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Danielle
The fracture has begun as it pertains to maga and on today's as the world churns, myself and my fabulous co hosts Andy Levy are going to dig in to what we think are the beginning fissures of maga's own creation. So what do I mean by this? For years, Donald Trump, along with his band of fools, has dug in to the conspiracy theory of a Democratic cabal of sex trafficking, pedophiles, et cetera, et cetera. And when I'm in power, I'm going to release the upstream files and show the world who the Democrats are and yada yada, yada. Fast forward. Pam Bondi I got the files on my desk. Fast forward. You know, libs of TikTok and other personalities walk out of the White House with a big binder and smiles on their face. We got the information and now they said there's nothing to see here, folks. And just keep moving along. We got nothing. We got nothing to see here. Donald Trump is melting down because his own base now has Alex Jones crying in his car. Elon Musk feeling like he was made a fool of, among others who were just like, if you're not in the files, then release the files and we know now that Donald Trump is throwing everything that he can, bringing up old date, outdated feuds with people, bringing Hillary Clinton and the laptop from hell, and going on these long, long old man screeds on his broke down social media platform. And what it's showing, Andy, is that for the first time ever, the man is being ratioed on his own site with his own people saying, you're a liar. What do you make of this? Because I'm like, is this, is this the beginning? It's going to be the Epstein files, not the deportations, not the gunning of government agencies, not like the grifting, none of that. It's going to be Epstein.
Andy Levy
Well, this is the first time that when Trump voters say, this is not what I voted for, that I believe them. Like, this is the first thing he's done where I'm like, yeah, you know what? The guy ran on the fact that there were these Epstein files, that it was the Democrats who were suppressing them and that he was going to release them. So, yeah, when I hear people getting mad at him now and now that he's out there, you know, and he really is flailing, it's amazing. Like you said, the old man yelling imagery is just unbelievable. And look, you can't tell conspiracy theorists what they want to hear for years and then suddenly say, oh, by the way, none of that's true, and expect them to stick with you. You can do that to a lot of different people. And so he can do that on a bunch of other subjects and get away with it. But conspiracy theorists aren't like that. They believe what they believe, and they believe it with every fiber of their being. And they believe that Jeffrey Epstein was murdered to be kept quiet. They probably believe that Hillary Clinton had something to do with that murder. They believe that there is absolutely a client list, that Jeffrey Epstein had a client list. They also believe that he's a Mossad, was a Mossad agent, or in some way worked for the Israeli government. And so everything that Donald Trump and his administration is doing now flies in the face of these strongly held beliefs. And yeah, it's wild that the thing that's fracturing this group and that, I mean, who knows, We've counted old Donnie out a million times before and he somehow comes back. So I'm not, I'm not ready to, you know, I'm not, I'm not ready to throw a party just yet. But I guess in a way, it's really not a surprise that it would be one of these, you know, wild conspiracy laden Issues that would lead to this fracturing. Because again, like the people who are saying, you know, when he deports or kidnaps whatever, one of their neighbors who were saying, I didn't vote for this. Like, yeah, you did. You actually did. You might not have thought it was going to go down like this, but it's what you voted for. And the same with all the cuts. Yes, they voted for cuts. They just didn't think the cuts would affect them. And, you know, they fucked around and now they're finding out. But that's different from saying, I didn't vote for this because the man made it clear that he was going to do all these cuts. So again, this is something as wacky as it is and as bizarre as it is, that this might be the thing, like you said with all the other things with the shrubs, writing of the Constitution that's going on on a daily basis. Ultimately, I guess, and maybe with hindsight, it's like, oh, yeah, I guess that kind of makes sense.
Danielle
But it's like, here's my thing. And I don't even, I'm not even saying, like, this is the beginning of the end of Donald Trump, but I think that it's really interesting that the seeds that you planted, the conspiracy seeds that he has been planting over the last 10 years, that he has poisoned his own well, right? Like that he's planted these seeds in his poisonous garden that he's allowed to spread because it has always worked to his benefit. The control that he had over this base has always worked to his benefit. And it made me go back to, if we remember Cassidy Hutchinson's testimony before the January 6th committee, where Donald Trump was told that the people that were on the grounds at the ellipses had weapons, right? And Donald Trump is saying, they're not here to hurt me. Take down the magnetrons, take them down. They're not here to hurt me. I believe that Donald Trump has never imagined, couldn't even possibly imagine that this base that he's been feeding lies to, that he is riled up. Conspiracy, conspiracy after conspiracy, lie after lie. Fed them, you know, Nancy Pelosi, her husband gets bashed in the head, feeds them this person, they have to move, right? Like, feeds them all of these people that he never thought that they would turn on him. And so now here he is, like, standing before these people, sending these middle of the night, paragraph long truth socials. That's like, what about the laptop? And what about Obama? What about Hillary? Like, what about this? And you can just imagine him like, in his bathrobe, holding a Coke and just screaming out into the void. And the people who used to stop and camp out and listen to everything that he had to say are like, you sound like a liar. Like, I can't actually trust you. And I think that that fissure in terms of him not having the control to manipulate these people, to me, that's really something. I'm not saying it's the beginning of the end, but I think that it's like, look what you did.
Andy Levy
No, I think you're absolutely right. And that he, look, and there was no reason for him not to believe that whatever he said they would ultimately go along with, because they have, like you said. But the problem here is, is that when the Trump administration comes out and the Justice Department says there's no Epstein list, there's no, you know, there's no, they're there, there, there are two possible explanations for that. One is they're telling the truth. And, and the other is that they're covering it up. And you've got people who firmly believe that this thing does exist. You've got an attorney general who said the list was on her desk. So it's a little difficult because they're really, those are the only two possibilities here. That they're covering it up or that it really doesn't exist. And you have people who, even if it doesn't exist, they are never, ever, ever going to believe that. Never. And he thought, well, if I tell them that, they'll believe it. And he was absolutely wrong. And we're seeing now these fissures, even within the administration, with people threatening to quit at the FBI and other people calling for Pam Bondi to be fired as if this was her choice. Like, that's, that really gets me. Like, again, fire her. She sucks. But do you think she's doing this? You think that's where this stops? You don't think this goes all the way to the Big Guy? I mean, who are you kidding? Like, you can't be that stupid. You can't think that Pam Bondi is going rogue here. This is a Donald Trump operation. And so I'm not sure what the people calling for her to be fired, what they think they're going to accomplish there other than making me laugh. And that's something.
Danielle
In this world, in this world at this time, that's something. And I'll take it.
Andy Levy
Thank you, Megyn Kelly. So, Danielle, over the weekend, a lot of government workers started losing their jobs, whether they were administration people or actual workers who might actually do Something for a living. And I think it was on Friday the State Department announced that they were beginning the process of firing over 1300 US based employees in an effort to, I guess, to reshape the entire State Department in Donald Trump's image, which I feel like maybe we had some advanced warning he was gonna do stuff like this. Like there was that project, I can't remember the name of it. It was some kind of number, maybe. What year is this? Oh, 2025.
Danielle
2025, yeah, yeah.
Andy Levy
That explicitly called for all of that. So we've got multiple crises in the Middle East. We've got Russia and Ukraine not going anywhere. We've got God knows how many other hot spots and simmering spots throughout the world, and we are firing 1350 people from the State Department. Daniel?
