2025 Year End Precap Hostravaganza | Jordan Klepper, Ronny Chieng, Desi Lydic, Josh Johnson and Michael Kosta

Summary

The Daily Show: Ears Edition

Episode: 2025 Year End Precap Hostravaganza

Date: December 15, 2025
Hosts: Jordan Klepper, Ronny Chieng, Desi Lydic, Josh Johnson, Michael Kosta

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Overview

In this special year-end episode, The Daily Show’s rotating hosts—Jordan Klepper, Ronny Chieng, Desi Lydic, Josh Johnson, and Michael Kosta—gather to recap and roast 2025’s wildest (and weirdest) news moments. The team reminisces about major headlines, their favorite stories and segments, how their on-air chemistry works (or doesn’t), and even plays an in-joke game about how they describe the political cast of characters. The episode’s tone is classic Daily Show: snarky, rapid-fire, and steeped in gallows humor about the current political circus.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Host Camaraderie and Working Together

Timestamps: 01:13–05:44

• The hosts joke about the misconception that they're always hanging out together.
  • Michael Kosta: “Everyone thinks we're always hanging out. I say, I don't know who you are.” (02:02)
  • Ronny Chieng: “We don't hang out as much as the public thinks, but we hang out more than would be normal in the same job.” (02:21)
• Fan interactions are shared, highlighting how the public ranks their favorites and how hosts often get asked about each other.
  • Josh Johnson: “At my after shows, they always tell me to tell you [Jordan] that you're brave.” (03:03)

2. Reflecting on the Chaos of 2025

Timestamps: 07:25–15:11

• None of the hosts can remember everything that happened this year—news was relentless, stories blurred. “It’s all a complete blur to me.” (Desi Lydic, 07:40)
• Major events are recalled haphazardly, such as:
  • LA fires, the “Gulf of America”, US-Canada conflict, Panama Canal drama (09:09–09:44)
  • “Liberation Day” and ongoing confusion over tariffs
  • Luigi’s legal troubles and “trial imminent”
  • Michael Kosta: “The saddest one was Charlie Kirk… probably the story that dominated the year.” (10:28)
• They discuss the normalization of previously absurd or shocking developments (Elon Musk, Trump, and the Epstein files, 10:48–11:24).
  • Jordan Klepper: “There is no ideology… you can’t burn any of these bridges when money is the true currency.” (11:24)

3. Media Personalities, Administration Characters, and Political Arcs

Timestamps: 16:19–35:51

• Favorite and envy-worthy segments are discussed:
  • Ronny Shout-outs Desi and Troy’s “Freedom Awards” coverage (16:19)
  • Desi praises Ronny’s unique take on Pete Hegseth's comments to the military (“no fatties” bit, 17:09)
  • The comical mess of RFK Jr’s “bear in the car” and swimming-in-sewage stories and their cross-host handoffs (17:58–19:51)
• Discussion about the insanity of political news and segment assignments—sometimes only the host’s own sensibility can truly roast a story.
• On future major players and fallen stars:
  • The strange “character arcs” of Marjorie Taylor Greene (MTG), who may be leaving Congress, and predictions on her move to right-wing media.
    • Josh Johnson: “She’s probably the best room-reader we’ve seen—she’s jumping ship before it’s obvious.” (27:01)
  • Pete Hegseth as a rising media force favored by Trump
    • Michael Kosta: “I think Trump loves Hegseth. I don’t love Pete Hegseth. But I think we’ll see a lot more of him.” (30:52)
  • Watchfulness around Kash Patel’s “chaotic-but-loyal” tenure, and the legal misadventures of Lindsey Halligan.

4. In-Joke Segment: “Who Am I?”

Timestamps: 35:53–39:45

• The team plays a guessing game using their own show-writer descriptors for prominent public figures—a rapid-fire roast factory.
  • “Scrooge, if the ghosts never visited.” (Correct answer: Donald J. Trump) (36:17)
  • “Half-melted Bob Barker.” (Incorrect guesses: McConnell/Biden) (36:47)
  • “Friendless Ziploc bag full of jizz.” (Answer: Elon Musk) (38:33)
  • Jordan Klepper: “Friendless is a good specific there. The rest is just, we’re just being mean.” (38:45)
• Self-deprecation and writer-room meta-commentary abound.

5. Predictions and Lingering Dread for 2026

Timestamps: 41:02–47:01

• Tongue-in-cheek “hopes” for Trump’s redemption—no one believes this (41:02)
• Anticipation of escalating instability:
  • Michael Kosta: “I think he’s going to start to become a little more unhinged and really test our legal system’s ability to handle how far he pushes. I think it’s gonna get gnarly.” (41:53)
• Economic concerns and potential midterm fallout:
  • Jordan Klepper: “You’re going to see a party attempting to distance itself from Donald Trump.” (42:32)
• Discussion of political language they’re sick of (“Trump 6767”, “anti-vaxx,” “executive order,” “plausible deniability,” and “over-celebration of AI”).
  • Michael Kosta: “I hope we lessen the over celebration and marketing of AI.” (46:09)
  • Jordan Klepper: “I choose humans.” (46:37)
• Ironic predictions about more Diddy documentaries and even darker news cycles.

