Podcast Summary: Kennedy Saves the World

Episode Title: They Let Us Burn: One Year After The Palisades Fire
Air Date: January 8, 2026
Host: Kennedy (FOX News Podcasts)

Episode Overview

In this emotionally charged solo episode, Kennedy marks the one-year anniversary of the devastating Palisades Fire that destroyed thousands of homes and businesses. Drawing from personal experience as both victim and community member, she provides an in-depth look at the lingering aftermath—insurance gridlock, government inaction, and community resilience. The episode blends candid anecdotes, on-the-ground reporting from a recent community rally, and urgent criticism of local and state leaders, all wrapped in Kennedy's trademark wit and candor.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Personal Reflections and Community Devastation

Kennedy recounts her return to her Palisades house, still uninhabitable, coated "with ash, soot and lead" (00:09).
The trauma of displacement: Families and friends "ripped apart" as people scatter due to lost homes (01:30).
Emotional cost: "A total loss of everything that they had, unimaginable before January 7 last year." (00:43)

2. Insurance Nightmare

Cites incessant delays and stonewalling by insurance companies, mentioning Geico by name: "Your insurance sucks." (00:15)
"Every month we get a new form letter like we're still reviewing your claim." (02:25)
Describes hiring public adjusters as necessary but notes even they are "seeing things they've never seen before" in terms of insurance company resistance (02:00-03:00).
Details on homeowners footing remediation bills upfront, then seeking reimbursement, a luxury not available to all (03:12).

3. Failed Political Leadership

Sharp criticism of Mayor Karen Bass and Governor Gavin Newsom: "They have certainly not been advocating on the part of homeowners who have lost everything." (04:12)
Accusation of politicians taking a "victory lap" while the community remains "in paralysis" (14:30).
"Gavin Newsom...was just a couple blocks away...touring, everything going, ah, we’ve done an amazing job. It's like really, look at the empty homes...the empty lots." (05:08)

4. Rebuilding Obstacles & Community Spirit

Ongoing bureaucratic hurdles in permitting and rebuilding: "Still plenty of red tape. I don't care what Karen Bass says." (06:12)
Residents committed to fighting back: "This crowd in the Palisades, they want their community back. They're fighting for their community." (06:25)

5. Critical Infrastructure Failures

Highlights catastrophic mismanagement: “They would leave an empty reservoir on the precipice of a once-in-a-generation windstorm...all it takes is a single spark.” (08:00)
Residents demand: "Brush clearance, accountability, a full reservoir, an activated fire department who shows up with water trucks." (09:05)

6. On-the-Ground Heroism

Detailed story of neighbor Duncan, a former Australian bush firefighter, and another neighbor, David, who saved several homes:
- "They got two fire hoses and they plugged into the fire hydrant on our street until it ran dry around 2 in the morning...they saved so many homes with their bravery and competence and strategy." (10:00)
- "Were you ever wondering where’s the fire department? He said, 'Yeah, they were coming by every couple hours to fill up their water trucks...and the fact that they all weren’t functioning and there wasn’t water flowing is criminal.'" (11:26)

7. Human Cost & Tragedy

Personal accounts of loss, including a neighbor who lost his mother in the fire (17:00) and a friend displaced by the fire whose son was killed by a drunk driver during their exile (17:45).
"That’s, you know, the human cost that these politicians are just trying to turn their back on. They can no longer avoid it." (18:20)

8. Community Mobilization & Political Change

Rising local activism: Spencer Pratt (MTV reality star) running for mayor after touring fire damage with Florida Sen. Rick Scott, who condemned the lack of advocacy (15:20-16:00).
Steve Hilton’s impactful speech: "He took the anger and the intensity of the crowd and he reduced it into just a few minutes as he went around as he has been doing for months and months, listening to people, listening to wildfire victims." (16:30)

9. Signs of Hope & Continued Advocacy

Glimpses of recovery: "There were stores that were reopening. There are restaurants that are doing their best to serve this community. And it is way of signaling the come back, rebuild, fight like hell." (19:30)
Kennedy closes with renewed determination: "I will do whatever I can to personally rebuild, but to also advocate and the avenues that I have...to make sure this never happens ever again." (20:10)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