Danielle
Yeah, I think it's a great idea. I think that nothing bad will happen. I think that losing all of this intel, the literal intelligence of decades of work and workers in the State Department seems like a logical thing to do when America is as unstable as it is. And because of America's instability, the world is now incredibly unstable. So I think good call on their part, adding to the joblessness, which is going to add to, you know, the I designed chaos that they have created in this country. But, you know, again, it's not as if There wasn't a 900 page document that was a PDF on the heritage foundation site that was bounded and put out to the world to say, this is exactly what is going to happen. This is not gonna be like the first regime. This is gonna be wildly different because they are very organized and know exactly what they want to disseminate. I mean, to, to, to destroy. And that's what we're doing. That's what they're doing. So, you know, look, all goes back to the fact that the damage that has been done in these initial six months is generational damage to this country that we're never going to see fixed in our lifetimes. Like, that's just like the fact. And that's just again, six months they are breaking this country up, selling it for parts. And the destruction, I believe, is going to come back to them. And you are beginning to see that. But, you know, when people, you look at what's happening with fema, look at what we've realized with Homeland Security. Kristi Noem, oh, doesn't send aid, doesn't send emergency aid for 72 hours because of a stupid policy that she put together that she needed to have her signature on expenditures of over 100,000 now we're seeing that calls were missed with FEMA because of the massive amounts of layoffs, that people are dying because of their stupidity. And if you think that that's something that folks are going to shrug off, they have another thing coming.
Andy Levy
Yeah, for sure. And let's talk about that FEMA thing for a minute because first of all, we trash the New York Times on here a lot. I think it's fair to say so. We should give them credit when credit is due. And it was their reporting on Fear Friday that on July 5, which was the day after the big storm hit Texas, the day after the flooding, when people desperately needed help, more than two thirds of the phone calls that FEMA received on that day were not answered. Why? Because Kristi Noem laid off hundreds of contractors on that day. Contractors among whom were. Whose job was to answer those phone calls from people who needed help, from people who needed emergency help. On July 6th, FEMA received 2,363 calls. They answered 846. They answered roughly 35%. On July 7th, they received over 16,000 calls and answered 2,000. That's 15%. That is criminal. I don't know any other word to use for it. We already talked, we talked on the last show that the fact that she had put those other restrictions in place should already get her hauled before Congress and, you know, as far as I'm concerned, should land her in prison. This is worse. This is even worse than that. They literally on purpose unstaffed call centers in the middle of an emergency and did not pick up calls from people in distress, from people who, I'm sure in some cases, whatever issues they had can be dealt with a couple weeks from now. I'm sure in a lot of cases they needed to be dealt with asap. People are drowning. People's possessions are being washed away. It's just, it is unreal to me that they can. She cannot get away with this is I think, what I'm trying to say. She cannot be allowed to get away with this. And it should start right now. And hopefully the Democrats will make good. I know some of them have already called for her to be holding hauled before committees. If nothing happens to her while this administration is office, the minute this administration is out of office, charges need to be filed like, she cannot be allowed to get away with this. And it's just, I don't know why this one out of all the ones that we've talked about. But there's something about this one. There's something about the pure unadulterated evil of saving a few bucks by not staffing call centers with freelance people, contractors. They're not even staff. They're not even people you have to give benefits to and shit like that. They're fucking freelancers who probably got paid, you know, minimum wage or whatever. And you decided I'm not going to renew those contracts in the. I can't. I know this isn't the fuck that guy segment, but I am. This one really got to me, Daniel.
Danielle
You know, but here's the thing too, because it is, it is so unadulterated and it is so vile. And we have to really know that it isn't to save any money. It is to divert money from what you would have paid those contractors and those people into Donald Trump's and his donors pockets. That's what it is. But my, but, and to ice but my thing here too is do we really think this is Kristi Noem, just in the same way that we were talking about. I've seen before, it's Donald Trump. This is Trump for sure. This is Elon Musk, like so yes, should she be fired, should she be jailed, all of these things. But if we think that this fucking, you know, ice Barbie CVS makeup wearing like cheap person is the mastermind behind the, the, the destruction, like that's not the case. Like that is like putting lipstick on a pig. Right. So I just, the entirety of it is coming into such sharp focus in just a handful of months, right? Like in just six months, the damage, the lives that are going to be, the lives that are already lost and how that's going to increase over the next, over these next years, my God, somebody will have to go to jail at some point. But I don't have faith that the right people will.
Andy Levy
No, and look, I'm with you. And yes, I 100% agree with you that in the same way as we were talking earlier, that it wasn't Pam Bondi who made the calls. You're absolutely right. It's Trump policies. I think my point is she needs repercussions because there needs to be a message sent to all the people who carry out Trump's wishes that they need to think twice about that. The thing is I don't know that this will happen. And you know, and they may end up finding out that they don't have to think twice about it. And that's the problem. Because if you had any kind of repercussions for doing Donald Trump's bidding on a thing like this or you know, following Elon Musk's precepts. But then you got in trouble. The next time they tell you to do something, you might say to yourself or someone else might say to themselves, well, look what happened to her. Well, he's rotting in a cell. I'm not gonna do that just because he says I should. So that's why I think there has to be. There have to be repercussions for her. She needs to be hauled before Congress because this shit cannot be allowed to continue. Because like you said, they've shown us in a very few months how they want to operate for the next three and a half years.
Annie Andrews
And.
Andy Levy
And it's only going to get worse if there's no downside to them personally for doing what they're doing.
Danielle
100%.
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Andy Levy
Dr. Annie Andrews is a South Carolina pediatrician and Democrat who at the end of May, announced her decision to take on Lindsey Graham by posting a campaign launch video that quickly went viral. She joins me now to talk about that video and why Graham has to go. Annie, thank you so much for being here.
Annie Andrews
Well, thank you so much for having me.
Andy Levy
So before we even get into your decision to run against Lindsey Graham, one of the things that you say is you're a pediatrician, not a politician. So tell our audience about pediatrician Annie Andrews.
Annie Andrews
Yes, thank you so much. A pleasure to be here. So I actually decided to be a doctor when I was four and a half years old. I told my preschool teacher that when I grow up, I want to be a doctor and a mommy with three kids. And I know that because my preschool teacher wrote it down and I drew a little picture next to it and my mom kept it. Now it's framed in my home office. So I was laser focused on this career of being a doctor. No idea where I got the idea from, but that's what I did. I'm a goal oriented person. I achieved that goal. I spent about 15 years working in the children's hospital in the low country of South Carolina, and I really loved my job as a pediatrician in a children's hospital. But when you work at a children's hospital every day, you start to understand there's real sustainability, systemic barriers that are impeding our children's ability to grow into their brightest possible versions of themselves. And if you don't work in a children's hospital or you don't work in a public school, then you might not understand how common it is to care for kids who are hungry, who don't know where their next meal is coming from, kids who are in the throes of a mental health crisis and their parents can't access mental health resources for them, kids who heartbreakingly have to spend the night in the hospital room alone because their parents are juggling multiple jobs just to make end. And then what really got me off the sidelines was the children I'd cared for who had been shot. When I envisioned a career as a pediatrician, I thought I'd be taking care of kids with pneumonia and diabetes and asthma and seizures, and I do all of that. But I never thought I'd see so many children with bullet holes in them. And so after 15 years of understanding all these problems our kids are facing, I started to look for problem solvers in my state capitol in Columbia, South Carolina. You won't be surprised to hear I didn't find very many folks fighting for kids there. So I got more and more involved in advocacy, started to understand the political process, realized I was more than qualified to run for office. And so that's what I did back in 2022 when I ran for Congress against Nancy Mace. And that's what led me to this moment, as you said last month or in May, when I decided to run for the US Senate against Lindsey Graham.
