‘I Like You Better Than Chuck Todd!’ GOP Senator Needles Meet the Press Host in Awkward Moment

Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) paid Meet the Press moderator Kristen Welker a compliment at her predecessor’s expense on Sunday, telling her, “I like you better than Chuck Todd!”

Todd is the former moderator who announced in June 2023 he would step down from the venerable Sunday show after nine years at the helm, with Welker tapped as his successor. Todd initially stayed on at NBC as chief political analyst before leaving the network altogether in 2025. He now hosts his own programs — a Sunday night interview show and a podcast.

Kennedy’s comments came towards the end of his appearance on the show Sunday. Earlier in the interview, though, the Louisiana senator was asked for his thoughts on Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, with Welker referencing Sen. Thom Tillis’s (R-NC) call for his ouster amid reports of a major shake-up of the military’s senior leadership.

Asked directly whether he still had confidence in Hegseth, Kennedy initially replied, “It’s not my place to have confidence in him.” He went on to say Hegseth was “consolidating power” and “seems to be firing some pretty good people,” while still adding that he would “probably vote for him again” unless presented with evidence the firings were unwarranted.

As Welker tried to wrap up their conversation, Kennedy — no stranger to making headlines with his colorful one-liners — said, “I like you better than Chuck Todd, Kristen!”

Laughing, Welker responded, “Well, we appreciate your being here very much, Senator. Thank you so much. We love Chuck, too.”

“You’ve got better hair, for one thing,” Kennedy interrupted.

“Well, we love Chuck, too. Thank you, Senator,” Welker said, clearly a bit uncomfortable with the comment against Todd.

As mentioned, Kennedy has developed a reputation for delivering offbeat remarks in media appearances. In recent months, he has dubbed Democratic socialists “Lulu Lenins,” compared socialism’s record of failures to the length of “King Kong’s genitalia,” and said former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was “dead as fried chicken” after a call with President Donald Trump.

Watch the moment above on YouTube.

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