6. Closing Thoughts and Holiday Wishes

Timestamps: 46:59–47:17

• The hosts acknowledge the nonstop, overwhelming news cycle, thank their audience, and promise to return in 2026, humorously referencing smaller, sweatier rooms and “more human” space.
  • Jordan Klepper: “That is every single thing that happened in 2025 and probably also 2026.” (47:01)
  • Michael Kosta: “Merry Christmas.”
  • Ronny Chieng: “Happy January 6th.” (47:18)

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Notable Quotes and Memorable Moments

• “You realize how terrified people are of talking to other people.” —Jordan Klepper (03:34)
• “It’s like a sexy baton toss.” —Jordan Klepper on hosting rotations (02:38)
• “Fire has been around a very long time.” —Michael Kosta, on repetitive news topics (07:58)
• “The absurdity of this administration knows no bounds.” —Jordan Klepper (17:28)
• “She’s probably the best room-reader we’ve seen—jumping ship before it’s obvious.” —Josh Johnson on MTG (27:01)
• “I choose humans.” —Michael Kosta (46:37)
• “We wanna thank you for watching and/or listening... That is every single thing that happened in 2025 and probably also 2026.” —Jordan Klepper (47:01)

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Timeline of Important Segments

| Timestamp | Segment | Key Content/Highlights | |-----------|-----------------------------------------------------------|-------------------------------------------------------| | 01:13 | Host Introductions & Banter | Chemistry, misconceptions about always hanging out | | 07:25 | Year-In-Review: 2025 News Highlights | Fires, Gulf of America, Canada, Panama, MTG, Elon | | 16:19 | Segment Envy: Assignments and Segment Jealousy | RFK Jr, bear story, sewage swimming, Freedom Awards | | 26:23 | “Characters” of 2025 Retrospective | MTG’s arc, Pete Hegseth rise, administration flops | | 35:53 | “Who Am I?” In-Joke Game | Roasting politicians with Daily Show writer jokes | | 41:02 | 2026 Predictions & What’s Next | Trump’s path, party schism, Diddy docs, language pet peeves | | 46:59 | Wrap-Up & Holiday Wishes | Human touch, recapping the recap, signoff |

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Tone and Final Thoughts

The episode maintains a playful, ironic, and often sarcastic tone. The hosts mix gallows humor with genuine exasperation at the state of politics in 2025, highlighting both the absurdity and exhaustion inherent in the year’s news cycle. For listeners, it’s an unfiltered look behind the scenes of The Daily Show—a blend of comic riffs, sharp critiques, and reluctant nostalgia for the chaos they continue to chronicle.

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For anyone who missed the episode:
Expect a hilarious and chaotic roundtable of the year’s wildest political theater—with enough self-aware cynicism and behind-the-scenes confessionals to make you both laugh and wince at what’s still to come.

Transcript

[Michael Kosta]

Limu Imu and Doug. Here we have the Limu emu in its natural habitat, helping people customize their car insurance and save hundreds with Liberty Mutual. Fascinating. It's accompanied by his natural ally, Doug.

[Josh Johnson]

Uh, Limu is that guy with the binoculars watching us?

[Michael Kosta]

Cut the camera.

[Jordan Klepper]

They see us. Only pay for what you [e-mail] Liberty Liberty Liberty Liberty Savings vary unwritten by Liberty Mutual insurance company and affiliates. Excludes Massachusetts.

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[Jordan Klepper]

Hello, Daily show fans. It's the end of the year and what a normal year it has been. To wrap up 2025, we thought we'd get all of the hosts of the Daily show, cram them into the smallest room in the building and force them to talk to each other. I am one of those hosts. You're already laughing, Ronny. I love it. I'm one of them. I'm Jordan Klepper. Let me pass it to Ronny Chang so everybody can introduce themselves in case we all haven't taken the time to learn each other's names.

[Ronny Chang]

Oh, I'm Ronnie Chang.

[Desi Lydic]

Desi Lydic.

[Josh Johnson]

Josh Johnson.

[Michael Kosta]

Hi, I'm Michael Kosta.

[Desi Lydic]

Good to meet you guys.

[Michael Kosta]

Nice to meet you.

[Desi Lydic]

I'm really happy to finally meet some.

[Advertisement Voice]

Of the other hosts.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah, it is nice to be together. Cause we are almost never. That's true. Not all of us. You know, usually maybe four out of five or a good three. Yeah, yeah.

[Desi Lydic]

Much less in a sweat lodge.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Michael Kosta]

But you know that everyone thinks we're always hanging out all the time. Do you guys get that? People always ask me, like, what's it like hanging out with everybody all the time? And I say, I don't know who you are.

[Desi Lydic]

We barely know each other.

[Ronny Chang]

We don't barely know each other. No, I think we actually hang out more than. We don't hang out as much as the public things, but we hang out.

[Michael Kosta]

More than would be normal in the same. Yes, correct.

[Josh Johnson]

That's true.

[Jordan Klepper]

The Daily show never truly ends. Knock wood.

[Desi Lydic]

But careful what you say.

[Jordan Klepper]

I haven't read the News recently.

[Desi Lydic]

You hear that advertisers, it never ends. Write that down.

[Jordan Klepper]

So we're always sort of onto tomorrow's show and working on it, Right? So there's very few, like, hey, let's celebrate the past week's worth of shows. You're always just sort of like, cool. You're working on next week's show. So it's always like a. It's like a sexy baton toss.

[Desi Lydic]

Yes, very sexy.

[Ronny Chang]

But I feel like I've seen all you guys every day. I feel like I see you guys every day. But it's, to Josh's point, is never all five at the same time. So I'll see three of you. I'll see two of you. So I never feel like I don't see you guys.

[Josh Johnson]

Even when I am not with you all. You're. You're all brought up. You know, we're always in your meet and greets. At my. After my shows, they always tell me to tell you that you're brave.

[Jordan Klepper]

Me in particular.