Andy Levy
So talk about that great campaign launch video in which, among other things, you show Graham flip flopping with examples of a clip of him railing against journalists who call Donald Trump a kook, followed by a clip of him calling Donald Trump a kook. As I said, this video went viral. Did that sort of pleasantly surprise you?
Annie Andrews
Well, interestingly, you know, my, my launch video for my Congressional race against Nancy similarly went viral. And I think it's a combination of things. I think, you know, I'm not a traditional politician. I don't really consider myself a politician. I bring my lived experience as both a pediatrician and a mom to everything I do in the political world. And I am a very real person who. Who talks like a real person to regular people. I'm not going to do this just to sound like every other democr Democratic politician. So I co wrote this ad with my ad team, the same team I used back in my congressional race. We did a lot of back and forth and we, you know, I'm not going to do this to play by the rules, to play by the old playbook. If I'm going to do this, if I'm going to try to unseat an entrenched D.C. politician like Lindsey Graham, I understand I'm going to have to do it my own way. And that's exactly what this launch video reflected. It's the frustration that we all fear, the anxiety we fear we feel from this Trump administration. It's Lindsey Graham being the very epitome with what has gone wrong in the Republican Party. He has changed his position on nearly every issue in the 22 years he spent in the US Senate. And I think people, pediatrician and mom, and they expect me to be one thing, and that's not exactly what I am. You know, I opened the video by saying that Lindsey Graham is full of shit, because he is. Why can't we say that it's okay to say that we are in this, you know, urgent moment in this nation's history. We've got to try new things. I'm not going to do this and abandon who I am as a human being. And so that's what came through the launch video. I'm so pleased it went viral because that's more eyes on my campaign and more ears listening to the words that are coming out of my mouth about the things that I care about.
Andy Levy
Yeah. You mentioned that you ran against Nancy Mace, and obviously, unfortunately, you lost. And now we have to, on a national level, deal with hearing her and seeing her repulsive statements and videos on what feels like a daily basis. And I was looking at Lindsey Graham's margins of victory. He won by 10 points in 20, 20, 15 in 2014, 15 in 2008, and 10 in 2002. So he's never even had an opponent come within single digits of him. How can you be different?
Annie Andrews
So first, it's 2026 is gonna be unlike Any election cycle that I have experienced in my lifetime, the chaos of the Trump administration. Lindsey Graham has enabled every step of this chaos. And people in South Carolina are feeling it. You know, whether it's the tariffs on and off tariffs and how that's impacting the South Carolina ports, whether it's how it's impacting South Carolina farmers and small business owners. You know, Lindsey Graham just championed the bill to gut our nation's Medicaid program, which funds half of the births in South Carolina, at least 6 out of 10 nursing home beds, and is the largest insurer for children in my state. So people are feeling that direct connection to these failed policies, to their daily lives. My job as a pediatrician in South Carolina has never been about red or blue, and I don't see politics that way either. And I know that sounds a little naive or Pollyanna, but everybody's ready for something different than what Lindsey Graham offer. And, you know, this is a midterm election year. Trump is not on the ballot like he was in 2020 to save Lindsey Graham when Jamie Harrison ran against him back then. Also, that was Covid, so Jamie's team could not knock doors. We won't have that handicap this time. So this is just a totally different race than the last time Lindsay was on the ball. And his approval rating is lower than it's ever been. It's 34% in South Carolina, which is 10 points lower than Donald Trump's.
Andy Levy
Wow. I have a theory that South Carolinians keep sending him back to Washington to keep him out of South Carolina. You know, listen, like, just a theory.
Annie Andrews
I keep saying, like, let's send Lindsey home, but, like, by no means is that an invitation to actually come back. I'd love for him to find a place to live, maybe in Florida.
Andy Levy
Yeah, he really is a national laughingstock at this point. Like. Like, Republicans don't even respect it.
Annie Andrews
That's exactly right. I mean, he has a Republican Challenger for this 2026 race of his, so he's going to have to spend all this money during the Republican election cycle because MAGA Republicans are unhappy with him. And of course, all Democrats are. And you just called him a national laughingstock, and that's exactly what he is. You know, it's embarrassing to identify as someone from South Carolina because first, that means Nancy Mason. Second, that means Lindsey Graham. We deserve better. You know, he's had these 22 years in the Senate deliver for South Carolinians. And if you look on any important ranking, whether it's, you know, maternal mortality or public education or infrastructure. South Carolina is failing, and he has failed us. And my pitch to people who normally vote for Republicans is let's just try something different for once. Give me six years. I promise every vote I will take will be in the best interest of South Carolina's children. And if you don't like what you see at the end of those six years, then just elect the next Republican who comes behind. Lindsey Graham. But we can all agree that we don't need another term from Lindsey Graham.
Andy Levy
Yeah, for sure. So, as a doctor, I'm guessing that watching RFK Jr. And his cronies destroy our national health system is one of the big issues for you, am I right?
Annie Andrews
Absolutely. I think that's really what was my tipping point. You know, when I lost in 2022, I didn't necessarily plan to run again. Certainly didn't anticipate I'd be running for a statewide office like Senate. But it was everything that happened since Trump got inaugurated. Most importantly to me, the health care provider, the appointment of RFK Jr to the late to lead the Department of Health and Human Services. You our launch video. There was a. A cartoon brain worm that winked at the audience, which was one of my favorite parts. But, yeah, this is a coordinated attack on our nation's healthcare system. Whether we're talking about these devastating guts to the Medicaid program, cuts to Medicare, slashing NIH funding, just the fact that we now have a conspiracy theorist and grifter leading this department is doing untold damage to our healthcare system, our public health infrastructure, and the public's trust in healthcare providers that is going to take us decades recover from. Even if RFK Jr retired today, it would take us decades to undo the damage he has already done. And he's only just getting started. So I see this as an incredibly urgent moment for healthcare providers like myself to get off the sidelines and run for office at every level. And we, we have to stop this madness now or, you know, who knows what could happen to healthcare in America.
Andy Levy
Yeah, it really does feel like almost like it's like an exponential issue. Like every week that RFK is in charge and Trump as president, we lose another couple of years of progress or it's going to take us a couple more years to get back just to where we were before they started this whole thing.
Annie Andrews
I totally agree. And a lot of people, I think, are hearing this idea of Medicaid cuts, not really even understanding what the Medicaid program does in this country. It is the literal backbone of children's healthcare. For sure, in the US and an incredibly important building block of our entire healthcare system. And when you take that much money out of any system, it's going to impact far more than the people it directly impacts. So as hospitals are looking at their bottom lines for hiring for the next year or two, they're making really tough decisions. You know, maybe a hospital was going to hire 10 new respiratory therapists, but now they're only going to be able to hire two because they're facing this huge Medicaid budget hole in coming years. And that means when you show up in the emergency department, even if you just fell and hurt your wrist, there's going to be fewer resources available to more patients who are sicker because they don't have access to primary care. So our emergency departments are going to be overrun. The wait times are going to be really expensive, and the hospitals have to pay for that care somehow. So if they have all these unfunded former Medicaid patients showing up to receive care, because you know what? People are still going to get sick and they're still going to get hurt. The hospitals have to pass that cost on to someone, and they're going to pass that cost off to private insurance companies, which means that those of us who have private insurance, our premiums are going to go up really fast and really high. And so this impacts everyone. You can't take this much money out of a system and expect the system to continue to function.