On Insurance Failure:
"It is such an incredibly immoral and corrupt system that the governor of California is allowing." (04:40)
On Local Heroism:
"They saved single handedly, just these two guys, these two civilians, essentially. They saved so many homes with their bravery and competence and strategy." (10:47)
On Political Accountability:
"Karen Bass...she admitted it was her failure. They screwed up and now they're taking a victory lap...That is how they should pay personally for what has happened. They should no longer be in power. They abused that power." (12:20)
On Community’s Future:
"Yesterday I saw a glimmer of hope...It is way of signaling the come back, rebuild, fight like hell. Do what you can. And I will do whatever I can to personally rebuild but to also advocate..." (19:30)
On Politicians' Response:
"It's not enough to say biggest debris cleanup in history. What about the rebuilding? What about the community? What about the right these people have for the insurance that they paid for?" (14:34)

Timestamps for Key Segments

00:09 – Kennedy returns to her ashen Palisades home, reflects on personal loss.
02:00 – Breakdown of insurance company tactics and failures.
04:12 – Critique of local and state government response.
10:00-12:00 – Story of neighbors Duncan and David saving homes during the fire.
14:30 – Politicians’ accountability and the community's frustration.
15:20 – Spencer Pratt's mayoral run and activism.
17:00-18:20 – Personal stories of tragedy and community loss.
19:30 – Stores begin to reopen, signs of recovery, Kennedy's continued advocacy.

Tone & Language

Kennedy’s tone is outspoken, sardonic, and personal throughout—punctuated with dark humor and pointed barbs at government, insurance companies, and the bureaucracy. She blends righteous anger, compassion for her neighbors, and determination for change, inviting listeners to feel both the pain and hope within her community.

Conclusion

This episode of "Kennedy Saves the World" delivers a raw, firsthand account of the ongoing struggles—and growing determination—of the Palisades community one year after disaster. Kennedy’s mix of storytelling, analysis, and impassioned advocacy paints an unfiltered portrait of resilience amid failed systems, and the fight for recovery and accountability underway.

Transcript

A (0:00)

