Andy Beshear Podcast

Episode 29: Governor Kathy Hochul and American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten
Release Date: October 23, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode features two in-depth conversations focused on public leadership, the future of democracy, and the pivotal role of education.

• First guest: New York Governor Kathy Hochul shares her trailblazing journey, governance philosophy, and perspective on national challenges.
• Second guest: Randi Weingarten, President of the American Federation of Teachers, discusses the threats facing public education and democracy, and introduces her new book, Why Fascists Fear Teachers.

Both interviews highlight integrity, the value of pluralism, and the urgent need for strong public institutions in turbulent times.

Interview 1: Governor Kathy Hochul

1. Breaking Barriers and Early Political Motivations

[00:59 - 06:13]

• Historic Role: Hochul is the first woman and the first person from Buffalo in over a century to serve as Governor of New York.
• Background:
  • Grew up in a working-class family in Buffalo.
  • Inspired by her Catholic social justice upbringing to "go out and do good for others," seeing politics as the vehicle.
  • Early political activism: interned in high school, worked for Senator Moynihan with Tim Russert.
  • Never initially imagined running for office; saw herself as a behind-the-scenes staffer.
  • "Women of my age did not think about running for office...Our job was to be the brains behind the men who ran for office." (Kathy Hochul, 04:16)
• Turning Point:
  • Became frustrated with local decisions (e.g., Walmart development), began attending town board meetings regularly.
  • Decided to run for local office after seeing a 22-year-old man with little experience do so.
  • "Where are the 22-year-old young women who have the confidence to say, I don't have a lot of life experiences, but I want to make a change and I care about my community?" (Hochul, 08:52)

2. Experiences at the Local Level

[09:57 - 12:40]

• Hyper-local challenges:
  • As a town board member, handled everyday problems (trash pickup, snowplows, etc.).
  • "I'd stop at the grocery store...somebody would grab me, 'Your snowplow hit my mailbox, Hochul, when are you gonna fix it?'" (Hochul, 10:18)
• Impact:
  • Developed a deep empathy and understanding for working-class and rural communities.
  • Emphasizes problem-solving over bureaucracy: "Your job is to be a problem solver. They don't care who does it, just solve the problem." (Hochul, 12:03)

3. County Clerk: Customer Service and Independence

[12:09 - 15:48]

• Improving Government Services:
  • Revamped DMV offices with customer-centric innovations: padded seating, greeters, children's play areas, customer comment cards.
  • Personally called dissatisfied customers.
  • "If you treat people as if they're your customers and try to give them the best service, it's a totally different way of looking at what we do, but it lets them know that they matter." (Hochul, 14:35)
• Standing Up to Party:
  • Defied party lines when necessary, prioritizing her community’s needs over partisan politics.
  • Gained a reputation as independent-minded, which helped win a Republican-leaning congressional district: "If not now, when? This is the moment that is before me. Take it or you'll not have this opportunity again." (Hochul, 16:32)

4. Congress, the ACA, and a Changing Political Atmosphere

[16:54 - 22:22]

• Congressional Tenure:
  • Won a special election as a Democrat in the most Republican district in NY.
  • Supported the Affordable Care Act despite strong district opposition, referencing personal stories of lives saved.
  • “If I'd [voted against ACA] even once, I probably would still have stayed in Congress. But I couldn't do it because I knew that district, it was a lot of rural poor...A mom hugged me at a fair and thanked me for saving her child's life.” (Hochul, 18:22)
  • Lost her seat in 2012 due to redistricting and ACA votes, but was proud to have stood by her values.
• Contrast with Current Politics:
  • Reflects on decreased independence among members of Congress today, observing “blind allegiance” to party lines.
  • “I miss those days, which I never thought I'd say, compared to the blind allegiance you describe today.” (Hochul, 18:22)

5. Healthcare, National Policy, and Rural Impact

[20:09 - 23:25]

• Medicaid & ACA:
  • Kentucky and New York both saw vast coverage expansions due to ACA and Medicaid.
  • Warns of the impact of cuts: rural hospitals threatened with closure, affecting all constituents.
  • “When subsidies are gone, their costs will go to $24,000 a year. How can they survive? They can’t.” (Hochul, 21:49)

6. Dealing with Federal Adversity

[23:25 - 26:57]

• Standing Up to the Presidency:
  • Responded directly to federal budget threats, e.g., successfully lobbying to restore $187 million in homeland security funds cut for NYC.
  • "I literally called the President and said...you will be defunding the police. I know you support the police, but in this action, you have defunded them in New York." (Hochul, 24:33)
  • Pushed back against attempts to deploy National Guard, defended NYC as safer than national rhetoric claims.
• Message to Democrats:
  • Urges fellow Democrats to defend states and democracy vigorously: “We’ll be judged very harshly by history if we sit on the sidelines and let this happen.” (Hochul, 25:39)
  • Eyes 2026 midterms as a vital opportunity to “create a firewall to stop the insanity.” (Hochul, 26:36)

Interview 2: Randi Weingarten, President, American Federation of Teachers

1. The Kentucky Model and Protecting Public Education

[28:29 - 31:19]

• Praise for Kentucky:
  • Celebrates that Kentuckians voted to protect public education, even as they voted overwhelmingly Republican for president.
  • “There’s always been a very long, proud history of understanding in Kentucky that with public schools go our future...your leadership was really important there.” (Weingarten, 29:04)
  • Stresses the non-partisan nature of protecting education: “I think it needs to be a nonpartisan issue.” (Beshear, 30:57)

2. Privatization Threats and Intentionally Sowed Division

[31:19 - 33:25]

• Attacks on Public Schools:
  • Describes coordinated privatization/anti-pluralism campaigns aimed at sowing distrust (e.g., CRT “culture wars”).
  • "What you see is that there's an intentionality on the other side...They said it. I quote this guy in my book: 'The way you get to privatization is to have universal public school distrust.'" (Weingarten, 32:10)
  • Argues public schools are the backbone of equal opportunity and democracy despite their imperfections.