Andy Levy
I feel like you just explained that better and more quickly than pretty much every national Democrat in office has done over the past bunch of months, which is both a compliment to you and sort of a railing against them. Because the way you put it is perfect. And it should be so easy to explain this to people and how it's going to affect them. And I guess that's why we need more people like you.
Annie Andrews
That's why we need more. Thank you for that. And that's why we just need more people with lived experience in other professions. That's what the House is to be. That's what the Senate should be. Politicians shouldn't be a career choice. It should be something you do to serve your community, to solve problems, and then you go back to whatever your profession was. That's how I see it. You know, I didn't daydream of being a member of Congress. That is not my ultimate goal. My ultimate goal is to solve the problems that I saw every day as a pediatrician in the children's hospital. I see being a senator a path to solve those Problems. And that's why I'm doing this. Solve some problems and then go back to being a pediatrician. Because I promise you, I guarantee that's a better job than being a member.
Andy Levy
Of the US So we're not going to find anything from your nursery school teacher that says you wanted to be a senator your whole life?
Annie Andrews
Absolutely not. If you talk to any of my college roommates, my childhood friends, even my friends from 10 years ago, they'd say, Annie is doing what? Because this was never part of my plan. Yeah, he is what I saw every day in the hospital that like I said, gotta address these problems. And this is a way to do it.
Andy Levy
Yeah, for sure. South Carolina has, I think, some of the most restrictive reproductive rights laws in the country. I'm assuming and hoping that's a big issue for you.
Annie Andrews
Yes, absolutely. You know, I was on the ballot in 2022 when Roe fell and it became a central point of my campaign back then and it will continue to be. Yes, we have essentially a total abortion ban, no abortions after six weeks in South Carolina. There were headlines just a couple ago of a woman who suffered a miscarriage and was handcuffed and arrested. So it is the most, it was one of the most anti woman states that you can imagine. And I know as a doctor that abortion is just not a healthcare issue. It's also an economic equality issue. It's a human dignity issue. And when you rip away reproductive freedom from women in a state like South Carolina, not only is that morally bankrupt, but it also has, has incredible ripple effects on the economy. And we here, we have Lindsey Graham, who honestly, if I had a list of everyone in America whose opinion I want to hear about women's reproductive healthcare, Lindsey Graham would be very close to the bottom of that list. I don't know why he feels compelled to open his mouth and talk about this issue at all. But he's been done great damage to access to healthcare, to reproductive healthcare for women in South Carolina. And I plan to bring that up often on the campaign trail and hold him accountable for the damage that he has done.
Andy Levy
But isn't he then going to say that you are radical and crazy?
Annie Andrews
Of course. And that's why we tried to, to get ahead of him on that by talking about that in the launch video. Like, look, I know what they're going to say. They're going to tell you that I'm radical and that I'm crazy because that's what weak men do when they feel threatened by strong women and in my case, strong Women who have a background and expertise on these issues that they don't have. And, you know, I want people to understand that I am not some, you know, D.C. born and bred left wing Democrat. I'm literally a pediatrician and a mom, just is trying to solve some problems. And I am proud to run as a Democrat because I see democrats in Washington, D.C. fighting to protect Medicaid, fighting to pass a child tax credit to lift millions of American children out of poverty, fighting to pass common sense gun laws like background checks. I see Democrats fighting for South Carolina's kids and families. And that's why I'm proud to run as a Democrat. But by no means am I a career party person. I believe in term limits. I believe members of Congress shouldn't trade stocks. I'm not in this for myself. I'm in this for the people in South Carolina.
Andy Levy
Yeah, that's fantastic. So we talked about, which I guess are sort of the obvious things, our healthcare system, reproductive rights. What are the other big issues that you think are facing America right now?
Annie Andrews
It's really, I think about it, two additional issues. It's the chaos and corruption. You know, the more I dug deeper into, you know, why South Carolina's legislators weren't passing laws to benefit South Carolina's kids and families, I understood that the root of so much of this is corruption. Lindsey Graham doesn't actually care one way or the other about Medicaid. He just wants to cut the program from the budget so he can deliver tax cuts to his billionaire donors and the corporate PACs that fund his reelection campaign. So we've got to address these career politicians that honestly exist on both sides of the aisle who are not really in it for their constituents anymore. We've got to get the chaos and corruption out of our politics in Washington, D.C. and then the second thing is that thing I talk to families about every day I'm working in the children's hospital is affordability. You know, families whose wages have not kept up with the cost of living, who can't afford to live in the towns where they work, they don't know if they can put food on the table for their growing family. And prescription drug prices are out of control, childcare costs are out of control. So as a party, we have to get back to letting voters know that we understand their problems, that we're there to listen and then to work with them to identify solutions. And any Democrat who's running for office now who's not talking every day about affordability is not on a winning path.
Andy Levy
Yeah, it's such a good point. You know you mentioned the corporate PAC money fueling Lindsey Graham. How much of that corporate PAC money will be fueling your campaign?
Annie Andrews
Exactly $0. I will not take any corporate PAC money.
Andy Levy
That's fantastic. Are you worried though? Because Jaime Harrison Reese, I think it was like a record record for a senatorial campaign. And as we discussed earlier, he lost by 10 points. Are you worried about the funding? Are you worried about the fact that Graham has all these his rich cronies that can basically fund attack ad after a tack ad on you?
Annie Andrews
So I know that to be true. I know that tons of dark money will flow into this election once they start to see how much money that I'm raising. My campaign is powered by grassroots roots. In this first month of fundraising, in this, the end of this quarter, we had over 38,000 individual donors. Our average donation was $31. We're really breaking fundraising records for a challenging Democrat in the south right now. And so I feel confident that I can raise the resources necessary to run the kind of campaign we need to run against Lindsey Graham to send him home. I do understand that money in politics has got to go, but we can't change the rules until we start winning elections. So right now we have to play by their rules. Which means I've learned how to be an effective fundraiser. And the difference between 2026 and 2020 when Jamie ran was is two things. It's midterm versus presidential year. Democrats have a much easier time in South Carolina every time it's a midterm. Trump is not on the ballot to bail Lindsey out this time. And then we're not dealing with the COVID 19 pandemic in the way that Harrison campaign was. I got in this race 18 months before election because I know it's going to take that amount of time to raise the resources and to build the ground game necessary to get out the vote in South Carolina. But there are enough voters out there. South Carolina is not a red state. It's a non voting state. We have to give voters something to believe in. We have to talk about what we will do for them, not just what we are against. And that's what I plan to do in every corner of the state of South Carolina over the next 17 months.
Andy Levy
How can people get involved in your campaign?
Annie Andrews
Yeah, so they can go to Dr. Anndrews.com to learn a little bit more about me. You can sign up there there to volunteer. And you don't have to be a South Carolinian to volunteer. You can text bank and phone bank from anywhere you can donate on the website. And as I said this is a grassroots powered campaign. We do have donations from all 50 states and I'm proud of that fact because everyone is tired of career corrupt politicians like Lindsey Graham. So even if you can only give $5, you can do that on the website. Dr. Annieandrews.com and then please follow me on social media. I have a lot of fun there because because I will not let them steal our Joy. I'm Annie AndrewsMD on Instagram and formerly Twitter and I'm easy to find everywhere. But please follow along and let's give people something to feel hopeful about in 2026.
