Normally Podcast:"Accountability, Agenda, and the War on Truth: From FDA Firings to Gaza Coverage

Summary

Podcast Summary: Normally Podcast – "Accountability, Agenda, and the War on Truth: From FDA Firings to Gaza Coverage"

Release Date: August 5, 2025
Hosts: Mary Kathryn Yam and Carol Markowitz
Provider: iHeartPodcasts

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1. Welcome and Personal Updates (00:00 – 02:12)

The episode begins with hosts Mary Kathryn Yam and Carol Markowitz rejoining the show after a brief hiatus. Mary Kathryn shares her experience traveling to Paris, highlighting the unexpectedly cold weather and the memorable visit to Normandy. Carol expresses her admiration for Normandy's beauty and the profound impact of visiting the American cemetery at Omaha Beach. Both hosts emphasize the importance of honoring fallen soldiers and encourage listeners to visit American cemeteries abroad to pay their respects.

Notable Quote:
Carol Markowitz (01:52): “Normandy was unbelievable... a really moving feeling that you get there.”

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2. Vinay Prasad’s Dismissal from the FDA (02:39 – 10:26)

The discussion shifts to the controversial firing of Vinay Prasad, a respected FDA official known for his evidence-based approach during the COVID-19 pandemic. Initially celebrated by the hosts for his integrity, Prasad was dismissed after raising concerns about the approval of a questionable gene therapy by Serapita Therapeutics.

Carol highlights the involvement of Laura Loomer, a contentious figure with ties to the Trump administration, in orchestrating Prasad’s removal by accusing him of disloyalty to Trump. Mary Kathryn expresses frustration over the implications of Prasad's dismissal, emphasizing the loss of a trustworthy figure in a critical regulatory position.

Notable Quotes:
Carol Markowitz (04:43): “It is a really gross thing that happened here.”
Mary Kathryn Yam (06:31): “This is exactly the kind of person you would want evaluating such things.”

Mary Kathryn further critiques media backlash, noting publications like the Wall Street Journal and connections to figures like Rick Santorum and lobbying firms that may have influenced the decision. The hosts lament the diminished public trust in institutions resulting from such actions.

Marty Macary's Statement:
Carol discusses FDA Commissioner Marty Macary’s assertion that Prasad chose to leave voluntarily to avoid being a distraction, questioning the validity of this explanation.

Notable Quote:
Mary Kathryn Yam (10:24): “It’s just dumb to lose good people over stuff like this.”

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3. Misrepresentation in Gaza Coverage (14:45 – 24:18)

Carol addresses the New York Times' controversial cover featuring a child purportedly starving in Gaza, which was later revealed to depict a child with cerebral palsy. The hosts express outrage over the misrepresentation, emphasizing the manipulation of images to fit a predetermined narrative. They criticize conservatives for initially believing the hoax and the media's role in perpetuating false narratives.

Notable Quote:
Carol Markowitz (16:48): “It was obvious to me that it was going to end up being a hoax.”

Mary Kathryn underscores the broader issue of suffering in Gaza, questioning the selective portrayal of victims to serve political agendas. The hosts highlight the stark contrast between fabricated stories and genuine reports of starving hostages, such as Avatar David and Ron Brzlawsky, whose dire conditions received minimal coverage.

Notable Quote:
Mary Kathryn Yam (19:05): “Why can't you find the actual picture when you're all there looking for that.”

Carol praises the New York Post for its accurate reporting and contrasts it with the left-leaning media's silence on genuine humanitarian crises.

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4. Democratic Party’s Struggles and Redistricting Tactics (25:51 – 30:53)

Mary Kathryn and Carol critique the Democratic Party’s declining public favor, citing low approval ratings from sources like the Wall Street Journal, CNN, and Gallup. They attribute this decline to internal discontent and strategic failures, particularly in handling redistricting battles.

The hosts discuss Democrats' controversial tactic of fleeing states like Texas to avoid unfavorable redistricting outcomes, likening it to past instances in Wisconsin and Indiana. Mary Kathryn expresses frustration with leaders like Governor JB Pritzker for prioritizing partisan battles over governance.

