Chuck’s Commentary - The Rule Of Law Is Now Whatever Trump Says It Is + Why Democratic Voters Are Rewarding Progressives

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.

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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Timeline:

(Timestamps may vary based on advertisements)

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 par