Andy Levy
Excellent Annie, thank you so much for being here and obviously we'll be keeping an eye on this race and we very very much would like you to send Lindsey Graham not home as you said, but just pack hacking somewhere somewhere else. Thanks Andy.
Annie Andrews
Thank you for.
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I'm just helping this catch people's attention.
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Danielle
Folks. I am so happy to welcome back to as the World churns. My friend Dr. Jonathan Metzl. You know him as the author of the New York Times bestseller Dying of Whiteness as well as his other New York Times bestseller, what We've Become, as well as all of the talks, interviews that he does with so many people, including myself on a regular basis. Jonathan, we are six months in to the Trump regime. Six months in. And I want to get your thoughts on how you've been feeling, experiencing this moment, talking about this moment to your students at Vanderbilt and on your travels. Six months.
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Months.
Jonathan Metzl
How you feeling is that is six months. Is that right?
Danielle
Yeah.
Jonathan Metzl
It's funny because like I was thinking back to like, I was just trying to imagine, like, I teach this class. Covid in Society is one of the classes I teach at Vanderbilt. We do this assignment where we tell the students to go back to their pre pandemic self, like, find some excerpt of themselves from before the pandemic. Listen to your voice like it sounded before the pandemic. Watch a video or clip or Instagram TikTok something of that, and then write one page, talking to yourself back then, telling yourself then what you know now. And it's an intense exercise, right? But it's kind of like, you know, we made that joke on this when I talked to you the last time. But like, think about, like, the guy who lived through the three years of what became the Hundred Years War, and he's like, I can't believe I lived through three years of this shit already, not knowing that there's 97 more years to come. And so I do think there's an increasing acceptance that we're in this. This is kind of our reality now. But it's just funny to think about. Even before the election, I was looking back on some interviews I did before the election. And so part of what you learn in that experience is that things are unexpected, things are. Are on different kinds of trajectories. We narrate our lives often based on what's happened before, but often what's coming is more intense. But also that things that seem just freaking bonkers, if I can say, freaking become your normal reality. Right? And so even from. Honestly, for me, the Trump stuff is not super surprising. He told everybody, this is what you're.
Danielle
Going to do, and this is what.
Jonathan Metzl
Last time, and this is what is. But for me, if I had to think, like, what is the. What is the reality that I could not have possibly imagined, I have to say, it's the division on our side. I mean, it's actually the fact that we're so fractured. Like, I just can't imagine, like, before it was like, oh, Trump's gonna win, and then we're gonna do the march and then we're gonna do the thing, whatever. But whoever's, like, pulling the chains here is really good at fracturing us. And now you see it happening on the other side. Like, somebody's turning running half of MAGA against the other half of maga. And so I feel like we're caught up. I mean, the issues obviously are real, but I just feel like it's the division on our side that is leading to, like, isolation, mistrust. Like, we're kind of cannibalizing. And to me, that is by far the biggest. The biggest risk is how can we. How can we think about our alliances in a way that is. Are, you know, going to resist what's happening now? Do you have that feeling also?
Danielle
I'm gonna. So I'm gonna say. So two things. One, I want to come back to your pre Covid exercise, because I think that. That even as you were saying it, I was like, shit, that's really wild. And I should do that. Like. And look, I mean, I've done so many recordings. You and I have done so many recordings, I wonder what it would be like to listen to 2019, Danielle, 2019, Jonathan, and then fast forward to 2025, and like you said, listen to the changes, your voice, conversation, like, all of these things. I think that that would be a wild thing to do. So that's one. I want to come back to that. And, like, what has come up for your students? But I think about the fracturing a lot. And today I just did Democracy Ish with Waj, and that's what we were talking about was the fracturing that's happening with MAGA with regard to trust and the Epstein files. And like, all of these things, these fissures that they planted, they. They created, right? They created this conspiracy theory, and then now they are being eaten by their own creation. With regard to Democrats, however, you and I are going to have a differing opinion. And my feeling is that I absolutely do not trust Democrats. I absolutely do not trust the establishment. I actually do not want there to be a coming together. I do want there to be a breaking apart. And the reason I say that, and I've said it on this show and so many others, is because I have worked as a Democratic strategist. I've worked on Capitol Hill. I have worked for progressive think tanks. I have, like, been inside of, you know, the Beltway and this work for nearly 20 years. And we. What has come to pass for me over the last 10 is that Democrats are a large reason as to why we're here. And their inability to let go of their billionaire benefactors, their inability to decide to actually listen to the people instead of trying control the people, and they are revealing themselves, particularly right now in New York City, as Cuomo just announced. Guess what? He's still running, even though New York City said, guess what? We don't fucking want you. We don't care about your legacy name. We don't care about, you know, what you've done and how you're trying to Find your way back into the grips of power. And yet all the establishment who kicked him out year several years ago because of his grifting, because of his dealings with women, all lined up behind him. Why? Cuz they don't want to back the progressive. Why? Because it threatens their own power. And so for me, when I think about the breaking apart of the Democratic Party, I'm saying, good, you could see me chomping.
Jonathan Metzl
I was literally chomping at the bit. But I'm not going to turn the tables and interview you even that's what I wanted it, I wanted to do it. No, because I want to know, and let me just say first in his defense, like, Cuomo was a changed man after the Ayahuasca ceremony and is that right? But I will say that what does that breaking apart mean? What does it mean? What does it mean? Because you can say there are two parts that I think complicate that. Number one is, does that mean we fracture and tribalize more? Does that mean other people get power and then they're trying to control other people? Because beyond just their question of power, like if we break apart, somebody's going to emerge as being in control and then their job is going to be, be to dictate things for other people. And so it's not like we're going to break apart in the name of a more egalitarian society. So that's question A, you can answer, or question B, you can answer. Is isn't that breaking apart also being manipulated? Like, it is true that maybe the chickens have come home to roost because of this Epstein thing, but it's also probably true that some bots and some Russians and some other people are manipulating the algorithms to turn MAGA against each other, which hasn't happened before. So there also is an externality of kind of this kind of division showing up in ways that are incredibly more than happenstance. I'll say in a way, you know, it serves somebody else's interests. And so it's not like it's just, I'm not denying what you're saying, but it's not like it's just happening organically. It's also that there are bigger forces at play of this kind of breaking apart into a million pieces. We saw thought before the election with Kamala Harris. We've seen it a bunch of other times. And so you could pick whichever one of those who you want to answer.
Danielle
But, but here's what I'll say. I'll, I'll, I'll take the manipulation piece. We've been manipulated, right? Like America is the master manipulator of the larger global society and has been right since the. Since its inception, right? We've all been indoctrinated into a certain degree to understand these characteristics that we thought were foundational to the morals and the values of this country that are not actually true, that were just based on a series of lies that we were told was the American story. And we understand that it's not. I do believe that there is a. There is a. There is a manipulation that has been happening around Maga for the last 10 years, both external and internal, both organic and inorganic. The fact is, though, is that when you tell people not to trust their own eyes and not to trust what it is that they hear and they see is that, guess what? Eventually they start not to trust you either. The person that told them that, like everything was a lie. And so where we are is, I think that we are in the midst of the great crumbling of the American empire. I think that a lot of things are being revealed. I think that a lot of truths are being relieved of revealed. I think that there has been tons of manipulation by both the Republican Party and the Democratic Party on behalf of a billionaire class that was manipulating them to their own needs, right? And now we all see that, well, wait a minute, you've been taking money from all the same people, but telling us like two different stories. Democrats telling us to be grateful for the crumbs that we get and putting on. On a cosplay show of resistance. And then Republicans bearing their true selves, right? Like taking off their hoods and showing the world who they are. So, yes, everyone is being manipulated, right? I go back to my favorite scene from the Devil Wears Prada where she's talking about the color cerulean and she's saying, like, you don't even know what you like. What you like has been chosen for you by a group of people in this room. Room. Like that is the truth of the world. And I think that more people are recognizing that than have ever recognized that before. There is a collective awakening that's happening. So for me, what is the great fraction? I don't care. I just care that it's happening. Because I know now that the people that I had actually put my faith and trust in over the last two decades of my political career, I do not trust trust, and I realize do not have my best desires and needs at heart. That they have consistently shown me over and over again what they're really about. And it's not the people.