Notable Quote:
Mary Kathryn Yam (28:36): “Do Texas Democrats just keep doing this? Why do they think this is going to work?”

Carol echoes the sentiment, criticizing the Democrats for their repetitive and ineffective strategies, which undermine democratic principles and public trust.

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5. Reinstatement of the Presidential Fitness Test (30:53 – 35:55)

The hosts shift focus to President Trump’s announcement to reinstate the Presidential Fitness Test, a program formerly replaced by Obama with the Fitness Gram. They critique the New York Times’ negative portrayal of this move, arguing that the media biases its coverage to label traditionally non-controversial actions as regressive.

Mary Kathryn highlights an article that frames the fitness test revival as a step back, despite its potential benefits in promoting physical health among children. She contrasts this with the original implementation under Obama, which aimed to emphasize personal health goals over competitive performance.

Notable Quote:
Carol Markowitz (35:32): “I want my kids to do it. I think it's a good thing to be physically fit.”

Mary Kathryn challenges the narrative by advocating for the test’s ability to instill valuable fitness habits, criticizing the media for lacking trauma-informed perspectives.

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6. Closing Remarks and Final Thoughts (35:55 – 36:14)

In their concluding segment, Mary Kathryn and Carol encourage listeners to engage with the podcast and reiterate the show's mission to address unusual and complex news topics with clarity and honesty.

Notable Quote:
Mary Kathryn Yam (36:14): “This is an I heart podcast.”

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Key Takeaways:

• Accountability in Government: The firing of Vinay Prasad highlights the detrimental effects of political interference in regulatory agencies, undermining public trust and evidence-based decision-making.

• Media Responsibility: Misrepresentation in media, especially concerning humanitarian crises, perpetuates misinformation and shapes public perception based on fabricated narratives.

• Political Strategy and Public Trust: The Democratic Party’s tactics in redistricting and declining public approval reflect broader issues of strategic missteps and failure to connect with their base.

• Public Health Initiatives: The debate over reinstating the Presidential Fitness Test underscores the clash between media narratives and the potential benefits of promoting physical health in education systems.

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This summary captures the essence of the episode, providing an overview of the main discussions and insights shared by Mary Kathryn Yam and Carol Markowitz. Notable quotes with timestamps are included to highlight key moments and perspectives.

Transcript

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

This is an Iheart podcast. Hey, guys, we are back on Normal, the show with normal ishtakes for when news gets weird. And back with us this week is my regular co host. I'm Mary Kathryn Yam.

[Carol Markowitz]

I'm Carol Markowitz. It is so nice to be back. Although I will say the guest hosts did a fantastic job. Really amazing. So well done. Thank you to them both for filling in. I really enjoyed all four episodes.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

Yeah, they were much appreciated, guys and wonderful job. A ray of sunshine. But it's so nice to have you back after you got sunshine for a couple weeks.

[Carol Markowitz]

Paris was actually very cold and you should feel sorry for me. I only brought one pair of jeans. I wore them for the first four days because I was freezing to death. It was like 59 degrees in the morning. I did not come to Paris in the summer for 59 degrees.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

That's tough for you.

[Carol Markowitz]

I did not pack for it. I was there because my middle son was in a week long history competition and he came home with a silver and a bronze medal and, you know, very proud of him over here.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

Nice. Very nice. Well done.

[Carol Markowitz]

Thank you. There was some traveling around France and a good time was had by all. Much seafood was eaten. A lot of. A little bit of escargot. Not, not really snails, but I did try them. Nice. Yeah. Good time. Oh, you know what I want to say, actually, Normandy was unbelievable. And I, you know, I knew it would be moving and beautiful, but Normandy, the region is just stunning. I, it was, I've been saying it's the sleeper hit of the trip. It's the place that I don't feel like I knew would be so gorgeous and beautiful and French and delicious. And I love.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

It's a, it's a life goal of mine to make it to Normandy. So now I will for sure. We're doubling down on it.

