The PoliticsGirl Podcast: "Have you CRASHED OUT?"
Host: Leigh McGowan (Meidas Media Network)
Date: December 16, 2025
Episode Overview
This deeply personal and politically charged episode centers on the precarity of American democracy and its healthcare system. Host Leigh McGowan discusses a recent family health scare, using it as a lens to explore broader issues: the cost and accessibility of healthcare, governmental neglect, and the urgent need for political change. The episode weaves together stories of personal trauma, collective grief, and policy critique, aiming to inspire urgency, empathy, and collective action among listeners.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. Personal Health Crisis as a Wake-Up Call
[00:00–13:00]
- Leigh recounts her husband Shawn’s sudden hospitalization for memory loss, described as a potential stroke, but ultimately diagnosed as Transient Global Amnesia (TGA).
- Leigh highlights the emotional impact: “I spent much of last week in the hospital… Terrifying. My 48-year-old, completely healthy husband… was dizzy and unable to recall where we’d been the past weekend… or even what year it was.” [02:50]
- Stress, grief (loss of a close friend), and the unpredictability of health are underscored.
2. Vulnerability of Even the ‘Healthy’ in America
[14:00–18:30]
- Debunks the myth that good choices protect you from health crises:
- “Could Americans be healthier? Sure. But can you also get sick when you’re incredibly healthy? Yes.” [41:40]
- Cites her own chronic disease, developed despite a healthy lifestyle; connects to high healthcare costs and lack of safety nets.
3. Dysfunction of the U.S. Healthcare System
[18:30–24:30]
- Critiques Republican policies after the recent vote not to extend Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies:
- “The governing party of America… does not give a shit if we live or die.” [20:15]
- Quotes Senator Tommy Tuberville: “‘If you don’t want medical debt, the answer is simple. Don’t get sick. Live healthier…’ You bro, you and your whole party and the football you rode in on.” [21:00]
- Shares staggering costs:
- “We pay $3,700 a month for insurance… going up to $4,300.” [23:10]
- “To have a baby in America? $20,000 with insurance. Without Medicaid, $70,000.” [23:45]
- Warns of impending collapse:
- “We’re looking at what healthcare calls a death spiral… Prices go up… healthy people drop coverage… eventually, people just die.” [38:45]
4. Healthcare as a Universal—Not Partisan—Issue
[24:30–31:00, 41:30–43:30]
- Argues healthcare is a “human being living inside a human body issue, not red or blue.”
- Calls on Democrats to embrace universal healthcare and for citizens to hold the current administration and Congress accountable.
5. Gun Violence and Systemic Failure
[44:20–56:10]
- References the recent Brown University mass shooting (on Sandy Hook’s anniversary) and mass shooting in Australia as contrasts of policy and response.
- Quotes Dan Hodges: “‘When America decided killing children was bearable, it was all over.’” [49:00]
- Points to legislative failures:
- “The shooter at Brown didn't act alone… it was only possible… because we live in a country where this kind of violence is made possible over and over again. It is a system failure.” [52:00]
- Lists policy solutions blocked by Republicans: universal background checks, assault weapon bans, red flag laws, etc.
6. International Contrast: Australia’s Response
[56:15–58:15]
- Compared Australia’s one-off mass shooting to U.S. frequency (Australia’s first in 29 years vs. “our 397th this year”).
- Praises rapid governmental action in Australia, highlights U.S. inaction.
7. Mental Health, Burnout, and Self-Care
[65:00–71:00]
- Acknowledges collective burnout and trauma: “I want you to be able to do that without having yourself or someone you love get hospitalized to get that perspective.” [67:45]
- Shares personal gratitude practices and recommends small steps to rebuild hope and resilience.
- Encourages listeners to practice self-care, gratitude journals, and to “honor the things that are going right in a world that seems so wrong.” [70:30]
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
-
On U.S. Healthcare Despair:
- “People don’t understand what they’re about to lose. So many people are going to die… we don’t know what to do about it.” [01:00, 62:45] (Multiple healthcare workers, relayed by Leigh)
-
On Personal Health Experience:
- “He could tell you everything in the pictures, no problem reading… but those three words, they were just an absolute blank.” [04:20] (on husband’s memory loss)
- “We are more than our physical body. We really are our brains.” [07:20]
-
On Policy Anger:
- “You bro, you and your whole party and the football you rode in on.” [21:15] (to Senator Tuberville)
- “Healthcare isn’t a red or blue, left or right issue… it’s being a human being living inside a human body issue.” [41:40]
-
On Gun Legislation:
- “One party opened the Office of Gun Violence Prevention and the other party closed it. Bill Clinton signed an assault weapons ban… deaths went down by 43%. George W. Bush let it expire, deaths up 239%.” [50:20]
-
On the American Moment:
- “I want you to slow down, down enough to see where things are okay and to gain strength from that.” [69:45]
Timestamps for Key Segments
- Opening Story: Shawn’s Hospitalization — 00:00–13:00
- Transient Global Amnesia & Causes — 13:00–16:50
- Healthcare Costs & Policy Critique — 20:00–24:30
- On ACA Sabotage and Death Spiral — 35:00–40:00
- Republicans’ Health Policy Voting & Consequences — 27:00–34:30, 40:30–44:15
- Brown University & Gun Violence Systemic Failure — 44:20–54:30
- Australia Shooting Comparison — 56:15–58:15
- Call to Political Action — 43:10–44:30, 59:20–62:30
- Gratitude, Perspective, and Self-Care — 65:00–71:00
Tone & Conclusion
Leigh McGowan’s tone is urgent, unapologetically passionate, and laced with both anger and deep empathy. The episode oscillates between the personal and political, leveraging her firsthand trauma and righteous fury (“the party that calls themselves party of life does not give a shit if we live or die” [20:15]) to energize listeners against apathy and inaction.
She closes with a call for self-care and collective hope:
“We can fix this nation and honestly, I think we can fix the world. But we can’t do it if we check out, if we get sick, if we break down, or if we give up. So take a step back, reorient yourself and we will regroup tomorrow. We are not each other’s enemy. We are each other’s keeper and we need to keep our hope alive.” [71:15]
Summary Takeaway:
This episode is a powerful blend of personal narrative and activism, arguing that both the fight for universal healthcare and reasonable gun laws are existential and urgently require collective resilience, focus, and political engagement.