[Josh Johnson]

No, 100%. Yeah. They're like. They're like, oh, George, how does he do it? And I was like, oh, I don't know. I'm not there when he does it. But yeah, he does it. And they're like, yeah, he just goes, oh, he'd be so scared. He just talks to people and everything. It's very sweet.

[Jordan Klepper]

You know, that always comes from a very sweet spot. But you realize how terrified people are of talking to other people.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah.

[Jordan Klepper]

You're so brave for talking to other people. That really speaks to the moment that we are in.

[Desi Lydic]

Also, you do have seven security guards following you at all times.

[Jordan Klepper]

They're scary, too. They're also scary.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah.

[Michael Kosta]

It does actually bring me comfort to know that I'm not the only one that people are asking me about my castmates.

[Jordan Klepper]

Yeah.

[Michael Kosta]

No, usually I get mad and say, why are you asking about them? Ask about me. But really, I should be happy that you're also being asked about me.

[Desi Lydic]

Yes.

[Advertisement Voice]

Yes.

[Desi Lydic]

Constantly.

[Ronny Chang]

I don't talk to my fans. I don't know what the hell they. I don't know what the things are. I try to avoid them.

[Michael Kosta]

Yeah, well, I've tried to avoid your fans, too.

[Jordan Klepper]

They're intense. Running.

[Josh Johnson]

No, they will specifically tell me, you know, like, if. Especially if I get stopped, they'll be like, man, you know, Daily Show's so good. Desi's great. And I'm like, yeah, she is. And then. And then they'll be done.

[Advertisement Voice]

They'll be done.

[Ronny Chang]

They'll be done.

[Josh Johnson]

Talking to her, I'll be like, oh, okay.

[Desi Lydic]

I will have you know I got that this weekend about you specifically. So, yes.

[Ronny Chang]

Annoying. We need to exchange fans.

[Desi Lydic]

Yeah, let's swap.

[Jordan Klepper]

I've had that happen every time I go out and about and do a talk where you quickly realize within five or ten seconds that you are not their favorite person.

[Josh Johnson]

Yes.

[Jordan Klepper]

What I will do. It's curious. Even on an Instagram scale, I'll notice somebody who's maybe a check mark or it pops up so and so, like the thing that you did. Or they will be like, you all have met them off screen. A mildly famous person who you might meet who talks about how much of a fan they are. And then you go onto, like, Instagram. And what is always heartbreaking is that I will go to see who they follow and realize they don't follow me. And they follow, like, two or three of you.

[Josh Johnson]

You're admitting that you do.

[Desi Lydic]

This is the kind of deep dive research you're doing on your off time.

[Jordan Klepper]

Yeah. You were like, oh, really? You're that big a fan, John Legend? Well, it seems like you're a real big fan of Josh and Desi, but.

[Ronny Chang]

Not enough to follow here W. Wow.

[Jordan Klepper]

It's lovely to be a part of a team, but you realize you're ranked in that team with every single person that you meet.

[Michael Kosta]

Can you imagine how, like, Tony Kuko felt?

[Desi Lydic]

That's a reference.

[Josh Johnson]

I can.

[Michael Kosta]

Or Scotty Pippen even, you know, like, dude, what's it like playing with Jordan? They must have adds that all the time. It's like, yo, I got seven rings. It must have been annoying as hell. Yeah.

[Josh Johnson]

Especially knowing how much you played the last game.

[Michael Kosta]

Oh, my God, I got the game winning shot.

[Josh Johnson]

You made a clutch shot. And now they're like, what was it like when Jordan passed?

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[Jordan Klepper]

So here's what we're gonna do here. We're gonna sort of put a bow on 2025, look back at some stories, some highlights, some lowlights. Just have a fun time together before we go off on our merry ways and reassemble in 2026.

[Desi Lydic]

Do any of you remember anything that happened this year? It's all a complete blur to me.

[Ronny Chang]

It's a blur. I didn't remember anything until someone mentioned fires and I was like, oh, yeah, that was this year.

[Jordan Klepper]

It's crazy, right?

[Josh Johnson]

Wasn't that also last year?

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah, kind of.

[Josh Johnson]

So were fires bad the last three years?

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah.

[Michael Kosta]

Also, just to be clear, fire has been around a very long time.

[Desi Lydic]

Maybe one of the first things to.

[Michael Kosta]

Be around the LA fires was a enormous news story that I had. I hate to even say this, but the barrage of other events had slipped my mind that that existed.

[Ronny Chang]

Yes.

[Jordan Klepper]

Whose week was the LA fire? I mean, it's existed for a while. Do you remember who was behind the desk when those began?

[Michael Kosta]

I remember John. John went real hard his day on fires, but I wonder if we were maybe dark and then he was like a comeback situation and there was sort of dark. You said a tornado fucked a hurricane, something fire. And I liked that joke so much that I totally butchered it. I just remember him going hard on it because then Trump was saying that there wasn't. The fire hydrants weren't accessible or some bullshit. Yeah, yeah, but I remember John 1 Hart.

[Josh Johnson]

But.

[Michael Kosta]

So that must have been January.

[Ronny Chang]

Right.

[Desi Lydic]

I kind of remember shining a spotlight on a smoke show of a reporter during that time, but I think that was a couple of weeks after.

[Jordan Klepper]

When you look back, what are the stories that. That pop out? Even though it all feels like a giant blur, what pops up? What is the chaos that pops up in your mind?

[Desi Lydic]

The first story that I remember in January that I can recall is the Gulf of America. Right. Was that like the first Trump?

[Jordan Klepper]

That was right off the bat because so January we have inauguration. So it's only been about 11 months.