[Carol Markowitz]

Yeah. And the American cemetery is just, we could have spent all day there. It was really, really powerful. A lot of the houses around Omaha beach still fly American flags. There's just a really moving feeling that you get there. And it was very nice to see.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

By the way, if you ever get a chance to all our listeners, wherever you're traveling, if you get a chance to visit the American cemetery overseas, it's very nice to do so. Normandy obviously gets a lot of visitors, but others don't. I went to the one in Tunisia which doesn't get a ton of visitors. And then if you put on social media that you're there, sometimes people will come across it who have relatives who are buried there. So it's a nice thing to honor those folks who lost their lives many, many miles from home.

[Carol Markowitz]

That's right. Yep. It was definitely something that we would repeat in other places. You know, I saw the headline come in that an FDA employee was fired, and I just naturally assumed it would be some no name bureaucrat and whatever. And then when I saw that it was Vinay Prasad, my heart dropped. I was like, what in the world happened here? And then when you get into the story of what happened, I think it's a really terrible episode that needs to never be repeated. So let's get into it. Vinay Prasad was really one of the heroes of COVID time. He was ahead of the curve on so many things and he was a trusted voice. And so the fact that he got to the FDA was. We celebrated it on this show.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

You heard it on this show? Yeah, yeah.

[Carol Markowitz]

We were really, really happy about it because it is a time of a lack of trust. And to have people that we do trust in these positions of power meant something to us. So we were thrilled about that. Now it turns out that he was let go because he questioned a therapeutic. It was a company called Serapita Therapeutics. They have this gene therapy that is kind of questionable. And he was interested in getting to the bottom of why it was approved and how. And Laura Loomer, who is a fringy figure on the right who for some reason has a little bit too much power in the Trump administration.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

Way too much power. Yes.

[Carol Markowitz]

Was one of the the key person in getting rid of him because she said he was not loyal to Trump and she misrepresented things that he said and really just flat out lied. And it is a really gross thing that happened here.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

Yeah, it's very disappointing. More than that, like, I'm angry on his behalf. I'm sad that this means that the chances of getting really good evidence based folks who go against the grain is going to be harder now because they've seen what happens if you go into this White House or into this administration, rather. He's a very smart guy who has nuanced views on evidence based medicine, who stands up for what he thinks is correct, who pushes back on people who are powerful even when it's costly to him. That seems like exactly the kind of person you would want evaluating such things. And as you say, this particular medicine was somewhat questionable with the results it was providing. There are two deaths attributed to it. He was asking some questions and it looks like with Laura Loomer spearheading With some other forces involved, there was a public backlash against this decision built that got to Trump quickly through Laura Loomer. There were some other publications. The Wall Street Journal, I believe, ran and op ed saying that he shouldn't have done this. This is a treatment, by the way, for Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Rick Santorum, reportedly, according to the New York Times, has some connections with the pharmaceutical company. And then there's also a lobbying firm that was hired by the pharmaceutical company that has, notably Chris Lacivita employed by it. So there's a direct line on several fronts to Trump here.

[Carol Markowitz]

Famously has close ties to Luma.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

So I think it's a real loss for everyone. And it's. It's one of these things where, like, this is the kind of thing about Trump where he is. This is where Democrats could take advantage of him. Right. Go into the office, take the meetings. You're the last person who says something. You get something channeled through Loomer, and boom, you get a giant change. That's not good all the time, obviously. And one of the issues we have with him is that this needed discernment. This needed someone to go. I think he's worth having.

[Carol Markowitz]

Yeah. So, as we're recording this, RFK Jr today said that they're going to be taking action to fully ban food stamps from being used to obtain soda. Ned Ryan, who has been all over this Vinay Prasad story, tweeted, let's hope this holds up and some soda company doesn't hire Laura Loomer to screech that. Actually, food stamps for soda is like, totally America first here. That's the concern here. I am very much not a Laura Loomer fan. I actually block her because I don't want her nonsense in my timeline, even though. And, you know, obviously Israel is one of my top issues, and she and I are aligned on it. And sometimes people will send me commentary from her. I just don't think she's a good person. And I don't care that we agree or align on certain issues. It just isn't enough for me. Among other things, she said that Casey DeSantis lied about having cancer and used it as a, you know, to have people be sympathetic to her husband when he was running for president. I mean, it was extremely disgusting. And she has done a lot of terrible things.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

Many things like that.

