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My friends, do some members of Congress even want the United States to win?
It’s a question that might sound extreme at first—but when you look at what’s happening in Washington right now, it becomes harder and harder to ignore.
Congress is stalled. Critical legislation is sitting idle. Funding battles are disrupting things like airport security. Meanwhile, political leaders are even pursuing lawsuits for retroactive pay raises while the nation faces massive debt and global instability.
In today’s Toddcast, we break down several of these issues:
• The stalled SAVE Act and the fight over election integrity
• Senate filibuster tactics that are preventing debate
• Funding battles surrounding the Department of Homeland Security
• Reports of airport security delays affecting travelers
• A lawsuit from current and former members of Congress seeking back pay
But the bigger issue isn’t just policy—it’s leadership.
Too many leaders appear focused on short-term political wins instead of the long-term health of the nation.
To illustrate the point, I shared a powerful example from the Old Testament about King Hezekiah. Despite being considered one of Judah’s better kings, he ultimately revealed a troubling mindset when confronted with a prophecy about the future.
His response?
“Will there not be peace and security in my lifetime?”
In other words, as long as things were stable during his lifetime, the consequences for future generations didn’t concern him.
Unfortunately, that same mindset seems alive and well in Washington today.
Too many leaders appear focused on short-term political wins instead of the long-term health of the nation.
Conservative, not bitter.
Todd
Key Highlights from Today’s Toddcast
⚠️ Washington gridlock threatens national priorities
🗳️ The SAVE Act—requiring proof of citizenship to vote—remains stalled in the Senate
🧵 The modern “zombie filibuster” stops legislation before debate even begins
✈️ DHS funding fights are creating real-world consequences like long TSA airport lines
💰 Current and former lawmakers are suing taxpayers for retroactive pay raises
📉 Political incentives often reward short-term optics instead of long-term national stability
📖 A biblical leadership lesson from King Hezekiah warns about focusing only on peace “in my lifetime”
Today’s Stack of Stuff
The Stack of Stuff honors the memory of Rush Limbaugh by keeping his iconic phrase alive — only this time, it’s digital. These links give you context for today’s Toddcast, including pieces that back me up, push back, or simply lay out the facts so you can decide for yourself.
For more on today’s Toddcast, visit today’s Stack on our website and dig in.
Quote of the Day
A nation that forgets its past has no future.
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Todd Talk: Illegal Immigrant Voted in Elections? Time to Pass the SAVE Act
My friends, they found him. The one illegal immigrant who allegedly voted in our federal elections. Amazing, right? After all, we’ve been told this simply couldn’t happen.
Yet authorities allege a Mauritanian national, Mahady Sacko, was living in the US illegally despite being ordered deported in 2000.
Prosecutors say he registered to vote anyway — and then voted in every presidential election since 2008.
I thought this couldn’t happen. I thought 2020 was the most secure election in the history of the world.
That’s what we were told anyway.
Unless they … lied to us.
So did officials find the proverbial needle in the haystack — or is it possible the haystack deserves a closer look?
If you love America and believe in the rule of law, you support ending these shenanigans by passing the SAVE Act.
When Leadership Becomes Performance
One of the quieter shifts in American politics over the past several decades isn’t ideological—it’s cultural.
Leadership in Washington has increasingly become performative.
Political leaders can and should disagree—even fiercely—but the core incentive structure should still be centered on governing. Debate can happen in committee rooms, negotiations can take place behind closed doors, and the end goal should be to pass legislation or solve a national problem.
However, in today’s world, things look very different.
The rise of 24-hour news, social media, and permanent campaign cycles has created a political environment where the greatest reward often goes not to the most effective leader, but to the most boisterous one.
Sound bites travel faster than solutions.
A fiery clip from a committee hearing can generate millions of views online. A carefully negotiated compromise rarely goes viral.
So the temptation is obvious: perform for the audience.
Deliver the speech. Post the clip. Raise the money. Win the next news cycle.
Meanwhile, the slow and often frustrating work of governing—building coalitions, writing legislation, and finding workable compromises—receives far less attention and even less reward.
This doesn’t mean every politician is necessarily acting in bad faith—but the cynic in me is starting to wonder if that’s the case.
Incentives matter.
And when the system rewards performance more than responsibility, it shouldn’t surprise us when more leaders choose the stage over the substance.
The danger isn’t just political theater. The danger is that the real work of governing quietly stalls while the performance continues.
History shows that great nations rarely decline overnight. More often, they drift—slowly trading substance for spectacle until serious problems go unaddressed for too long.
That’s why leadership matters.
Real leadership doesn’t chase applause. It accepts responsibility for outcomes, even when the work is slow, complicated, and politically risky.
And in a political era increasingly built around performance, that kind of leadership stands out more than ever.