Jonathan Metzl
Well, the question then is, like, really, where does that leave us, by the way? We're going to run out of time before I talk about my trip to Europe, stuff like that. But, I mean, isn't there a point where you. You're gonna have to. We are gonna have to negotiate with people in many different tribes, some of whom we agree with, some of whom we don't. The fantasy of burning it all down. We're great at the burning, but then the. What comes next? I mean, I just. I'm just thinking so much about the. My book about guns, where we were so great at developing all these policies that would have. We never admitted it, taken guns away from certain people who really care about their guns. My book, which I'm now going back to calling How We Lost, which really.
Andy Levy
Was the original title.
Danielle
You changed the title?
Jonathan Metzl
I mean, they wouldn't let me call it.
Annie Andrews
I know.
Danielle
They wouldn't let you do it.
Jonathan Metzl
Yeah, come by Avill. But now I'm going back to the original title because the whole idea was liberals had an idea of what gun owners should do, which is believe in public health. Public gun owners saw public health as incredibly intrusive and controlling for a government they didn't believe. And so then liberals, when gun owners didn't play along, they said, there must be something wrong with you. You don't have common sense. Because we are the arbiters of common sense. And so part of the story is, it's no wonder, for me, gun control failed because public health is a value that you believe in government, you believe in cooperation, you believe in a higher power, whatever the hell, but we never. That wasn't their viewpoint. Right? That wasn't their world. And so to really get gun safety, what I argue in the book, as you know, is we really have to take seriously the concerns of many conservative gun owners and then work with them for their version of safety, which might be a totally different paradigm than ours. But there was a day after, for me, which is, we have to understand that there are other paradigms other than public health that function for a lot of the country, because public health implies governments and they mistrust the government. Now, that seemed crazy. Crazy three years ago when I wrote it. But now many people on our side mistrust the government, and it doesn't seem that crazy because the tables are turned. And so isn't there a day after where you have to, like, is the idea of the crumbling or burning it down or whatever, that it all falls apart and then we all have our little fortified neighborhoods? Or is it that. That ultimately we figure out new ways of engaging with each other? Is it that we want to. I mean, how does this not end up in a power vacuum just given how things are? It's kind of.
Danielle
I mean, we're already in a power vacuum. Like, I think that that's the thing. It's like, how do you expect to come together when people are just finally starting to realize that they've been bamboozled, right? Like you. There can be no great coming together when what is being revealed to us, us most deeply, using New York City as, as, as an example of what is happening between Mamdani and the Democratic establishment is that when you are seeing things through a lens that is not rose colored anymore, you have to reckon with what you've been taught. You have to reckon with what has happened and unpack that before you can even begin. It's like going to therapy. I go to therapy for one reason, right? Like, I want to understand myself better. I want to understand my patterns so that when they show themselves, I can disrupt those patterns. But first I have to actually examine what those patterns are and how they were showing up in the first place. So to me, to jump to the place of reconciliation and how we speak to each other, we don't really even know what language we're all speaking right now because we've become so fractured both by outside manipulation, but also by things that we haven't wanted to reconcile with as a country, right? Which is our attachment and our need for racism, which is our attachment and our need for misogyny, which is our attachment and our need to always have an oppressed other in order to keep certain power structures, like, intact. And so I think that you have to understand that truth before you can even begin to think to yourself, like, what does it mean to move forward? Like, there has to be a breaking apart first.
Jonathan Metzl
Well, what about loving, to use the New York example? Like, I mean, obviously Mamdani's gonna win.
Danielle
And so, but see, you say obviously, okay, fine, we have. Billions of dollars are gonna be poured. Millions of dollars are being poured into this. So we don't really know.
Jonathan Metzl
But I'm saying, let's say Mamdani wins. What about people who disagree because they're uncomfortable with socialism or with his stance on the Defada or because of the taxation? I mean, aren't there going to be people who just totally disagree with what he's doing? Right? And so the question is, like, is the role then to bridge those divides? Is it like we're in power now. I mean, I guess it's my concern. I don't mean this probably isn't even a question. My concern is the tables just flip and then we just are seesawing back and forth of like zero sum who has the power and stuff like that, if that makes sense.
Danielle
But that's. We've been. See, here's my thing. We haven't actually been seesawing back and forth between two distinctly different factions. We've been see, sawing back and forth between the same power manipulated structure that is owned by the same group of like 10 billionaires. So if Mandani wins, that is actually a extraordinary shift and breaking of a seesaw that has been balancing back between two parties. One that is. Has become overtly racist and the other one that's just racist when it. When they need to be. Hence Gillibrand's anti Islamic screed that she went on, but somehow she still owes a fucking job. Job. But she's a Democrat, right? Like, oh, it's, you know, it's not so bad. But when Nancy Pelosi throws a bunch of women of color under the bus, it's just like, oh, she's a strategist. And this is really about the whole party, is it? Or is it racism? So, like, if Mandani wins, that is the severing of a seesaw that's been balancing itself between two parties that have been in it for themselves for different reasons. And then we can have a conversation. If in fact he's able to create a government, and I'm not saying that he's going to be able to, but he's. If he's able to get people who have been disaffected by city government to actually join city government, right? To actually break apart these structures that were put in place. The pay to play with the hotel industry and the taxis and the Ubers and the this, that and the other thing and restructure in a way that, that is people centered, then that is going to be an incredible reckoning and like a case study to follow for years to come. But there's a lot of ifs that are there. But I think that the possibility of him going from zero recognition to now being stopped every two steps that he takes on the street is an exemplifier of this awakening that is happening where people are like, like they both lie. And you can't tell me that this guy is an anti Semitic and tell me this and use all the same tropes and that you've been doing because now I'm hip to the patterns that you all rock with, and I don't want to be a part of them anymore. So it's like, for me, that's the people saying, okay, so they both suck. So we're going to try something radically different. And that's always what ends up happening when you get to a place of people being fed up enough.
Jonathan Metzl
I mean, something big is happening because it's happening in Tennessee also. It's not just here. It's happening in a lot of different places. And. And so it'll be interesting. I mean, I'll be going back to Tennessee in a couple of weeks. I know we're just probably out of time here, but. But I would love to keep fall. Just keep tracking this, you know, because there are so many. I mean, it's funny because, like, even on woke AF for years, you and I would talk about what does it mean to burn it all down. And I guess I still am an institutionalist in a certain kind of way in that I'm just worried about anarchy, for example. And so I guess the question is just kind of, what does that mean for institutions? What does that mean for building? What does it mean for collaboration? And I've actually seen so many of these issues play out on the right as I've been studying the right for 20 years. So it's interesting to see this conversation happen now, predictably, I think, in certain ways on the left.