[Carol Markowitz]

Yeah, many things like that. Right. There was a picture that we were all in, and Christina Pachal, who worked for Ron DeSantis, was in the picture, and she made her knees a Different color. So just really disgusting. Yeah, like this is not a good person and I don't care if we're on the same quote, unquote side.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

Well, and when she sort of got blocked out of the incoming administration for a brief time, that was good news. And now that we're back to her wielding a lot of power, that is not good news for people who want results out of this administration. His colleagues over at the Sensible Medicine substack, where I've read him for a long time put it, you know, as well as I could, said, mainly I am sad, sad for Vinay because he told me how much he had learned in his short time. He was happy doing a job that had incredible meaning. You could see how much his new role meant to him in the fda. That videos he did with Marty, it was a different Vinay. I am also sad for FDA because I had thought that this new leadership could make a difference. Marty and Vinay together had a chance to bring increased rigor and greater independence to drug and device regulation. But his rapid ouster turns this optimism into magical thinking. And they say, you know, it was always going to be a tough job because you are going to have to take unpopular positions with various very powerful lobbying forces, but that he's just the guy to do that. That's why I liked him there.

[Carol Markowitz]

Right. And that's exactly it. The FDA is uniquely susceptible to people being paid off by powerful drug companies to do things on their behalf. And the fact that we lost somebody that trustworthy is a really tough pill to swallow. I'll add though, that as we're recording right now, Marty Macary, FD commissioner, said that Vinay, he said Vinay did choose to leave the FDA and the idea that he was pushed out by anybody is simply untrue. We saw. He saw some head media headlines and didn't want to be a distraction. We encouraged him to reconsider and we're still doing that. So he left because he didn't want to be a distraction because of the media headlines that Laura Looma created.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

Created. Right.

[Carol Markowitz]

So I don't see how there's a real distinction there. But the fact that Macquarie says we encouraged him to reconsider and we're still doing that, maybe makes me a little bit hopeful he'll be back and I really hope that he does come back.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

Yeah, it's just, it's just unwise to. It's just dumb to lose good people over stuff like this. Don't be too easily taken in by those who bring you messages about this kind of person on the same front. And by the way, it's just not good for public trust in institutions. Like, this guy is a person you put in place who could earn that trust. And then you're just like, nah, now we're out. Because he tweeted something that Laura Loomer paraphrased inaccurately. And now I'm ticked off. Speaking of being ticked off, I would like to note another bad decision from last week, which is that the Bureau of Labor Statistics commissioner was fired by Trump in the wake of a weaker than expected July jobs number finding a gain of 73,000 jobs versus expectations of 100,000. Now, we've seen this a lot of times. We saw this in the Biden administration, where the b, the bls, the Bureau of Labor Statistics puts out a number one month, and then they revise it downward the next month. And sometimes the revisions downward have been frequent and large. That is bad. Right? Like, we need to figure out how to get handle on the, on the data. It's been a couple of years now where the revisions downward have been pretty notable in a way that I've been following these numbers for a long time, and they don't, they didn't feel this way 10 years ago. @ any rate. This happens last week. It's revised downward. Not a huge revision downward, but like, you know, notable. And Trump got mad and fired the person who's in charge of putting out the numbers. Let's say you wanted better numbers and you wanted to address these statistics and you wanted people to have faith in them. This is the opposite of that, because now you have signaled that when you don't like the numbers, you're going to get rid of who's creating the numbers. But that doesn't address the data. And I don't think the data is actually partisanly problematic. I think it's just methodically problematic, probably. And I would like to get that fixed, but I don't think we're getting that fixed.

