Influencer incentives and political capture

Chuck Todd examines the Justice Department’s handling of the Epstein files, the uneven political fallout, and why some stories break through while others—often more consequential—don’t. The discussion then turns to public health, RFK Jr.’s corrosive influence on vaccine trust, and how misinformation is putting kids at risk just as measles cases surge. Todd closes by unpacking the growing civil war within MAGA world, where influencers—not elected officials—are driving the GOP agenda, competing for clicks with ever more extreme claims, and exposing deep cracks in Trump’s coalition.

Finally, Chuck hops into the ToddCast Time Machine to review the fallout from the dissolution of the Soviet Union and why that story’s ending hasn’t been written yet. He also answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment and gives his college football roundup.

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Timeline:

(Timestamps may vary based on advertisements)

00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction

3:15 We all know the broad strokes of the Epstein story

4:00 With enough money you can buy your way out of bad character

5:30 Justice department is slow walking the release of the Epstein files

6:00 Releases have a lot of Bill Clinton, very little Trump

6:45 DOJ will frontload releases that embarrass Democrats

8:00 People were willing to look the other way on Epstein

8:45 Character should matter & Epstein ties should be a demerit

10:30 Many people don’t know about or believe many of Trump’s outrages

11:15 The Epstein story breaks through, many consequential stories don’t

12:30 HHS touts accomplishments, but has done tremendous damage

13:45 2000 confirmed cases of measles, about to lose measles-free status

15:15 RFK Jr. is an incredibly low character individual

16:00 Removing food dyes is the only good work MAHA is doing

17:30 No scientific study links vaccines to autism

18:15 Covid vaccine was touted as a shield

19:15 People exploited poor Covid vaccine communication

19:45 MRNA vaccines are a technological marvel

20:15 Cutting funding for MRNA research is a terrible own goal

21:30 RFK Jr is causing less people to take vaccines, putting kids at risk

22:45 Massive infighting has begun amongst the MAGA influencers

24:15 GOP is captured by influencers the ways Dems were captured by “groups”

26:15 Some MAGA influencers have crazy beliefs and conspiracy theories

27:15 Republicans forced to entertain the crazy beliefs of their influencers

29:15 GOP politicians are taking their cues from their influencer base

30:15 Dems are starting to break free from influence of the groups

31:00 Biden’s poor handling of the border was to satiate the groups

31:30 MAGA influencers are conducting a circular firing squad

32:30 MAGA influencers try to out-crazy each other for clicks

35:00 The MAGA coalition is cracking

41:00 ToddCast Time Machine – December 26, 1991

41:30 Soviet Union officially dissolves, ending the Cold War

42:15 Collapse of the Soviet Union is still unresolved

43:30 It felt like history had chosen a winner, but it was just the first act

44:00 The west felt like the liberal democrats had won

45:15 The US treated the Soviet Union like a failed state, not a fallen empire

46:30 Democracy hasn’t taken hold in many former Soviet states

47:45 Democracy has never landed in Russia due to structural reasons

48:45 Fall of the USSR created oligarchs, but not a middle class

49:45 The Russian people equated oligarchy with democracy

51:30 Russians lost a sense of identity, made them vulnerable to a dictator

52:15 Eastern Europe fears Russia & wanted in on NATO

53:45 Ukraine had the world’s third largest nuclear arsenal, gave it up

54:45 Ukraine should have received NATO membership for giving up nukes

55:30 We’re repeating the 1920’s & 30’s in the U.S. & in Europe

57:15 Russia becoming a democracy seems fanciful, but in time it’s possible

58:45 This period feels unstable, but could be bumps in the road

59:15 Ask Chuck

59:30 Why has the U.S. and Europe had a bond, & thoughts on losing it?

1:04:00 Do you think congress will try to limit the pardon power post-Trump?

1:10:00 What does the GOP look like if it loses in 2028?

1:13:30 What was it like working with Topps for your trading card?

1:24:30 College football roundup

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