[Advertisement Voice]

Right?

[Jordan Klepper]

Right. Gulf of America and war with Canada. Panama Canal, war with Canada, if you remember. Yeah, I feel like that those were sort of being talked about, if I recall, pre inauguration and like that's out. Out the Gate Gulf America, we're gonna fight with Canada and we want the Panama Canal. Like those are the first beefs.

[Ronny Chang]

Right, Right. And then pre presidency was fires. And then you get into that. And then when was Luigi.

[Josh Johnson]

No, that was last year. Right.

[Ronny Chang]

Oh, was it?

[Josh Johnson]

I'm pretty positive.

[Ronny Chang]

I can't remember. That's my bad.

[Michael Kosta]

Then I think it was Luigi last year. I can't remember because he just is about to go on trial now.

[Ronny Chang]

It's truly a blank.

[Michael Kosta]

I remember Liberation Day and the reason that's relevant to me was because I was like, here's the tariffs, here's the thing I printed. And we still don't know what the fuck is happening with tariffs. Do some countries have them? Some countries don't. I of course remember Luigi. God, that was captivating. And then the saddest one was Charlie Kirk was probably, if you asked me, the story that dominated the year. To me it's that.

[Josh Johnson]

But yeah, I mean, what do you.

[Michael Kosta]

Even say about it?

[Josh Johnson]

Epstein was pretty big.

[Michael Kosta]

Yep, you're right.

[Desi Lydic]

Epstein and Josh, you had that first Epstein Trump is on the list week. Right.

[Michael Kosta]

Which was.

[Josh Johnson]

Cause Elon said it. But he had just tweeted like Trump sent Epstein files. But that was cuz he got fired.

[Michael Kosta]

Right.

[Jordan Klepper]

That did. I feel such an important thing to remember when people are looking at like Marjorie Taylor Greene and oh, this is proof that the Republican Party can shift. It's like Elon Musk. Elon Musk said Donald Trump is in the Epstein files very publicly on the largest platform to the most number of people you could possibly talk to. And two weeks ago, Elon Musk was invited to the White House to have dinner with a literal pat on the back.

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah, he literally had a. Hevided to get a pat on the back.

[Josh Johnson]

Exactly.

[Jordan Klepper]

There is no ideology and there is no I'm turning away. You can't burn any of these bridges when money is the true currency.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah.

[Ronny Chang]

It is interesting because he's so. The President is so sensitive with certain things. Right. And then some things he's so thick skinned with it or he just forgot.

[Desi Lydic]

Or he's aging and he just completely forgets.

[Ronny Chang]

I don't know if he forgets grievances, but he, you know, even when Mandani was in the. Which also happened this year, Mandani was in the White House. And remember when they said like the press was asking Mandani like, hey, is the President a fascist? And Trump was like, you can say it, it's okay.

[Michael Kosta]

Yeah, right.

[Ronny Chang]

And that was such a cool, like thick skinned Move. Right. He's like, they want you to call me a fascist. Just say it. I don't even care. You know? And then some things he's so sensitive about, but other things he's like, yeah, whatever.

[Jordan Klepper]

He was so crushing on being in a room with another winner.

[Desi Lydic]

Yes.

[Jordan Klepper]

You could just see that Mamdani energy, where he was like, oh, he was won over by this other winner.

[Michael Kosta]

Success.

[Josh Johnson]

He's surrounded by losers, like, fundamental. And not even in a partisan way.

[Ronny Chang]

Yes, yes.

[Josh Johnson]

Who has fun around Ron DeSantis. Do you know what I mean? So it's like, that's the energy. So I think, to your point, it's like Mamdani's in there, and he's like, you know, charismatic. And Trump hasn't seen charisma in a while.

[Michael Kosta]

From Queens. Trump's from Queens.

[Ronny Chang]

But it's not like you called it. Right. You didn't call that they would get.

[Josh Johnson]

No, no, no.

[Desi Lydic]

That was surprising. Watching that dynamic was so fascinating. And there was. I know he was sitting at the presidential desk in the Oval Office, but there was something about the visual of him being seated and Mamdani kind of standing over him in a power in, like, a very alpha position. I don't know. It was just like. It was a dynamic I hadn't seen.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah. It's probably the opposite of what he intended. Cause it's like, I feel like he's sitting to make Mama Donnie stand there so he can be, like, doing a little show and tell. Look, he stands for me. But then it's like you also then can't look up at him lovingly. Like, it's like. That's also what shifted it. It's like you see Trump looking at Mom Diet while he's tall.

[Advertisement Voice]

Charming.

[Michael Kosta]

So charming. That is the same place that Kid Rock stood as well, when he was in the Oval Office. I always thought Trump would have, like, a little trapdoor right there.

[Ronny Chang]

Next to the Coke button.

[Jordan Klepper]

There's actually a trap door at the front of that desk. Right. Isn't that what little young JFK Jr.

[Desi Lydic]

Quite some time ago.

[Michael Kosta]

There actually is.

[Advertisement Voice]

There is.

[Jordan Klepper]

And the front of the Resolute desk, it opens up an open panel where there's a famous picture of John F. Kennedy's son.

[Ronny Chang]

Yes.

[Jordan Klepper]

Do you think. Who's apparently gonna be vice president for Trump in some future administration world?

[Michael Kosta]

Do you think Trump had his hand on the secret under the desk gun at all times, too? I've always wanted under the desk gun. Oh, and just put that in the pot if you want.

[Desi Lydic]

Put in Your contract.

[Michael Kosta]

Put that in the pot. If you want.

[Advertisement Voice]

Put in your contract.