[Carol Markowitz]

Yeah, I get why he did it, but it, it is not a great sign for public trust, which, like you said, we desperately need. We've gotten to a point where nobody believes anything. And this is where conspiracy theories and all kinds of insanity blooms when public trust decreases like this. So, yeah, bring back regular, normal people into these positions and leave them there. Don't wait when we get them fired.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

Yeah. And Trump works against himself in this way, not infrequently. The other one is like yelling at Jerome Powell all the time. We're like, Powell might be inclined to do the thing you want him to do, but if you continue to pressure him publicly, he's going to be less inclined to do the thing you want him to do potentially. And so let's not do it that way.

[Carol Markowitz]

Absolutely.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

Jerome Powell, the head of the Fed. Excuse me, I shorthanded that, but you know what I'm saying.

[Carol Markowitz]

We'll be right back with More Normally after this break.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

You.

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[Carol Markowitz]

So while I was away, the New York Times put a child starving in Gaza on their cover. And I'm telling you, I was barely on Twitter. I was, you know, really trying to limit my intake but this one really got to me because before I saw any further news I was like, this child is ill. This is not a starving child in Gaza. He's being held by his extremely well fed mother. And it was obvious to me that it was going to end up being a hoax. I didn't want to post that and get like tied into arguing with people on X. I, um, but it was, I, I just, I almost wish I had because I, it was literally my first thought upon seeing that picture. And of course that's exactly what turned out to be the case. It was a child that had cerebral palsy. Apparently the New York Times had internally discussed whether having a child with a condition like that on the COVID made sense. They decided it didn't. They removed the first child that they had with cerebral palsy who was going to appear on the COVID and replaced it with this child who also had cerebral palsy. And they were fully aware of what they were doing. Among other things, they cropped out his healthy looking brother and it is just vile. I was so disappointed by conservatives who fell for this. I couldn't believe that they just relied on what the New York Times was presenting to them and that they couldn't, in poker terms, get off the hand. Even after the story was bound to be a hoax, there were people still saying, okay, yes, this child maybe is, you know, has a condition, but there are starving children in Gaza still. We don't haven't seen any pictures of them or anything, but they exist allegedly.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

So that's, that's the deeper issue. Right. It's like, okay, there is certainly suffering in Gaza. No one is disputing this, but if this is the story that, and the story by the way from the left is that Israel is intentionally starving the children of Gaza. We don't understand why they're sending them aid and escorting aid into the country and offering to bless the aid into the country. We're never told any of that. Why that makes sense with their starvation policy, but they're doing it on purpose. Okay, and the lefty media, the entire international community and all the NGOs, yeah, the thing they want most is a picture of a starving Gazan child so that they get one third of a page on the front page of the New York Times. That's what they're all looking for.

[Carol Markowitz]

That's right.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

Why is it that too attempts at it on the New York Times front cover were both children with pre existing conditions that were not in fact of this population they claim is starving. Why can't you find the actual picture when you're all there looking for that.

[Carol Markowitz]

Exact picture Right after this story breaks? Like a few days later, videos are released by both Hamas and Islamic Jihad of two hostages, Avatar David and Ron Brzlawsky. And they are starving. They are actually, they look like they are starving. There is no condition, there is nothing. There is literally just skin and bones of gaunt faces, eyes bulging out of their heads. It's just, you know, this, the, the difference in coverage is so horrible and disgusting to me, but also not unexpected is on the unfortunate fact of it. It's really sad to watch. And the thing is that all those people who were so worked up about gods and children who are not actually starving had nothing to say about this. And the silence really spoke for them well.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

And the language that they always use is co opting the language of the Holocaust and saying this is another Holocaust before our eyes. And yet the images that are actually reminiscent of the Holocaust come out advertised, by the way, by their heroes in the governing ranks of Hamas and the other groups that rule Gaza and are not allowing anyone to get food. Right. Those are the people in charge of that. When you see the actual photos and videos that actually do invoke this, not a word to say about that. It made the front page of the New York Post and everyone else very quiet.