Danielle
Well, let me ask you this one last question, though, because I want to go back to the exercise that you had your students do. What comes up for them, right? When they are looking at these two different versions of themselves and the two different versions of society that has been created in their. In their. In the time that they're coming into understanding themselves and the country and all of these things. Because you teach undergrad, right? Like, so they're young. What comes up for them?
Jonathan Metzl
It's. It's always a version of I can't believe how naive I was. And, and that's good or bad, right? That's. That's good because maybe the world's more complicated than they realize. But it's also bad because maybe that means the world is becoming less safe or more violent or something like that. But it, it's always a version of, like, I was so naive back then, you know, I didn't even before I could even conceptualize that there was going to be a pandemic or going to be a. Whatever is coming next, you know? And so, so it's it's some, it's some version of. It's some version of that which maybe happens anytime you do an, do a, an exercise like that. Maybe that's just the automatic outcome, but it is a kind of version of I was, I was so naive and the world was easier than I. It was easier for me then, or something like that.
Danielle
Well, we will leave it there today, my friend, but we'll continue this conversation because it is an incredibly important to be having right now. Thank you, Dr. Jonathan Metzl, for making the time for as the World Churns Anytime.
Jonathan Metzl
And I had a great time in Europe, so I'm happy to talk about that also.
Andy Levy
Great.
Jonathan Metzl
Keep talking.
Danielle
So, Andy, as we kick off yet another week in this godforsaken wasteland that is Trump's America, who is your. Fuck that guy.
Andy Levy
I said something nice about the New York Times earlier. So now I have to trash the Washington Post because we can't be completely nice to legacy media, Danielle. As you know, it's in our non existent contract. So the Washington Post has a new opinion editor. His name is Adam o', Neill, and he introduced himself to the staff on Monday with a memo. And I'm going to read part of that memo. He writes, advocating for free markets and personal liberties will be critical as we rebuild trust with more Americans. And he says, this is not a partisan project and we will welcome robust debate within those twin pillars. And then he says it's also important that we communicate with optimism about this country in particular and the future in general. So this guy is saying that the Washington Post opinion section will be full of optimism about America and about the future as Donald Trump kidnaps people off the streets and sends them wherever he feels like it on a given day, where the Supreme Court itself seems to be trampling on the Constitution. The list is endless. We've discussed it all on this show. And this guy wants an editorial page that communicates with optimism about America and advocates for free markets at a time when billionaires are getting richer and richer and richer and more powerful and the rest of us are very much not. There's a meme or a joke that we always see. This is the future liberals want. This is the future Bezos wants. This is the opinion page Jeff Bezos wants. He wants an opinion page that advocates for free markets. That is he. No taxes for him.
Danielle
Correct.
Andy Levy
He wants an opinion page that communicates with optimism about this country while Donald Trump is president. Because he does nothing but kiss Donald Trump's ass so he can continue to pay no taxes. And accrue power while the 99.99% of Americans look around like, what the fuck is going on? So this is gross. This is disgusting. This is the trashing of a newspaper that gave us Watergate reporting with Deep Throat. I'm fairly certain. I know that wasn't on the editorial page. I'm fairly certain, though, there was nothing optimistic about this country in reporting out Watergate, in reporting out a crooked president and ultimately leading to a president resigning. But Jeff Bezos seems to want to go. Bezos seems to want to go the other way now. Now. And you have to wonder, like, if Watergate, if Bezos had owned the Washington Post in 1972, 73, 74, would we have had Watergate reported? Because I'm not sure we would have because it would have made the sitting president very unhappy. And Jeff Bezos doesn't want to do that. So for all those reasons, my fuck, that guy is, I guess, Adam o'. Neill. But sort of, as we were talking earlier, where ultimately it goes to the top, I guess it's ultimately Jeff Bezos.
Danielle
Here's the thing. I think that this is wonderful advertising for independent media because you absolutely know that these corporate billionaire owned outlets do not give a fuck about you. So if you want to know the truth about what is going on, aside from the fact that the Washington Post has put basically everything behind a paywall, you can just count them out. For any type of. Of in depth coverage of the world that's going on, just open up your window and stick your head out to get the fucking news because they ain't gonna provide it for you. Fuck those guys.
Andy Levy
Yeah. All right, Danielle, close us out. Close out this first of the week segment. Who's your fuck that guy.
Danielle
So here's my thing. I gotta stay on the Epstein for a moment. I really do. Because. Because when you take all these things into consideration about again, how wealthy, powerful white men are treated with kid gloves, how their wrongdoings are covered up, all to protect power and people's proximity to that power. There is no better example right now than the Epstein cover up, right? Like there is absolutely nothing better for a group of people, these MAGA folks, Cash Patel, Dan Bongino, Pam Bondi and other folks that got to their current positions by talking about the deep state. We're going to undo the deep state. And it turns around, guess who's in charge of the deep state now? You fucking die. Me, right? So what has Cash Patel's FBI done now other than tell us that there's nothing to see here, folks, as it pertains to the Epstein files and Donald Trump and releasing them. Well, now the FBI has dropped their investigation into Prince Andrew. And Jeffrey Epstein couldn't have come at a better time for Prince Andrew. I mean, we know that his mother, his, the late queen, spent her last years trying to do everything in her power to make sure that, you know, the world hated Meghan Markle so much that they did not realize that her son was a fucking sex trafficking pedophile. And so here we are where Kash Patel, now in charge of the Deep State, has decided, oh, there's nothing to see here. As it pertains to Prince Andrew, Drew and Jeffrey Epstein, which we all know is a fucking lie. Which is more red meat for now. Donald Trump's aggrieved and rabid base, who is coming for all of them? One can only hope that they catch them. But who is my. Fuck that guy, you know, Cash Patel, Dan Bongino and all the magas that made their careers off of saying what truth they were going to get to. Just to turn around and be like, nope, sorry, don't have anything. And, oh, what did Cash Patel say the other day? It's above my pay grade, sir, you're the director of the FBI. Actually, nothing is above your pay grade. That's the job. Fuck that guy.
Andy Levy
There's a great quote, I guess, in the sun, the British rag about Prince Andrew, and it says, hopefully with this out of the way, he can at least leave the country. What's he supposed to do with the rest of his life? Am I supposed to feel bad for Prince Andrew? Like, even if he weren't involved in the Epstein scandal, the thought that I would for a half second feel bad for Prince Andrew. What's he supposed to do with the.
Danielle
Rest of the life?
Andy Levy
I don't know. Get a job. Just a thought.
Danielle
Just a thought. You could work for a living. Yeah, some of us do it.
Andy Levy
Yeah. Yeah, fuck all those guys.
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Andy Levy
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Podcast Summary: "This Is What They Voted For"
As The World Churns
Release Date: July 15, 2025
Introduction In the episode titled "This Is What They Voted For," hosts Andy Levy and Danielle Moodie delve into the unraveling dynamics within the MAGA movement and the broader political landscape under the Trump administration. Joined by two insightful guests—Dr. Annie Andrews, a Democratic pediatrician running for the U.S. Senate, and Dr. Jonathan Metzl, a renowned sociologist—the conversation navigates through political fractures, institutional challenges, and societal divisions shaping the United States.