[Ronny Chang]

But, like, fixed to the desk, Correct?

[Jordan Klepper]

Correct.

[Michael Kosta]

You know, like every detective movie.

[Jordan Klepper]

What sucks is the office space here is so tight that all of our desks face the wal. You'd have a dangerous person walk in, and yet all you can really do is shoot at a wall.

[Michael Kosta]

Why did they put this on a swivel hinge?

[Jordan Klepper]

You have to achieve the status of a big open floor plan. Otherwise you're shooting.

[Ronny Chang]

You should have a desk facing the door, which is very hard to achieve in New York City.

[Josh Johnson]

I mean, really, only John could shoot us, right? Yeah, you're right. Yeah. I mean, also, it's such a fixed point that imagine if they're just standing a little to the left.

[Jordan Klepper]

Yeah.

[Josh Johnson]

And now you miss.

[Jordan Klepper]

You miss. Yeah.

[Josh Johnson]

Like, what was that?

[Jordan Klepper]

To be clear. Yes. John has the best desk out of everybod.

[Michael Kosta]

Right.

[Jordan Klepper]

It does face other people. So kudos. That's what you get. That's what you get for being in the stand for that.

[Ronny Chang]

For inventing American satire.

[Josh Johnson]

Yes.

[Michael Kosta]

You get a desk that faces incorrectly.

[Jordan Klepper]

States overnight.

[Ronny Chang]

Modern American.

[Jordan Klepper]

Perfected.

[Advertisement Voice]

Perfected.

[Ronny Chang]

Modern American satire.

[Michael Kosta]

Modern American satire.

[Ronny Chang]

Modern American satire.

[Jordan Klepper]

When does modern American satire start?

[Ronny Chang]

Probably with the advent of TV, right?

[Jordan Klepper]

Okay.

[Ronny Chang]

Television as a medium.

[Jordan Klepper]

50S, 40s? 50s.

[Michael Kosta]

Okay.

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah, but nobody was cutting clips in the 50s or 60s, right?

[Jordan Klepper]

Oh, you're talking about using news as a narrative structure.

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah, yeah.

[Jordan Klepper]

You just gotta be more specific.

[Ronny Chang]

Sorry I say modern America. I get what that means. Sorry, I have to explain it to people who didn't go to law school.

[Jordan Klepper]

I always forget. You went to law school and you always forget.

[Desi Lydic]

I don't, because he reminds me all the time.

[Josh Johnson]

How can you forget that Ronnie went to law school?

[Ronny Chang]

Two degrees.

[Jordan Klepper]

Here's a question. We're sort of touching on it here, but is there any news stories that happen? Like, as we know, your week at the desk is a wild week. And we've gotten, I'd like to say, pretty good at responding to the news of the morning, the news of the afternoon, the thing that happened last night. Is there been any news stories that you've watched somebody else get or cover that you're like, ah, damn it, I wish I was behind the desk.

[Ronny Chang]

I did. Like, this isn't really a news story. But you and Troy's Fox, the pageant thing.

[Desi Lydic]

Oh, yeah.

[Ronny Chang]

You guys were talking about the Fox Awards. The Freedom Awards.

[Desi Lydic]

Yes, Freedom Awards.

[Ronny Chang]

I don't wish I covered that because they covered it so. It was so funny. Troy and Desi, they Did a two hander where they were both talking about the Freedom Awards. And it was. It was great. It was a great segment. I love that.

[Desi Lydic]

The footage was very funny.

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah, but you guys also. You guys added so much to it. It was great.

[Desi Lydic]

Very light lift. Can I. Okay. When you covered Pete Hegseth speaking to the military about no fatties, that whole section was so funny and only something that I feel you could do. Like, the jokes that you were hitting were so specific to you.

[Josh Johnson]

I don't know.

[Ronny Chang]

I think we could all have done.

[Desi Lydic]

It, you know, I mean, anyone could come in and do their version of it. But, like, there were certain. They were just very Ronnie jokes.

[Ronny Chang]

Thanks.

[Josh Johnson]

Thanks.

[Desi Lydic]

That was one of my favorites.

[Jordan Klepper]

I remember. Did you cover. Well, I remember you covering RFK Jr. Behr and Roseanne Barr response video.

[Michael Kosta]

That's right.

[Jordan Klepper]

That to me.

[Josh Johnson]

That's right.

[Jordan Klepper]

I loved that act. It's so. Sometimes you want a meaty story that you can kind of pull together and what have you, but then the absurdity of this administration knows no bounds. And that one, I remember. What I loved about how you guys covered it that day was sometimes there's so much chaos that you're jumping all over with a bunch of different stories. But you guys, like sat in that clip, which was wild. It was. If I recall, was there a Vanity.

[Michael Kosta]

Fair story that leaked or something in rfk?

[Desi Lydic]

Oh, the bear. Bear in the woods.

[Jordan Klepper]

RFK hit a bear, Picked up a bear on his way upstate. The back of the car.

[Michael Kosta]

Stored the meat. Stored the meat for a while.

[Jordan Klepper]

Stored the meat. And then the second level that a video got released of Roseanne Barr defending that story. It's a turducken of America right there. And I remember you walking through it, and I laughed so hard. I was like, that's such a great story. You did such a great job of like, let's sit in this shit. Because this is chaotic. It's not just one joke. We need to really unpack this.

[Michael Kosta]

I think Zhubin helped. I mean, he always helps. Obviously, one of our writers, Juben Parang, I remember that day, him saying, like, let's wallow in this. And that was great advice, as he always gives, because there was enough there for us to just sit at the desk and like, keep pulling clips, keep pulling things. Because RFK Jr the more you kind of take it seriously, the funnier it can be.