[Carol Markowitz]

Yes. I actually am extremely proud of the New York Post. I'm really proud to write for them because that is what should be happening. It should be on the COVID And the fact that it's not on any other coverage, look, it's not a great time for Jews. I'm just gonna tell you, all of the conversations that I have with other Jews are like, how bad is this going to get? It feels like this could be bad. This could be a real bad time for Jews. I believe in America. I believe in Americans. So I'm always kind of the positive voice being like, no, it's just this fringe. And I still do think it is a fringe. But the fact that it's not being covered and the fact that every story about, oh, there's a split on the right over Israel, you know, pushes the same three voices. You know, Steve Bannon said, he said that he doesn't think people are going to like Israel anymore. And they just keep writing these stories because they want to will it into existence. It's worrisome. It really is.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

Meanwhile, it's the highest profile voices of the left, like the Pod Save America guys who on a Tuesday just decided that after their entire lives of nominally at least backing Israel and being part of the Obama administration, that of course, sent aid in defense in the traditional way that Americans do, they're like, no, the Democratic Party is not going to be able to do this anymore.

[Carol Markowitz]

Right.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

And that's going to be a real interesting dynamic in the primary of that party.

[Carol Markowitz]

Yeah. I want to see if they actually go through with it, because I do think, and you know, I say this, but I have a lot of faith in the conservative side of American politics. The rest I don't know. But it still will be a major shift if Democrats really do say, we're not pro Israel anymore, we're not aligned with Israel anymore, this is not our ally. Let's see if that really does happen or if again, the leftist fringe doesn't really get a say in what nationally happens at the Democratic Party. We'll. We'll see what happens with that. Additionally, too, by the way, Avatar David, the video of him clearly in a really emaciated state, he was forced to dig his own grave they told him, you're digging your own grave.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

It's just.

[Carol Markowitz]

There's just no words really. There really aren't. And I'm really grateful for people like you, like me, know a lot of people on the right who do care about this and do kind of keep talking about it because it is lonely and it is hard to, you know, kind. I, I get people's being tired of talking about Israel. I'm tired of talking Israel. I want to talk about other things. But it's, you know, you have situations like this where I, I'm, I'm so glad the conservatives do remain on the side of Israel and keeping their eye on stuff like this.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

Well, and it's easy to understand where people are coming from, especially casual observers who are like, it's just a lot. It feels like a lot. Maybe it should end. We get it. We get it. Same with Ukraine, Russia. Right. Like, it just. It's a lot and we wish it were not happening. Okay, I understand. But you also still have to weigh the moral question, because war is hard and war is bad, and bad things happen in war. And it blows my mind that people put these two entities side by side and are like, no, I think the holy war, we want to wipe Israel off the map and maybe the rest of the Western world as well. Those are our guys, the ones that are advertising that they're starving civilian non combatants. We want to be with them. And then not only do we want to be with them, we want them after this behavior to have a state. We want to reward them. Well, I think some of it is just like that. The international community is the gentle parenting of foreign policy. And they just are like, we want it to stop. We want it to stop. We want to stop. Give these people what they want. And that is, yes, yes, it's going to end up being the most destructive thing because you incentivize this horrific behavior.

[Carol Markowitz]

Right? Yep. Instead of the fafo parenting that I.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

Know you, you know, I mean, you know, bombing Florida is an fafo parenting move, Right? It's not a gentle parenting move.

[Carol Markowitz]

Yes.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

These are different things.

[Carol Markowitz]

I will say. I was in France when Macron said that they would be recognizing a Palestinian state. You know, I guess, obviously, when you're a tourist and you're just vacationing there, it's not going to come up in your life at all. But, like, I can tell you, I didn't see a great movement for the Palestinian state while I was traveling around France. There was no, no marches in the streets for it or anything. Like that. We'll be right back after this break with some more Normally and Democrats embarrassing themselves again.

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[Mary Kathryn Yam]

All right, we are back with a semi regular segment of Harry Enton on CNN telling CNN audiences things that they don't want to hear. So here's a little segment on the Democrat brand and then we'll get into why this might be the case. The Democratic brand is in the basement. It is total and complete garbage in the mind of the American public. The Democratic Party's net favor rating record lows in all three Wall Street Journal 30 points underwater. CNN 26 points underwater. Gallup 26 points underwater.

