Bannon’s War Room – Christmas Day Special 2025 (Episode 5022)

Date: December 25, 2025
Host: Steve Bannon
Guests: Patrick K. O’Donnell (Military Historian), Trevor Comstock (Sacred Human Health)

Overview: Main Theme and Purpose

This Christmas Day episode of War Room centers on tradition and history, blending wellness with a deep-dive into America's founding crucible: the military realities and near-miraculous endurance of the Continental Army in 1776. It features a segment on personal and family health with Trevor Comstock, then shifts to an annual tradition—Patrick K. O’Donnell’s “Combat History of Christmas”—which meticulously recounts pivotal events from the earliest days of the American Revolution, focusing especially on the army’s retreat across New Jersey, the dire winter at the Delaware, and Washington’s legendary Christmas night attack at Trenton. The goal: to remind listeners of the sacrifices made for American freedom, even during the holiest and most familial time of the year.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Introduction and Traditions

• Christmas Reflections:
  Steve Bannon opens with gratitude for the War Room audience and underlines the tradition of “The Combat History of Christmas,” a segment tracing back 15 years (starting at Breitbart Radio) ([01:07]).

  “It’s been a real tradition…the combat history…to show you that…even during the most sacred time of the year…there are Americans that patriots that have had to sacrifice the ultimate.” — Steve Bannon ([06:56])

• Well-being and Health:
  Trevor Comstock discusses Sacred Human Health’s holiday offerings and health routines ([02:22]).

  • Announces a product launch and explains the ingredient philosophy behind their tallow moisturizer, intended for both men and women.
  • Stresses the importance of using natural, nourishing products versus mainstream synthetic alternatives.

  “We just wanted to give the raw natural ingredients that actually work to nourish your skin.” — Trevor Comstock ([04:44])

2. The Combat History of Christmas: Setting the Stage

• Historical Framing:
  O’Donnell and Bannon place the American Revolution alongside Christianity as a foundational event ([11:37]), stressing its importance for both American identity and as a model of endurance during hardship.

  “The American Revolution is probably the most significant event other than the birth of Christ and life of Christ.” — Patrick K. O’Donnell ([11:37])

• The Revolution in Three Phases (Bannon’s Framework):

  1. Revolution of Ideas/institution building (pre-1775)
  2. War of Independence (1775-1783)
  3. Nation-building (through early 1800s)
  • The critical role of gunpowder and local grievances, e.g. the fishermen of Marblehead suffering impressment and taxation ([11:37-14:31]).

  “Every revolution…prior to 1775 was crushed by the Crown. They saw an opportunity to…defang the revolution by seizing gunpowder supplies.” — Patrick K. O’Donnell ([13:32])

3. Research and Historical Perspective

• Years of Research:
  O’Donnell shares the arduous research that went into his acclaimed books “Washington’s Immortals” and “The Indispensables”—about 11–12 years total ([17:14], [22:08]).

  “I immerse myself in the history…I try to immerse myself in the story of the men that I write about as well as their opponents…I don’t have an agenda…My only agenda is to tell the story and put you there in their time.” — Patrick K. O’Donnell ([22:10])

• Importance of Primary Sources:
  O’Donnell emphasizes letting participants of the past tell their stories through letters, journals, and firsthand accounts.

4. 1776: America’s Existential Crisis

A. The British Invade New York: Overwhelming Odds

• The British assemble the largest expeditionary force in modern history at Staten Island: two-thirds of the Royal Navy, 65–70% of the British Army, plus 10,000 Hessian mercenaries ([25:25]).

  “The British had no intention of letting this thing go…to deliver a death blow to this republic in the first hundred days of its life.” — Steve Bannon ([24:42])

B. The Catastrophic American Defeat at Brooklyn

• The British outflank Washington’s army at Brooklyn (August 1776), nearly destroying the main Continental force ([30:20]).

• O’Donnell recounts the stand of the Maryland regiment—“Washington’s Immortals”—at a site contemporary historians called “an American Thermopylae” ([19:00]).

• The perilous evacuation across the East River—America’s “Dunkirk”—is only made possible by John Glover and the Marblehead men. Providential fog and adverse winds prevent the British from striking ([32:49]).

  “One of the greatest evacuations in military history, right under the noses of…a massive Royal Navy…and this massive juggernaut in front of them…The fog, the providential fog, comes at exactly the right time.” — Patrick K. O’Donnell ([33:12])

C. Retreat Across New Jersey: The Army on the Brink

• After losing Manhattan, the battered American army fights a series of rear-guard actions, perpetually outmaneuvered and forced to retreat ([36:14]).