1. Fracturing Within the MAGA Movement
Danielle Moodie initiates the discussion by highlighting the emerging fissures within the MAGA base, attributing the split to Donald Trump's relentless promotion of conspiracy theories. She remarks:
"Donald Trump is melting down because his own base now has Alex Jones crying in his car. Elon Musk feeling like he was made a fool of..."
— Danielle [02:30]
Andy Levy expands on this by explaining how Trump's shifting narratives have alienated his staunchest supporters:
"When Trump voters say, 'This is not what I voted for,' that I believe them. The guy ran on releasing the Epstein files, saying it was the Democrats suppressing them... But conspiracy theorists aren't like that. They believe with every fiber of their being."
— Andy Levy [03:57]
The hosts discuss how Trump's inability to sustain his fabricated narratives is causing disillusionment among his followers, leading to a loss of trust and cohesion within the movement.
2. Institutional Challenges: State Department and FEMA
Andy Levy shifts focus to the Trump administration's reshaping of federal institutions. He references a recent decision by the State Department to terminate over 1,300 U.S.-based employees in an attempt to align the department with Trump's vision:
"The State Department announced that they were beginning the process of firing over 1,300 US-based employees... We're firing 1350 people from the State Department amidst multiple global crises."
— Andy Levy [11:10]
Danielle Moodie criticizes this move as detrimental to national security and international relations:
"Losing all of this intel, the literal intelligence of decades of work... It's generational damage to this country that we're never going to see fixed in our lifetimes."
— Danielle [12:05]
The conversation then transitions to FEMA's inadequate response to emergencies due to Kristi Noem's policies, exacerbating national disasters:
"FEMA received 2,363 calls and answered 846—roughly 35%. On July 7th, they received over 16,000 calls and answered 2,000, that's 15%."
— Andy Levy [14:55]
Danielle underscores the human cost of these administrative decisions, emphasizing the urgent need for accountability:
"Kristi Noem... is incompetent. People are dying because of their stupidity. She cannot be allowed to get away with this."
— Danielle [16:00]
3. Spotlight on Dr. Annie Andrews: Running Against Lindsey Graham
The episode features Dr. Annie Andrews, a pediatrician from South Carolina, who shares her journey from healthcare to politics. As a Democratic candidate challenging Senator Lindsey Graham, Dr. Andrews outlines her motivations and platform.
Background and Motivation: Dr. Andrews recounts her 15-year career in a children's hospital, witnessing systemic barriers that hinder children's growth:
"I never thought I'd see so many children with bullet holes in them... I started to look for problem solvers in my state capitol... realized I was more than qualified to run for office."
— Dr. Annie Andrews [22:45]
Campaign Launch and Strategy: Discussing her viral campaign launch video, Dr. Andrews emphasizes authenticity and a break from traditional political rhetoric:
"I am a very real person who talks like a real person to regular people. I'm not going to do this just to sound like every other Democratic politician."
— Dr. Annie Andrews [25:07]
Key Issues:
Healthcare and Medicaid: Dr. Andrews criticizes Lindsey Graham's efforts to cut Medicaid, highlighting its essential role in funding children's healthcare:
"Medicaid is the literal backbone of children's healthcare. Cutting it will have ripple effects on the entire healthcare system."
— Dr. Annie Andrews [30:14]
Reproductive Rights: Addressing South Carolina's restrictive abortion laws, she advocates for women's reproductive freedom:
"Ripping away reproductive freedom from women has incredible ripple effects on the economy... Lindsey Graham has done great damage to access to healthcare for women."
— Dr. Annie Andrews [36:00]
Affordability and Corruption: She highlights the struggles families face with rising costs and the pervasive corruption in politics:
"Affordability is crucial. Families can't afford to live, put food on the table, or pay for childcare. Corruption has led to chaos that affects everyday lives."
— Dr. Annie Andrews [37:19]
Campaign Strategies: Dr. Andrews emphasizes a grassroots-funded campaign, rejecting corporate PAC money to maintain integrity:
"My campaign is powered by grassroots roots. In this first month, we had over 38,000 individual donors with an average donation of $31."
— Dr. Annie Andrews [38:49]
She invites listeners to support her campaign through volunteering and donations, stressing the importance of community involvement.
4. Media Critique: Washington Post's New Direction
Andy Levy criticizes the Washington Post's new opinion editor, Adam O'Neill, for promoting optimism and free-market advocacy amid national turmoil:
"Adam O'Neill wants an editorial page that communicates optimism about America while Donald Trump is president... It's disgusting and a trashing of a newspaper that gave us Watergate reporting."
— Andy Levy [65:46]
He contrasts this with the Washington Post's historical role in investigative journalism, questioning whether corporate ownership under Jeff Bezos will stifle critical reporting.
Danielle Moodie echoes this sentiment, advocating for independent media as a counter to corporate-controlled outlets:
"Independent media is crucial because corporate billionaire-owned outlets do not prioritize the public's truth."
— Danielle [67:46]
5. Interview with Dr. Jonathan Metzl: Societal Division and Institutional Trust
The episode features Dr. Jonathan Metzl, a sociologist and author, who discusses the deepening societal divisions and the erosion of institutional trust under the Trump administration.
Societal Fractures: Dr. Metzl reflects on exercises he uses in his classes to help students understand personal and societal changes:
"We made a joke about imagining someone who can't believe they've lived through three years of turmoil, not knowing that more are to come."
— Dr. Jonathan Metzl [43:57]
Manipulation and Division: He explores how both internal and external forces are exacerbating divisions, leading to mistrust and isolation:
"There's a manipulation that's been happening around MAGA for the last 10 years, both external and internal... People are starting to realize they've been manipulated."
— Danielle [58:29]
Power Dynamics and Future Outlook: Dr. Metzl contemplates the future implications of breaking societal structures and the potential for power vacuums:
"How do we negotiate with people in different tribes... The biggest risk is how we think about our alliances."
— Dr. Jonathan Metzl [54:57]
Call for Institutional Reform: Both hosts agree on the necessity of rebuilding institutional trust and fostering collaboration to navigate the current chaos.
6. Concluding Remarks
In their closing segments, Andy Levy and Danielle Moodie reinforce the episode's themes of political fragmentation, institutional decay, and the urgent need for authentic leadership. They emphasize the importance of accountability, grassroots movements, and independent media in countering the prevailing chaos.
Andy urges listeners to support candidates like Dr. Annie Andrews who prioritize community over corporate interests, while Danielle underscores the broader societal awakening and the critical examination of long-held beliefs and institutional narratives.
Notable Quotes with Timestamps:
Danielle Moodie:
"Donald Trump is melting down because his own base now has Alex Jones crying in his car."
— [02:30]
Andy Levy:
"When Trump voters say, 'This is not what I voted for,' that I believe them."
— [03:57]
Dr. Annie Andrews:
"Medicaid is the literal backbone of children's healthcare."
— [30:14]
Andy Levy:
"Adam O'Neill wants an editorial page that communicates optimism about America while Donald Trump is president."
— [65:46]
Dr. Jonathan Metzl:
"We have to negotiate with people in different tribes... The biggest risk is how we think about our alliances."
— [54:57]
Conclusion "This Is What They Voted For" offers a comprehensive examination of the current political and societal upheavals in the United States. Through incisive discussions and expert insights, Andy Levy and Danielle Moodie shed light on the underlying fractures within political movements, the detrimental impact of administrative decisions on institutional integrity, and the pressing need for authentic, community-driven leadership in navigating the nation's tumultuous landscape.