Normally Podcast: Trump’s State of the Union: Hockey Controversy, Democrat Optics & the Teachers Union Literacy Wake-Up Call


Author: iHeartPodcasts February 26, 2026 Duration: 35:39
Podcast episode
Normally Podcast: Trump’s State of the Union: Hockey Controversy, Democrat Optics & the Teachers Union Literacy Wake-Up Call

On this episode of Normally—the show with normal-ish takes for when the news gets weird—Mary Katharine Ham and Karol Markowicz break down President Trump’s State of the Union and the political chaos swirling around it.

They dig into the Democrats’ optics problem (from heckling to refusing to stand for honored guests), why the U.S. men’s hockey team became the latest target of online outrage, and how “unity” moments keep getting treated like a partisan offense.

Plus, they tackle two bigger cultural flashpoints:

  • The manufactured hockey “locker room talk” scandal—and why normal people aren’t buying it

  • The State of the Union response—what worked, what didn’t, and why it still feels small next to the main event

  • The ugly Candace Owens campaign targeting Charlie Kirk’s widow, Erica Kirk—and why the right can’t keep looking away

  • A surprising New York Times admission on literacy—how states with weaker teachers unions are seeing better reading results, and what that means for public education

They close with a reminder: don’t let extremists, outrage merchants, or bots steal your joy—or your common sense.

Follow Clay & Buck on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/clayandbuck

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.


More episodes

Duration: 1:00:35
Conflict Accelerates Tech Clay Travis and Buck Sexton discuss the geopolitical consequences of the ongoing conflict. They examine the paralysis of international shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, rising global oil prices,…

Duration: 36:44
Hour 1 of The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show delivers an in‑depth analysis of the escalating U.S.‑Iran conflict, global security concerns, and evolving Middle East geopolitics under President Donald Trump. Clay and Buc…

Duration: 36:50
Hour 2 of The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show dives deeply into the rapidly shifting dynamics of American politics, with a strong focus on the Texas Senate race, President Trump’s strategic maneuvers, and breaking news…

Duration: 36:31
Hour 3 of The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show delivers one of the most fast‑moving, news‑heavy hours of the day, packed with breaking political developments, Senate race analysis, and live reactions to major personnel c…

Duration: 1:01:31
Defanging Iran The rapidly evolving U.S.–Iran conflict, focusing on American and Israeli airpower gaining near‑total control of Iranian airspace. Clay and Buck analyze Secretary of War Pete Hegseth’s remarks highlighting…

Duration: 36:48
Hour 1 of The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show opens with a deep dive into the rapidly evolving U.S.–Iran conflict, focusing on American and Israeli airpower gaining near‑total control of Iranian airspace. Clay and Buck…

Duration: 36:50
Hour 2 of The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show shifts from the Iran conflict coverage of Hour 1 into a rapid-fire mix of geopolitics, U.S. national security, Texas politics, gender ideology debates, Tesla culture wars, a…

Duration: 36:28
Hour 3 of The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show delivers a packed rundown of the day’s major political, cultural, and geopolitical stories, with an emphasis on unfolding developments in the Iran conflict, the dramatic out…

Logo
Select station
VOL