• Washington’s greatest achievement: preserving the army as a “being in the field,” knowing its destruction would end the revolution ([28:52], [36:14]).

  “That’s the one institution we’ve got. If we lose the institution of the Continental army…the Revolution’s over. It’s finished.” — Steve Bannon ([28:57])

D. Pressure, Betrayal, and Providence

• Enormous political pressure mounts on Washington from Philadelphia and his own rivals, especially General Charles Lee ([43:54]).

• Lee’s capture by British dragoons is described as providential—removing Washington’s most toxic rival at a critical moment ([44:42–46:43]).

  “That’s about as providential as the fog coming in.” — Steve Bannon ([46:34])

• Internal division: only about one-third of the population were Patriots; the rest were Loyalists or neutral ([46:43]).

  “A insurgency that has the support of the population is almost impossible to defeat…They knew they didn’t necessarily have to win. They just needed to survive. And Washington was brilliant at this.” — Patrick K. O’Donnell ([47:21])

5. Christmas Night 1776: The Turning Point

• The Continental Army (“down to 3, 4, 5,000 men”) is threadbare, exhausted, and demoralized, pushed to the brink ([48:09]).

• Glover and the Marblehead men again become pivotal—extracting the army over the icy Delaware not just for Washington’s famous attack, but first to survive ([48:36]).

  “One of my favorite quotes is about one of the men sees his brother and doesn’t even recognize him because he’s in complete tatters, shoeless. His face is filled with sores. The army is disintegrating.” — Patrick K. O’Donnell ([48:36])

• Washington’s decision to counterattack at Trenton—rolling “the iron dice of war”—emerges as both daring and essential ([49:25]).

  “Washington asks Glover if it’s even possible to get across the Delaware when it’s raging, a raging torrent, like, don’t worry, my boys can handle it. And they organized one of the greatest amphibious operations in history.” — Patrick K. O’Donnell ([49:10])

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

| Timestamp | Speaker | Quote | |------------|------------------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | [01:07] | Steve Bannon | “It’s a day people spend with family…But also your health, sir.” | | [11:37] | Patrick K. O’Donnell | “The American Revolution is probably the most significant event other than the birth of Christ and life of Christ.” | | [13:32] | Patrick K. O’Donnell | “They saw an opportunity to…defang the revolution by seizing gunpowder supplies.” | | [22:10] | Patrick K. O’Donnell | “My only agenda is to tell the story and put you there in their time.” | | [24:42] | Steve Bannon | “The British had no intention of letting this thing go…to deliver a death blow…” | | [33:12] | Patrick K. O’Donnell | “The fog, the providential fog, comes at exactly the right time.” | | [44:42] | Patrick K. O’Donnell | “This is General Charles Lee who’s in an inn…and he is captured by elements of dragoons…” | | [47:21] | Patrick K. O’Donnell | “They just needed to survive. And Washington was brilliant at this.” | | [48:36] | Patrick K. O’Donnell | “One of the men sees his brother and doesn’t even recognize him because he’s in complete tatters, shoeless…”| | [49:10] | Patrick K. O’Donnell | “Don’t worry, my boys can handle it. And they organized one of the greatest amphibious operations in history.” |

Important Segment Timestamps

• [02:22] – [06:37]: Trevor Comstock discusses health products and their philosophy.
• [06:38] – [17:14]: Opening of the Combat History of Christmas; O’Donnell’s book research.
• [17:14] – [22:08]: Research process; importance of primary sources.
• [24:42] – [36:14]: The British invasion; defeat at Brooklyn; the evacuation (“American Dunkirk”).
• [36:14] – [44:42]: Retreat across New Jersey; pressure and betrayals; Charles Lee’s capture.
• [48:09] – [49:25]: Conditions at the Delaware; preparing for Washington’s crossing and attack.

Conclusion

This episode delivers a rich narrative of America’s near-collapse in the winter of 1776 and the extraordinary resilience, luck (“providence”), and grit that enabled the Continental Army’s survival and ultimate counterattack. By threading personal, political, and military history together, Bannon and O’Donnell remind listeners of the steep price paid for American freedom—sacrifices made even at Christmas, and how moments of crisis and “divine providence” shaped a nation. The annual ritual of telling this story on Christmas Day connects family, tradition, and patriotism for the War Room audience.