Chuck Todd has revealed how he was the target of a serious act of retaliation shortly after drawing the ire of President Trump during his first term.
Speaking during a wide-ranging interview with Times Radio, the NBC News anchor said he walked outside his Arlington, Virginia home to discover his tires were slashed on his vehicle.
He said the incident was directly connected to the fact he was publicly called out by Trump during the early years of his administration.
The disturbing disclosure is just the latest reminder of how volatile the political climate can be for journalists who find themselves on the receiving end of Trump’s notorious public rebukes.
Todd, a veteran anchor and former moderator of NBC’s Meet the Press and who quietly left the network earlier this year said he addressed the fallout directly with the president at the time.
According to Todd, Trump shrugged off the consequences, brushing aside concerns about security threats.
Todd’s comments come amid growing concern over the security risks faced by public officials, journalists, and even judges who have been publicly criticized by Trump.
He noted how the number of people in Washington DC now requiring personal security details is higher than at any point in his three decades of covering politics.
Former NBC News heavyweight Chuck Todd has revealed how he was the target of a serious act of retaliation shortly after drawing the ire of President Trump during his first term
Todd said he addressed the fallout directly with the president at the time. According to Todd, Trump shrugged off the consequences, brushing aside concerns about security threats
Todd’s account underscores the danger that can accompany the president’s signature practice of singling out perceived enemies, a tactic critics have long warned could inflame supporters and provoke harassment or worse.
While Todd stopped short of directly blaming Trump for inciting violence, the implication was clear – and that presidential rhetoric has real-world consequences.
The broader conversation with Times Radio touched on Trump’s ongoing influence over the Republican Party, his controversial use of tariffs, and his combative approach to governing – all themes that dovetailed with Todd’s reflections on the precarious state of political discourse.
Todd’s experience is not an isolated one.
In recent years, threats against journalists, judges, lawmakers, and even election workers have surged.
For Todd, the slashed tires were a stark reminder of a reality where being publicly criticized by the president could translate into personal danger at one’s own front door.
President Trump frequently demanded the Chuck Todd be fired from NBC. He has now departed the network
Chuck Todd left NBC News earlier this year before his contract expired
In his second term, Trump has continued to deploy fiery rhetoric against opponents, critics, and institutions alike.
Todd, who left NBC to launch his independent Chuck Toddcast podcast, has remained a vocal critic of the former president, frequently calling out what he sees as the erosion of democratic norms and the corrosion of political civility.
On his new platform, Todd has warned that the risks journalists face today are more severe than at any point in recent history – not simply because of the increasingly polarized political climate, but because powerful figures have normalized the targeting of individuals in ways that endanger their personal safety.
During his tenure at the helm of Meet The Press, Todd frequently clashed with President-elect Donald Trump.
Trump frequently called Todd ‘Sleepy Eyes’ on social media and dubbed the show ‘Meet the Depressed.’
In 2020, Trump called for Todd to be fired, complaining ‘Meet the Press’ performed a ‘sleazy hit job’ on Attorney General William Barr.
Trump let loose after the program admitted to ‘inadvertently cutting short’ a sound bite from Barr when he was responding to a question about the dismissal of charges against former national security adviser Michael Flynn.
‘He should be FIRED by Concast. If done by a Republican, would be “prosecuted,»‘ Trump said on X.
During a campaign rally near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 2018, Trump called Todd a ‘son of a b***h.’
During his tenure at the helm of Meet The Press, Todd frequently clashed with President Trump
Trump dubbed the show ‘Meet the Depressed’ after Todd accused loyalist senator John Kennedy of ‘spreading Vladimir Putin’s lies’ in a heated on-air clash in 2019.
The loss of Todd is undoubtedly a big one for NBC, as he appeared on many of its channels to provide political expertise.
He joined NBC News in 2007 as a political director, before being named the network’s chief White House corresponded in 2008.
Six years later, he was promoted to lead Meet the Press, succeeding fellow fixture David Gregory in doing so.
He expanded the program by doing a regular daytime hour on MSNBC called ‘MTP Daily,’ a program that was eventually moved over to the live-streaming service NBC News Now.
The ended when he was replaced by Welker in June of 2023 after such time he had a far less prominent role.
