate didn’t get crypto or college sports bill passed before recess

27:45 Republicans claim SAVE act is existential, didn’t pass it

28:45 Why do voters entertain progressives that don’t align with them?

29:15 Half the democratic electorate didn’t suddenly become socialist

30:30 Democratic voters are pissed off, think party messed up in 2024

31:00 Voters are mad leadership decided who the ‘24 nominee would be

31:30 Voters didn’t dislike Harris, but they wanted a choice

32:30 In 2020, the establishment coalesced around Biden

33:15 Biden’s presidency was a failure since it resulted in Trump returning

34:00 Progressives are the only Dems saying the party screwed up

35:30 Like Trump, the progressives are saying leadership is full of shit

36:15 Voters will give you latitude on the cure if they trust your diagnosis

37:00 WaPo story about Conn factory closing & private equity

38:00 Factory is in Ohio, been making brass instruments

38:45 Factory is closing and laying off all the employees

39:30 Conn was bought by John Paulson, Trump supporter who supports tariffs

40:30 Paulson is moving production offshore after arguing against it

42:00 Plant employees were completely disillusioned with politics

43:00 Employees feel like the system has left them down for decades, won’t vote

44:30 Romney’s loss was due to millions of white voters sitting out entirely

45:15 Trump’s appeal brought those voters back into the electorate

47:15 Voters reward candidates that can diagnose & call out their problems

48:00 Trump proved politically dormant voters can be reactivated

48:30 There’s always a third destination for voters… the couch

49:00 If the two parties don’t reform themselves, they risk being replaced

50:15 The opening isn’t centrism, it’s breaking up the establishment

51:15 Politics requires huge amounts of money, results in capture

52:15 Voters believe reps are more worried about losing donors than their vote

53:00 Competence and morality are not the same thing in politics

53:45 Leaders need to admit that they screwed everything up

54:30 Americans are desperate for a reset & are embracing revolutionaries

55:00 A military leader might be exactly what we need in next president

55:45 Intrigued by retired general Chris Donahue & his resume

56:45 Donahue is basically Captain America & was forced out by Trump & Hegseth

58:15 Someone like Donahue could have the credibility across the aisle

59:30 Politics won’t acknowledge failure if they think it helps the other side

1:00:00 Americans are desperate for honesty & morality in politics

1:01:15 It’s exhausting being told the other half of America is the bad guys

1:03:15 Voters want to preserve the Republic, but don’t trust the leadership

1:04:00 Voters want a reboot, and a government that isn’t captured

1:05:00 The political space is waiting for someone to fill this vacuum

1:06:00 The system is screwed up, but we shouldn’t burn it all down

1:13:00 Rory Kennedy (Freefall) joins the Chuck ToddCast

1:14:30 Documentary “Ethel” about her mother holds special place in her heart

1:15:30 It became evident that Boeing knew about faulty systems on 737 MAX

1:16:15 Boeing swore they’d change, then more incidents happened

1:17:15 Believe Boeing is responsible for whistleblower John Barnett’s death

1:19:15 Lack of competition is one of the reasons Boeing has been sloppy

1:20:15 There’s a revolving door between the FAA and Boeing

1:22:00 Are Boeing’s problems coming from a single source, or multiple?

1:23:45 Boeing has long been a foundational American company

1:24:30 Parts for Boeing planes come from all over the world

1:26:00 Whistleblowers reached out to say problems had gotten worse

1:27:00 Right now, Boeing isn’t being held accountable

1:27:30 Haven’t seen Boeing make significant changes

1:29:15 Focus on profits and quarterly earnings outweighed safety

1:30:00 Boeing is one of the most subsidized companies in US history

1:31:00 McDonnell-Douglas merger has contributed to Boeing’s downfall

1:33:30 Wouldn’t fly on a 737 MAX and choose flights on other planes

1:36:00 Consumers choosing not to fly on the 737 MAX hurt budget airlines

1:37:00 Older model planes are actually safer

1:38:30 Decision to leave Seattle was to find a non-union workforce

1:39:45 Unions protect workers, give them whistleblower protection

1:41:00 Airbus is a better run company than Boeing

1:42:30 Boeing and Airbus are the only two options

1:44:45 The Trump administration hasn’t provided proper regulation for Boeing

1:45:15 Families of crash victims are still trying to hold Boeing responsible

1:48:15 Elections this fall could put people in place who care about the public

1:49:45 Incidents where the oxygen masks weren’t working

1:51:30 How are you feeling about politics these days?

1:52:00 Administration is making choices that are hurting a lot of people

1:53:30 What projects do you have coming up next?

1:56:00 Had a screening at Boeing with top executives

1:57:15 ToddCast Time Machine - Where America embraces socialism

1:58:45 Socialist policies have come from presidents of both parties

2:00:00 FDR signs the Social Security Act - Nixon announces price & wage controls

2:01:00 Americans worry about prosperity, not ideological consistency

2:03:30 Capitalism was being questioned after the Great Depression

2:04:00 FDR wanted to repair, not replace capitalism

2:04:45 Social Security started as a much smaller program than it is today

2:05:30 Congress continued adding to the program over the years

2:07:30 America imposed price & wage controls during WW2 that went beyond Nixon

2:08:15 August 15, 1971 - Nixon announces price & wage controls

2:09:30 Nixon was desperate to stop inflation

2:10:30 Administration announced ceilings on meat prices, caused shortages

2:11:45 The controls were lifted right before the election

2:13:00 We have plenty of socialist policies called by another name

2:14:00 The policies give the sense of individual control

2:14:45 Americans are allergic to government control over their choices

2:15:30 Government under Trump is acquiring stakes in American companies

2:17:15 America has always been more socialist than we like to admit

2:19:00 Ask Chuck

2:19:15 Are college educated Republican voters on the journey leftward?

2:23:15 How should Abdul El-Sayed respond to racist & Islamophobic attacks?

2:31:45 Do candidates on the same ballot create measurable coattails?

2:36:15 Any chance Republicans voted for El-Sayed thinking he’d be easier to beat?

2:39:15 Was Pirro’s dropping of Reflecting Pool case an offramp for Trump?

2:42:15 How does an everyday person help make real political change?