3. The AFT’s Broader Mission

[33:25 - 35:36]

• Who They Represent:
  • AFT covers more than 1.8 million professionals, including K-12, higher ed, nurses, bus drivers, and paraprofessionals.
  • Framing the union’s mission: “We have to be nation builders...helping our nation see its better days, particularly for our kids.” (Weingarten, 34:38)

4. New Book: Why Fascists Fear Teachers

[35:36 - 39:05]

• Purpose and Warning:
  • The book is both a warning about modern authoritarian threats and a celebration of teachers as defenders of democracy.
  • “I really wanted to explore why and also to fight back on behalf of the millions of teachers, both past, present and future, who essentially do everything they can to make a difference in the lives of children.” (Weingarten, 37:22)
• America’s Founders & Education:
  • Argues education is the “bulwark against tyranny.”
  • “They understood that education was the bulwark against tyranny, that if we were going to have no kings...people had to be educated...to discern fact from fiction.” (Weingarten, 39:15)

5. Education’s Changing Role and All Pathways

[40:54 - 44:24]

• Beyond College:
  • Calls for educational pathways that include vocational and technical education, not just college.
  • "Let’s try to create career paths...that marry kids’ passion and purpose...What about the trades? What about culinary? What about health care? What about coding?" (Weingarten, 41:30)
  • Emphasizes four pillars: “safe and welcoming, engaging and relevant.” (Weingarten, 43:18)
• The Importance of Project-Based Learning & Critical Thinking:
  • Adapting to compete with social media; preparing kids for an AI-driven world.

6. Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Work

[44:24 - 48:25]

• AI’s Impact:
  • Both see AI transforming white-collar jobs faster than blue-collar, emphasizing the necessity of ‘human’ skills and practical education.
  • "What generative AI is doing is actually being able to research quickly, to put together a draft quickly...entry level jobs, white collar work." (Weingarten, 45:46)
• AFT Initiatives:
  • Launched an AI Institute (with partners like Microsoft and OpenAI).
  • Pushing for national AI guidelines to protect privacy and prevent misinformation.

7. Closing: Book Plug

[48:25 - 49:11]

• Weingarten’s book: a roadmap for defending democracy, available at all major and independent bookstores.
• “If you don’t see it, tell them about it and they will order it for you.” (Weingarten, 49:06)

Notable Quotes & Moments

• On overcoming barriers:
  • "I want to change that with my story...not a model for girls and women, but also to say I sold myself short, not thinking I could run for office."
    — Kathy Hochul, [05:38]
• On local government grounding leadership:
  • "I use that experience when I'm looking at every bit of legislation that comes before me. Is this good or bad for localities? Is it good or bad for business?"
    — Hochul, [11:36]
• On integrity and doing the right thing:
  • "If not now, when? This is the moment that is before me."
    — Hochul, [16:32]
• On public education's role:
  • "With public schools go our future and the investment in public schools and the investment in our communities really start with public schooling."
    — Weingarten, [29:17]
• On why authoritarians attack teachers:
  • "Teachers can actually be the antidote...who not only undermine fascism, but create the habits of democracy and the habits of hope."
    — Weingarten, [38:38]
• On the most educated societies being the healthiest democracies:
  • "The healthiest democracy is the most educated."
    — Beshear, [39:05]; echoed by Weingarten [39:15]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:59 – Introduction & Governor Hochul’s beginnings
• 04:16 – Hochul’s early outlook on women in politics
• 08:52 – Realization: time to run for office
• 10:18 – Stories from local government service
• 14:35 – Customer service reforms as County Clerk
• 16:32 – Taking a stand as an independent in Congress
• 18:22 – Affordable Care Act, rural impact, and tough votes
• 21:49 – Fallout from ACA cuts; impact on rural NY
• 24:33 – Standing up against federal overreach in NY
• 29:04 – Beshear and Weingarten on Kentucky’s education victories
• 32:10 – Manufactured distrust in public schools
• 34:38 – AFT’s nation-building mission
• 37:22 – Weingarten on teacher attacks & democracy
• 39:15 – Education as a defense against tyranny
• 41:30 – Building vocational and alternative pathways
• 43:18 – Pillars of future-ready public education
• 45:46 – AI’s role in disrupting white-collar work
• 49:06 – Book closing & purchase info

Tone and Closing

The episode is candid, urgent, and hopeful. Both guests and host Andy Beshear blend policy realism with personal narrative, stressing the stakes for democracy, community, and future generations.
Policy disagreements, especially concerning the current administration, are discussed openly but always in a solution-oriented and people-centered manner.

For Listeners

Whether you’re interested in women’s leadership, defending democracy, or the changing face of public education, this episode delivers first-hand stories, practical lessons, and inspiring calls to engagement.
No matter your politics, it’s a reminder of what’s at stake—and how individual courage and collective action can make a difference.