Foreign. Hello and welcome to this episode of Kennedy Saves the World. It's been a pretty wild 24 hours for me. So yesterday I left New York at 6am, got into LAX at 9, went to Pacific Palisades, checked on my house, it's still filled with ash, soot and lead. Thanks Geico. Your insurance sucks. And then I went to the rally in the Palisades for the one year anniversary of the fire that consumed the entire town and took down thousands and thousands of homes and businesses. And the nice thing was that people were able to be in the same place at the same time for the first time in a year because all of these people have been displaced, some of them lost their homes entirely. A total loss of everything that they had unimaginable before January 7 last year. And they have slowly been trying to piece their lives together but they have dispersed. And people who have, you know, grown together, the kids have grown up together, they have lives, social lives, they that are totally interconnected, they have essentially been ripped apart. And yesterday was a really nice time for people to get together, reflect. A lot of us were talking about where we are with our insurance claims remediation, those of us whose home survived. But you know, we are very low down on the priority list for the insurance companies and I've talked about this a lot. The state is letting the insurance companies just delay and stonewall and lowball and they've been particularly awful. So for those of us who have hired public adjusters, which you know are usually companies of former insurance adjusters and lawyers who get together to create businesses to advocate for people who have no idea what they're doing in this hellish labyrinth interfacing with insurance companies. The public adjusters say they have never seen anything like it. The insurance companies have been incredibly cold and ineffective. You get adjuster after adjuster after adjuster and every time you get a new adjuster you have to go back to square one. And as I said on Trace Gallagher show last night, you know, every month we get a new form letter like we're still reviewing your claim. So I talked to one neighbor and she basically foot the bill for her own remediation and then she has given the bill to the insurance company and said this is what it cost. Now reimburse me, give me my money. A lot of people aren't in that position and unfortunately people who have been renting elsewhere, you still have to pay your mortgage because you will lose the land if you don't do that. There has not been forbearance as they kind of advertised in the beginning. And the mayor of Los Angeles, Karen Bass, and the governor, the useless governor, Gavin Newsom, they have certainly not been advocating on the part of homeowners who, you know, in many cases have lost everything. And in my case, like, lost most things. So whether it's children's toys or furniture, mattresses, bedding, clothing, all of that has to be thrown away. You know, rugs, carpeting, anything, that's all got to go into a dumpster. And for those people who were shocked into having no possessions, they're getting lowballed on what the insurance companies will give them for what their homes should be worth. And you know what the real cost of rebuilding is, especially when you pay these companies year after year after year, you pay the premium. You just assume that you get what's in your contract. But that's not the case. They will fight you, every dime, every dollar. It is such an incredibly immoral and corrupt system that, that the governor of California is allowing. So as there was this collection of angry, activated and very intense on rebuilding this. This crowd in the Palisades, they want their community back. They're fighting for their community. They're not laying down and just ceding to speculators and cruel insurance companies. They're fighting to rebuild the. They're fighting through the permitting process where there is still plenty of red tape. I don't care what Karen Bass says. But the fact that there was a rally, there was a stage, there were speakers, that would have been the perfect time for Karen Bass and Gavin Newsome to show up and talk about what they're going to do and how they're advocating for homeowners. Of course they didn't do that because Gavin Newsome, in a very cowardly way, he was just a couple blocks away from my house at Palisades High School, touring, everything going, ah, we've done an amazing job. It's like really, look at the empty homes, look at the empty lots, look at the lots that are barren. Some of them have fencing around them and they're ready to start building. But you can't start building until you get money. And you can't get money from the insurance company. If they've got the go ahead to stonewall and lowball and that's what they're doing. So the progress has been halted. I just assumed that at the year anniversary we would all be in a state of remediation and repair and rebuild. And that's not the case. And that is the source of frustration for people who moved to Pacific Palisades and Altadena in order to have tight communities of people who care about each other, where their kids can grow up safely and where they can live their version of the American dream. It has been an absolute nightmare and it is heartbreaking. But people are moving back past heartbreak and they are leaning forward into a future that doesn't require the kind of lying leftist politicians who would leave an empty reservoir on the precipice of once in a generation windstorm, where all it takes is a single spark in order to create the kind of conflagration that consumes an entire town and everything in it. Something that we thought was unimaginable. No, they talked about what they want. They want brush clearance, they want accountability, they want a full reservoir, they want an activated fire department who shows up with water trucks. Interestingly, and this was really important, I interviewed one of my neighbors. He has since left our neighborhood, but he's the only reason that on our street, at least on our block, the houses were left standing because he and another neighbor. So this guy Duncan was a bush firefighter in Australia, so he's got nards of steel and he has seen these eucalyptus trees in the Australian bush just go up in flames within seconds. And he said he knew based on how fire behaves and what he saw from the windstorm, and he knew that he was not in imminent danger. He knew how to