[Ronny Chang]

Yes.

[Desi Lydic]

Who had this? Him swimming in sewage. Was that you, too?

[Michael Kosta]

It wasn't me.

[Jordan Klepper]

I don't think I covered parts of it. I can't Remember if that was the first wave of that story coming out.

[Desi Lydic]

Or that was so.

[Jordan Klepper]

No, no, that was. I think. I think that was me. You're right.

[Desi Lydic]

I think it was.

[Michael Kosta]

He wasn't swimming in sewage. He was swimming in a creek that they had proclaimed had sewage in it. I mean, still should not be swimming in it.

[Desi Lydic]

No, no.

[Jordan Klepper]

But he was shirtless in it. Yes.

[Michael Kosta]

And then it came out Father's Day, maybe.

[Jordan Klepper]

Oh, yeah.

[Desi Lydic]

Or he was with his kid.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah, yeah. Cause it wasn't like. It wasn't like Ninja Turtles swimming.

[Michael Kosta]

Right. That's what I'm trying to say.

[Josh Johnson]

But it was like a clear sewage leak. That is. There's signs.

[Michael Kosta]

Yeah. And it was like, don't swim in this.

[Ronny Chang]

But he was doing it to build his immunity. Is that the thing?

[Josh Johnson]

I don't know if he's building anymore. I think. No, I think he's showing off.

[Jordan Klepper]

He's showing off immunity now.

[Josh Johnson]

I personally think he feels like he's cooked up all the immunity he needs. So now he just moves through life.

[Jordan Klepper]

As he sees fit.

[Josh Johnson]

I don't think. Because also, he's. Isn't he 70? So at 70, you're not building anything anymore. Like, there's no. Like, I'm building strong bones.

[Ronny Chang]

Oh, he's like, definitely doing the opposite of building things.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Michael Kosta]

You know, but it brings up a good point. I do get annoyed when there's a no swimming sign and it doesn't tell me why. Like, no swimming, fecal matter, whatever, you know? Okay. I don't want to swim there. No swimming. We don't have a lifeguard on duty. Well, I want to swim now. We can do that.

[Desi Lydic]

Do you see that as a challenge?

[Michael Kosta]

Yeah, I see it as a challenge. I think that we need. I think. And this is what I want everyone to get out of this podcast. We need more specific no swimming signs.

[Josh Johnson]

I mean, this. That is maybe the whitest thing you've ever seen.

[Michael Kosta]

Undertow. I don't wanna swim in that.

[Josh Johnson]

Sure, sure.

[Michael Kosta]

We don't supervise this area. Well, we can go swimming.

[Josh Johnson]

The idea. The idea that someone bothered to make a no swimming sign.

[Michael Kosta]

I should just trust that to a degree.

[Josh Johnson]

Cause I just don't know anyone who is just trying to deprive people of swimming to the point where they just randomly put it up. So then if someone was doing that and it was, like, known, I'd be way more on your side. I'd be like, yeah, you gotta check it. But the fact that someone who's not here right now is like, nobody should Swim in this.

[Jordan Klepper]

Do you trust the color flag system they have at the beach? Because I do.

[Michael Kosta]

Do you know the color flag system?

[Jordan Klepper]

You know the color flag system? You know, they haven't changed it. The lifeguard hasn't been out there enough time. I'm always skeptical about.

[Michael Kosta]

Lifeguards are underfunded. What's green? What's yellow? What's orange is a one. What is orange? Does orange mean have fun? Does orange mean have fun?

[Josh Johnson]

I mean, I'll throw this out there, because I don't go to the beach often, so I'm the wrong one to ask. And when I go, I don't swim. I just sort of stand there. But the. Anytime there is not a lifeguard anywhere, like, at the beach or anything, I assume that they drowned.

[Michael Kosta]

Right.

[Desi Lydic]

Something happened to the lifeguard.

[Josh Johnson]

I don't go off, like, in my head, like, oh, I guess the lifeguard's on break. I'm like, the lifeguard clearly tried to save someone, and this person fought them, so. Cause, you know, sometimes people fight you when you're trying to save them from drowning. I always assume there needs to be a lifeguard that needs help.

[Jordan Klepper]

I feel like more often than not, you'd approach a beach. Oftentimes the lifeguard's not there. So you have a tragic tale in your mind as you set foot. That there was a person there recently who got fought with over saving their own lives, and that person's dead now. And yet you're like, let's go. Still enjoy this day?

[Josh Johnson]

I don't enjoy it. I just. Like I said, I stand there. I don't get in the water.

[Desi Lydic]

You see glass?

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah.

[Josh Johnson]

I'm just like, at certain times point when you don't see a lifeguard, you're like, all right, all right, maybe. But maybe who guards the lifeguard?

[Desi Lydic]

You know, somehow that is.

[Michael Kosta]

Yeah, good point.

[Desi Lydic]

Let's think about that for a minute.

[Jordan Klepper]

That's pretty. I think. Who does guard the lifeguard?

[Josh Johnson]

Apparently no one. Because I don't say anything. No one that knows me knows that I think this.

[Desi Lydic]

I don't know if you know this, but Josh did take some ayahuasca earlier in the sweat lodge, and this is. It's starting to come out now. Starting to now.

[Josh Johnson]

I get this. I mean, it's a wonder that I'm even lucid, you know? Cause ayahuasca apparently really takes you somewhere.

[Advertisement Voice]

Yeah.

[Jordan Klepper]

Somewhere else.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah.

