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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. 

Then, Anthony Scaramucci returns to the Chuck ToddCast with All the Wrong Moves, out September 22nd, which argues Trump is a symptom rather than the disease — the product of three decades of bipartisan mistakes: Clinton's China trade deal, Bush waging war while cutting taxes, and Obama's bailout that rescued Wall Street while leaving ordinary families behind. He and Chuck also revisit the private credit questions raised in the ToddCast's Lakers special report, with Scaramucci arguing risky lending simply migrated from banks to private markets and that Mark Walter is likely not an outlier. His predictions are blunt: Trump is effectively conviction-proof, and in Scaramucci's view will try to make tens of billions before pardoning himself and his family — which is why, he warns, if the country doesn't take care of its people, the pitchforks will come out. 

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.

You can order All The Wrong Moves here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1250437563

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 

59:45 "All the Wrong Moves" and the three decades that produced Trump

1:01:45 China, the wars, and a bailout that skipped the citizens

1:05:30 Is Mark Walter an outlier? Private credit and where the risk went

1:09:45 A looming financial crisis — and Trump facing a Democratic Congress

1:12:30 Conviction-proof: corruption, pardons, and the GOP's breaking point

1:14:30 No rule of law, desperate workers, and the pitchforks

1:16:00 How we made the wrong moves — and how he came back after January 6th

1:17:00 ToddCast Top 5 most unpopular campaign issues

1:17:45 #5 A candidate endorsed by Donald Trump

1:18:00 #4 Wanting to abolish ICE

1:18:30 #3 Supporting weapons and funding for Israel

1:18:45 #2 Supporting the war in Iran

1:19:15 #1 Supporting for building data centers

1:21:00 Ask Chuck

1:21:15 What prevents a journalist from pivoting during a TV interview?

1:25:15 Advice for helping with kidney stones

1:26:30 What factors are behind Kansas suddenly becoming competitive?

1:33:15 If you could ask Trump one question, what would it be?

1:35:30 Could a future congress pursue financial penalties for pardoned officials?

1:38:00 Shout out to the Nats

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 &mdash; sometimes cut within 24 hours of the defense spending bill clearing a Senate hurdle &mdash; and how the FBI's pay-to-play investigation died after Trump's purge of the bureau. Chuck&rsquo;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 &mdash; if money is speech, it shouldn't be allowed to hide.&nbsp;
Then, Anthony Scaramucci returns to the Chuck ToddCast with All the Wrong Moves, out September 22nd, which argues Trump is a symptom rather than the disease &mdash; the product of three decades of bipartisan mistakes: Clinton's China trade deal, Bush waging war while cutting taxes, and Obama's bailout that rescued Wall Street while leaving ordinary families behind. He and Chuck also revisit the private credit questions raised in the ToddCast's Lakers special report, with Scaramucci arguing risky lending simply migrated from banks to private markets and that Mark Walter is likely not an outlier. His predictions are blunt: Trump is effectively conviction-proof, and in Scaramucci's view will try to make tens of billions before pardoning himself and his family &mdash; which is why, he warns, if the country doesn't take care of its people, the pitchforks will come out.&nbsp;
Finally, Chuck presents his ToddCast Top 5 list of the worst issues a candidate can campaign on for the midterms and answers listeners&rsquo; questions in the &ldquo;Ask Chuck&rdquo; segment.
You can order All The Wrong Moves here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1250437563
Timeline:
(Timestamps may vary based on advertisements)
00:00 Chuck Todd&rsquo;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 &mdash; 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&nbsp;
59:45 "All the Wrong Moves" and the three decades that produced Trump
1:01:45 China, the wars, and a bailout that skipped the citizens
1:05:30 Is Mark Walter an outlier? Private credit and where the risk went
1:09:45 A looming financial crisis &mdash; and Trump facing a Democratic Congress
1:12:30 Conviction-proof: corruption, pardons, and the GOP's breaking point
1:14:30 No rule of law, desperate workers, and the pitchforks
1:16:00 How we made the wrong moves &mdash; and how he came back after January 6th
1:17:00 ToddCast Top 5 most unpopular campaign issues
1:17:45 #5 A candidate endorsed by Donald Trump
1:18:00 #4 Wanting to abolish ICE
1:18:30 #3 Supporting weapons and funding for Israel
1:18:45 #2 Supporting the war in Iran
1:19:15 #1 Supporting for building data centers
1:21:00 Ask Chuck
1:21:15 What prevents a journalist from pivoting during a TV interview?
1:25:15 Advice for helping with kidney stones
1:26:30 What factors are behind Kansas suddenly becoming competitive?
1:33:15 If you could ask Trump one question, what would it be?
1:35:30 Could a future congress pursue financial penalties for pardoned officials?
1:38:00 Shout out to the Nats

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 Susan Collins Story Is An Indictment Of The System + All The Wrong Moves That Led To Trump

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/3c77f0af-0172-46ec-8102-b4cd0182359f/transcript