[Carol Markowitz]

And that is being driven in large.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

Part by discontent within the Democratic base. The Democratic base wants some something different. We'll ultimately end up seeing who they choose. It'll be quite the thing. Who it's a lot of points now. Now this is like a little bit of a Tea Party dynamic where it's a lot of their own voters are mad at them and yeah, we will and we will see what kind of behavior that incentivizes as they go forward. One of the things that I think is is incentivized is fighting at all costs, even when fighting doesn't accomplish anything and actually looks pretty lame. So in this case we have a redistricting fight in Texas. For those of you who aren't in regular politics, redistricting fights happen frequently. This is not a new thing. The Texas legislature gets to vote on this. Republicans have drawn a map that gives them more seats in the Congress which is the custom when you are in charge and you are able to do that, it is not hugely out of proportion with the amount that they generally win by in Texas. Nonetheless, their Democratic colleagues, in order to thwart this attempt at redistricting, have fled the state. And they. Because they're so mad about the gerrymandering that is happening here. Carol. And they're so mad about the German gerrymandering because they're very principled on this, that they went to Illinois, where there's no gerrymandering at all, where there's, like, the most gerrymandering. Like, could anybody have just. Just said, like, is there another state we could flee to? So they're in Chicago. JB Pritzker flew there on a private jet so they could not do their jobs in the Texas legislature. I hate this tactic. And if Republicans did it, I would tell them to go back home and take their lunch.

[Carol Markowitz]

You.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

These elections have consequences. Fight the good fight and take your l. Right. And they, Democrats repeatedly refuse to do this. There have been.

[Carol Markowitz]

Yeah, I was going to say, do Texas Democrats just keep doing this? Why do they think this is going to work?

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

Yeah, they've done this over and over again. There's also the Wisconsin Senate in 2011 fighting Governor Scott Walker. There's an Indiana House incident. But the Texas Democrats do like to flee. They did it in 2003. Apparently they did it in 20, 21 or 23. It's like, all the time. They're just leaving the state. And I just think you owe your voters better than this.

[Carol Markowitz]

That's right.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

And I. I don't know that Republicans have polled this ever. I read one story about an Oregon vote where they had attempted this and. Don't do it.

[Carol Markowitz]

Don't.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

It's embarrassing. You look lame. You should go do your job.

[Carol Markowitz]

Exactly. Gavin Newsom said, this is what fighting for our democracy looks like. And AG Hamilton on X was like legislators fleeing a state because they don't have sufficient votes to stop a change is a lot of things, but it is most definitely not fighting for our democracy.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

Nope. It's the opposite of democracy. And I just want to note that the New York Times writes this hilarious piece entitled, Democrats have Few Tools to Counter GOP Redistricting. Okay, do you want to know the reason they have few tools? Well, let me tell you. States where Democrats would have complete control over any redistricting, such as Illinois and Maryland, are already gerrymandered heavily in their favor. Squeezing more Democratic seats out of those states would be a challenge.

[Carol Markowitz]

Right.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

Like, they were just Max, you know, they're always, they're always, it's this thing that Democrats always do where they're like, we're, we're going to start doing this. If you do it, it's like you've already done it. You've already maxed, you've been doing it.

[Carol Markowitz]

Yeah.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

What's the term they use in, in bro podcasts? You have gerrymander maxed. Like you're, you're good. You've spent generations doing this and you can't squeeze anything else out of it. So there we are.

[Carol Markowitz]

Thing that Democrats did this week. I don't think so. I think we have.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

No, that's not the only one. And I say real quickly that the governor has, has threatened them with all sorts of sanctions should they not come back to do their jobs. They have not come back to do their jobs. So that is in limbo at the moment. Okay, the other one. Oh, the New York Times.

[Carol Markowitz]

Oh gosh, the New York Times just really wants to keep us in business. They're like, what do the normally girls want to talk about this week? And then they just provide us with the fodder. I love it.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

Just delivering us a gift. So the President of the United States, President Trump announced that they will reinstate the Presidential Fitness test. This is the physical fitness test that you to take in physical education class. It consisted of a mile run, a shuttle run, the sit and reach and the pull ups. I think that was about. Oh, and the crunches. So he reinstates this, he does a little ceremony. This is like mostly non, non controversial. Right. But not at the New York Times. In the newsroom.