[Desi Lydic]

Have you heard the lifeguard.

[Josh Johnson]

Have you heard that there are people that do ayahuasca, like, here? Like, they just go to, like, what do you mean?

[Desi Lydic]

Here in this building?

[Josh Johnson]

No, like in the city.

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah, yeah.

[Josh Johnson]

And they just go to, like, a gym.

[Jordan Klepper]

I've been trying to find them and they.

[Josh Johnson]

They do ayahuasca in, like, a gym.

[Desi Lydic]

Oh, that would not be the way to do it.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah. It's not the way it's intended at all.

[Jordan Klepper]

Well, I know there's. There's groups, I've heard of groups in LA who have, like, taken the ayahuasca tradition and made it sort of like a quasi meditation retreat situation.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah.

[Ronny Chang]

Unfortunately, the two people I know firsthand who did ayahuasca came, went in atheists and came out not atheists.

[Jordan Klepper]

Really?

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah. And it's so irritating.

[Jordan Klepper]

Really? Two for two.

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah. I fucking hate that shit so much.

[Michael Kosta]

Why does it ever happen the other way?

[Jordan Klepper]

Why does it ever happen?

[Michael Kosta]

Like, about evangelical ayahuasca, like, you know what?

[Ronny Chang]

This is all bullshit.

[Desi Lydic]

I was wrong.

[Ronny Chang]

I know.

[Michael Kosta]

Yeah.

[Ronny Chang]

I wish so. Yeah, I wish that was the case.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah. I think. I think atheists just need, like, more compelling sensations. Like all the religious sensations, like, drink this. You're like, what is it? It's like, don't worry. You about to see God, feel something and then you feel very weird and you're like, maybe that was it. Whereas atheists are just like, come on.

[Michael Kosta]

Yeah, it must have been a trip when somebody ate a magic mushroom. The first time.

[Jordan Klepper]

The first time. Right.

[Desi Lydic]

Just so you know, our producer is very subtly moving along the prompts.

[Ronny Chang]

They want poem from ayahuasca.

[Jordan Klepper]

Oh, this is. Oh, you know what? I'm. Okay.

[Josh Johnson]

Yes. Hint, hint, hint, hint.

[Ronny Chang]

You're listening to this. Don't take it.

[Jordan Klepper]

So looking at the tattoo.

[Ronny Chang]

Stay atheist. Stay atheist.

[Jordan Klepper]

Stay atheist, guys.

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[Desi Lydic]

Hey, what's up, y'?

[Jordan Klepper]

All?

[Desi Lydic]

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[Jordan Klepper]

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[Desi Lydic]

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[Jordan Klepper]

In this past year, is there any characters that have popped up in this news universe that we've covered that you think will have a larger role next year? Anybody you sad to see go?

[Ronny Chang]

Kind of sad to see MTG go.

[Jordan Klepper]

You think she's gone?

[Ronny Chang]

Oh, I think I. Based on my read of her. Her. The way she's giving speeches now, my read is she's gone, gone. I can see the true belief in her of, like, I'm out, really.

[Desi Lydic]

I think she's playing the long game, and I was gonna give her a shout out for being the most compelling character just in terms of having a real character arc.

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah, her arc is great. Yeah, great character arc.

[Desi Lydic]

Very bingeable.

[Josh Johnson]

I mean, she's probably the best room reader we've seen because she is jumping ship before. It's like if someone had a personal lifeboat and they saw the iceberg up ahead and they just quietly didn't tell anybody, but then they got off because what she's gonna be able to do. Cause don't get me wrong, she's le leaving Congress for, like, all these, like, rumored reasons. I think maybe she just went ahead and did enough insider trading and made enough money that she's probably, like, good. And then she's also, like, there's a. There's way more, like, culture sort of cache in leaving on your own because you're disgusted with, like, politics, because everyone's discussed with politics. That's very, like, every man approach, even though you're. You're part of why you're disgusted with politics like that. Like, you were supposed to do the thing. You know what I mean? Like, when you hire a plumber, it's not noble for them to come out of the bathroom, be like, gross, I'm gonna go. It's like, that's. But you signed. You said it was gross and you could take care of it. That's why you're here. And so she's getting these pats on the back and all these rumored reasons, some of them glowing, some of them not as favorable that she's leaving. But then my thing is, like, you have so much more. You have the opposite of what Cash Patel and Dan Bongino have now. Cause they had the sort of culture on their side of like that right wing culture. Ooh, if we could just get in there, we would fix everything. And now they are in there and people are like, these guys are clowns. Whereas she gets to do the opposite. Like, you could lay a lot of these problems at her feet. Like she was in government for a lot of them. But she's like, you know what? This is too nasty. And then she's leaving and somehow she gets credit for it. But I think she's going into media. Like, I think. I think that's a good call. I think media is going to be the move because she's going to be. It's one thing to have like a Fox News correspondent or a contributor, and then it's another thing to have someone who can say, I was on the inside. Like, almost the way that. What was the guy's name? He kind of tried to do it. Was it.

[Jordan Klepper]

It's not Trey Gowdy's in the Fox cycle.

[Josh Johnson]

It's not Caulfield.

[Jordan Klepper]

That was the catcher on the Ride. That's the character in Catcher on the Ride, Madison Cawthorn.

[Josh Johnson]

Yes. Okay. Yes. So it's the same thing that Madison Cawthorn tried to do.

[Ronny Chang]

Oh, yeah, that guy.

[Josh Johnson]

Because he was like, oh, this is so corrupt. This place is corrupt. And then he lost his seat, but then he didn't have the extra thing.

