Chuck’s Commentary - Trump’s Closing Message Couldn’t Be Worse + Trump’s Politics Receives International Rejection

Chuck Todd zooms out to a global pattern: Trump-aligned right-wing leaders have now lost in Brazil, Serbia, Hungary and Israel, all on massive turnout. Lula beat Flávio Bolsonaro 51.8-48.2 in a race widely read as a test of Trump’s influence in Latin America, after Trump met with Bolsonaro and imposed tariffs over the charges against his father. Serbia’s student movement ended Aleksandar Vučić’s 14 years in power on the highest turnout in three decades. Chuck argues Trump didn’t cause these results but wasn’t irrelevant to them either — voters are rejecting a model, not just incumbents. Back home, he notes Democrats could lose both Maine and Michigan and still win the Senate, that South Carolina is becoming remarkably competitive, and that Trump’s closing message — Venezuela as the 51st state, celebrating oil industry profits, feuding with Bill Maher over an Obama Cheesecake Factory joke — is making everything worse for his party. 

Finally, Chuck unloads the mailbag with an extended edition of “Ask Chuck”.

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Timeline:

00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction

03:00 Trump allies lose in Brazil, Serbia, Hungary and Israel

08:00 A rejection of the right, not just anti-incumbency

12:45 What happens to Israel if Bibi is ousted

20:45 Democrats could lose Maine and Michigan and still win the Senate

24:15 South Carolina, Kansas, and the paths that are opening

28:45 Bannon’s theory about protecting moderates

33:15 Trump off-message: Venezuela, oil profits, and a missing Rubio

40:30 The Bill Maher feud and Trump’s Obama complex

48:15 DOJ strikes out against Comey and Hutchinson

50:45 $1.4 billion wagered on the midterms & the case for regulating prediction markets 

1:06:15 Don’t miss our election night livestream with Chris Cillizza and DDHQ

1:06:45 Ask Chuck

1:07:00 If the GOP suffers significant losses, could they use impeachment as a reset?

1:09:00 Are Democrats going to walk back support on trans issues to appear moderate?

1:13:30 Are gaffes and comms issues more a reflection of candidates or yes-man staffers?

1:15:45 If Republicans get wiped out in midterms, what does that do to Vance’s prospects

1:20:00 If Ramaswamy wins, how should we think about our fellow citizens?

1:22:30 What’s behind the shocking bigotry and Islamophobia we’re seeing from GOP?

1:31:30 How did Tim Russert influence your career?

1:37:30 How will Trump’s foreign policy change after the midterms?

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