[Carol Markowitz]

They are unhappy. Go ahead. Because what comes out is right wing coded. That was an article from a few months ago.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

This is it. So here's, here's the headline over a picture of a like sweet struggling child hanging at a pull up bar for some return of Presidential Fitness test revives painful memories. Generations of Americans who struggled to complete a pull up in front of their classmates winced as President Trump announced that he was reinstating the annual assessment. It goes on to give us like 20 paragraphs of various people's bad experiences in elementary school with the Presidential Physical Fitness test. And I just want to say, do they need someone more trauma informed in the New York Times newsroom? So like you can just work through this as an adult because you are allegedly adults. I'm embarrassed for you.

[Carol Markowitz]

Right. Josh Barrow commented about the Times article, liberals need to stop doing identity politics for losers. Which really, that's all I think Anyone is saying, like, just stop hating everything so much.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

Just so lame. Speaking of lame, when they switched it, Obama, of course, was the first to change it from the traditional test to this. And I had totally missed this in all of Obama's lameness. When Mr. Obama abolished the test, he replaced it with the Fitness Gram, a program that emphasized overall student health, goal setting and personal progress. Not beating your classmates on the track or the pull up bar. Boo. Boo to that. I hate it. I hate it so much, it's amazing.

[Carol Markowitz]

Eric Erskine had a good point this. He said that the press focuses on the beneficiaries of Democrat policies and the victims of Republican policies. So if it were a Democrat who was doing this, who was bringing back this fitness test, it would be portrayed as this amazing thing to get kids in shape and, you know, to make sure that we don't have a staggering number of obese kids and all of that. It would be seen as a win for American children, which it is. So, you know. Yeah.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

So the people in this article are quoted as calling it a giant step backwards. And one person described it as her experience, as it was survive or fail. She said it was Darwinist. And then one physical education teacher says, it really breaks my heart that it's coming back. If our mission is to help kids love being physically active and love moving, we have to do more than testing them in ways in which the majority are going to fail and they're going to feel ashamed and they're not going to like physical education. Okay, here's a thought. We're setting a goal for you. You have some time to work up to it. How about we all do that? How about we all work on that together? And I do have to cop to this was not my particular form of public humiliation as a child.

[Carol Markowitz]

Nobody enjoys, but, well, like, yeah.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

So I actually am the one who enjoyed it. Right. So I'm the weirdo. I'm the weirdo on this one. But my point is, I faced all other sorts of public humiliation in school growing up. Like, that's part of the deal, right? This was not my particular kind. But, like, every challenge in these settings is going to be tough. You're supposed to be tested in various ways as you grow up. And the idea that the people who run elite institutions in this country are the people who haven't worked through this is gross to me.

[Carol Markowitz]

Exactly.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

Y' all are lame. And you should be laughed at by Josh Barrow. You should be.

[Carol Markowitz]

I didn't love it. I am not sporty or athletic in any way, but look, I want, you know, I did it. I want my kids to do it. I think it's a good thing to be physically fit. Right.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

Sending a message that, like, this is something we value.

[Carol Markowitz]

Right? Exactly. It is sending that message. And I like that message being sent.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

Democrats, by the way.

[Carol Markowitz]

I do nerds who we push into lockers. You know, I know.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

It's like, I feel like this kind of thing makes me meaner than I would otherwise be. I'm like, I can't with this.

[Carol Markowitz]

Yeah.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

But I will cop to the fact that I was like 39 and a half pounds and I was like, you need 11 pull ups. I got you. I got you. Now I don't weigh 39 and a half pounds, so I can't do that.

[Carol Markowitz]

Anyway, thanks for joining us on Normally. Normally airs Tuesdays and Thursdays and you can subscribe anywhere you get your podcasts. Get in touch with us@ normallythepodmail.com thanks for listening. And when things get weird, act normally.

[Mary Kathryn Yam]

This is an I heart podcast.