get out of the situation. He knew what the exit routes were, he could see where the fire was progressing, and he had another neighbor named David. And I took a nine minute video with Duncan explaining how this happened. But they got two fire hoses and they plugged into the fire hydrant on our street until it ran dry around 2 in the morning. And they stood there hosing down a pine tree and a Craftsman house on, you know, respective corners of our intersection, knowing that if the, the Craftsman went down, all of our homes would have burned. If the pine tree went down, all the homes on the other side of the street would have burned because all the homes across the street that they couldn't reach with the fire hose, they all burned. And they did everything they could. They saved single handedly, just these two guys, these two civilians, essentially. They saved so many homes with their bravery and competence and strategy. And you know, I'm listening to this, I'm like, were you ever wondering where's the fire department? He said, yeah, they were coming by every couple hours to fill up their, their water trucks with one of the only functioning hydrants in the Palisades and the Fact that they all weren't functioning and there wasn't water flowing is criminal. Don't go anywhere. More Kennedy Saves the World right after this. This is Ainsley Earhart. Thank you for joining me for the 52 episode podcast series, the Life of Jesus A listening experience that will provide hope, comfort and understanding of the greatest story ever told. Listen and follow now@foxnewspodcasts.com or wherever you listen to podcasts. Karen Bass, you know, she didn't know that she was being recorded, but she admitted that. She admitted it was her failure. They screwed up and now they're taking a victory lap. Well, the citizens there who were at the rally, they're not accepting that they are targeting Karen Bass and Gavin Newsom with their political careers. And that is how they should pay personally for what has happened. They should no longer be in power. They abused that power. They abused the trust of the citizens and they didn't fulfill the basic functions of government. And the fact that this community is still in paralysis one year later speaks to that failure. Like, they can't walk around going, biggest debris cleanup in history. It's like, well, what about the rebuilding? What about the community? What about the right these people have for the insurance that they paid for to go to rebuilding their homes, as is promised in these contracts? And if you miss an insurance payment, your insurance is canceled. A lot of these people, you know, their insurance companies were forced out of the states. But even given that, even given the climate, the insurance companies have been abhorrent, State Farm at the top of the list for letting down the clients that, you know, let's say they were forced out of the market. You still have an obligation to your customers, and they have been incredibly negligent in that obligation. Same with Mercury and Geico, which we have. They have been awful. And you have a desk adjuster trying to, you know, lord over a loss where they should be paying, you know, for the basic remediation. And we have seen no remediation at all. And we are not alone. We're just one of thousands of families and in Pacific Palisades who were like, you know, do we have to do all of this ourselves? That seems pretty criminal. And you have people who are activated and ready. Spencer Pratt, MTV reality star, he has been shocked into a political career. He has been one of the few people actually documenting what has been going on. He toured the Palisades with Florida Senator Rick Scott. And you know, Rick Scott, he's not even a California politician and he's like, this is wrong. You need advocacy in Washington. You know, we need answers, we need action. So at least he was a receptive ear. So now Spencer announced yesterday on the stage in Pacific Palisade that he is running for mayor. Anyone but Karen Bass is acceptable. And this has to be the number one issue that she is faced with going into her reelection. Steve Hilton gave a fiery and wonderful speech on that stage. I wish everyone could have seen it because he took the anger and the intensity of the crowd and he reduced it into just a few minutes as he went around as he has been doing for months and months, listening to people, listening to wildfire victims. I talked to one man yesterday, Anthony, whose mom died in the wildfire. And I saw the pain and the sadness and the loss in his eyes. A few months ago I interviewed my friend Jen Levy. They were displaced. They moved to Manhattan Beach. Her 17 year old son was hit and killed by an alleged drunk driver, which wouldn't have happened if they weren't displaced from the Palisades. And Jen was so heartbroken, it's impossible for her to celebrate or mark the anniversary of the wildfire that displaced her family and put them on a collision course with irreversible tragedy. But that's, you know, the human cost that these politicians are just trying to turn their back on. They can no longer avoid it. And that was the point of the rally and the show of support and anger and demand for action that we saw yesterday. And I am not going to stop talking about it. I will not stop advocating for it because people closest to me have lost everything and our community and these families in whichever way possible deserve to be whole again. And yesterday I saw a glimmer of hope. There were stores that were reopening. There are restaurants that are doing their best to serve this community. And it is way of signaling the come back, rebuild, fight like hell. Do what you can. And I will do whatever I can to personally rebuild but to also advocate and the avenues that I have and the mediums that I have to make sure that this never happens ever again. And we have better politicians leading the city and leading the state. Will that be Spencer Pratt and Steve Hilton? Who knows? It is going to be a different world and I frankly am excited to meet that brand new world. This has been Kennedy Saves the World. I'm Kennedy. Listen ad free with a Fox News podcast plus subscription on Apple podcasts and Amazon prime. Members can listen to this show ad free on the Amazon music app. Oh, go ahead and leave me a review while you're there. I'd love to hear what you have to say. You've been listening to Kennedy Saves the World on the Fox News podcast network.