[Jordan Klepper]

It's hard when you're out of that limelight. It's funny seeing Matt Gaetz pop up now inside the Pentagon for the news network and you forget how far he clearly had fallen. But he knows how to play that system. And yet he then just seems a part of. I mean, I think becoming a quote unquote truth teller in the media ecosystem is a. Is a money grab for a lot of these guys that know how to do it. Mtg. I don't buy that there is any true. Like, I don't buy the argument that her point of view actually shifted or that there's a moral reckoning that's happening. But I do think she is a curious case of somebody who knows how to read a room and that if the ship is sinking, she would probably be one of the savvy ones to jump off. So it's really curious to see if there's truth in that in this upcoming era.

[Michael Kosta]

She stood at Capitol Hill with Epstein victims calling out Trump. I mean, she knows how to piss off Trump. She is so good at that confrontation. I thought that was badass. For her to go that hard and then to bail ship is very interesting and very curious to see where it's headed.

[Jordan Klepper]

It also shows you just how ineffective Congress is. She ran on, I can go in here and change things. Elect me so I can change what's happening in this world. It's like this person is. I'm gonna stand up to the strongest man on the planet. What are you gonna do? I'm quitting.

[Michael Kosta]

Yeah.

[Ronny Chang]

Oh.

[Jordan Klepper]

So that's not the place to do it. So you think media might be the place?

[Michael Kosta]

I think we're gonna see a lot more Pete Hegseth. I think Trump loves Hegseth. He loves the suits. He loves the haircut. He loves how clearly he speaks. Clearly. Shit is amping up with Venezuela. One of the first things Trump did was bomb Iran. He loves Pete Hegseth. I don't love Pete Hegseth. I think he's a clown, but I think we are gonna see a lot. What'd you say?

[Ronny Chang]

I said, you could have fooled me.

[Michael Kosta]

I think Trump loves him, and I think he's gonna use him more and more. And he's so loyal to Trump.

[Ronny Chang]

Really? You don't think any of the many kind of fumbles he's made.

[Michael Kosta]

He should have been out with the first signal text.

[Ronny Chang]

He should have been out, but that's what I'm saying. You don't think the fumbles are gone?

[Desi Lydic]

Yeah, I think he'll throw him under the bus.

[Michael Kosta]

No, dude, he loves them. I think, you know, they're in bed together.

[Josh Johnson]

The person. The person who is not turning out to be who I thought they would be in the administration is like, Pam Bondi. Pam Bondi.

[Michael Kosta]

She's a clown.

[Ronny Chang]

She.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah, it's like she initially started and, like, there were people that were like, pam Bondi is smart. Like, you know, he's like, yes. Like, if anything, there was almost this. This bubbling up of. I won't just say fear, but there was, like, there was some real anxiety in. In a lot of like, left leaning politics and a lot of, like, political experts that I know that they were like, I don't know, Pam Bonney might get in there and she might basically do quietly and very effectively what what Trump says in this, like, very dumb, loud way. Right. The same way that what's his name from Project 2025 is like, you never see him on camera much. Yeah.

[Michael Kosta]

Vaughn Von Miller.

[Josh Johnson]

No.

[Ronny Chang]

No.

[Michael Kosta]

Yeah.

[Josh Johnson]

Like, and. And so I just. I see her now and it's like she keeps having the same trip trip ups as Trump without having, like, any charisma. So it's like, it's across my desk. It doesn't exist. We finished it. We're opening an investigation. It's like. And she also never has the like, Caroline Levitt level of, like, I said what I said, what are you gonna do about it? She always seems to, like, backtrack what she. You can make her nervous, which is weird. It's like, you're the attorney, aren't you the attorney General? Cause whenever you answer my questions, it makes me feel like I'm the Attorney General. Like, it's very awkward. And then, like, even when she's trying to praise Trump, you can tell Trump only accepts praise from a few people that it feels, like, sincere from, you know, and you can tell when she's like, thank you for being the biggest, baddest, most president president ever. That even Trump is, like, annoying. And so I don't know. I don't know how much longer she'll be around.

[Jordan Klepper]

Oh, interesting. I think Kash Patel. I'm watching. I think he's had a fun character arc these last six months.

[Desi Lydic]

Oh, God, yeah, we've all had fun.

[Jordan Klepper]

Oh, my God. I thought, like, when you covered Desi, the women's jacket. The women's jacket, the girlfriend. Country music Sing mad at the agents who were guarding his girlfriend because they left halfway through. Cause there was no threat. Like, that's such a. There's such a human, hilarious, buffoonish element to Kash Patel. But I see there's a little bit of turning in the MAGA sphere around him where I'm wondering, I don't think Trump makes. Trump is not firing people. Cause I think that seems to be an admission of guilt. And I think he's learned. Like, I'll stick it out with Hagseth. I'll stick it out with all these people. Because it looks like I'm doubling down on maga and I wonder if Cash has the cred to ride it that way.

[Ronny Chang]

I also don't think he I think he's not firing people, this administration, because these are more loyal people, whereas the previous Iraq. The previous ones were more establishment Republicans who actually had competency. And these guys are just the pure.

[Desi Lydic]

Loyalists, because if you're gonna let someone go, you have to have someone right there willing to step in who's gonna be just as loyal.

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah.

[Desi Lydic]

Those people might be dwindling.

[Jordan Klepper]

There's not a second Cash Patel out there.

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah. I hope.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah.

[Ronny Chang]

There's another figure who's popped up recently, which is Lindsey Halligan, who is the person, the lawyer who's prosecuting.

[Michael Kosta]

Oh, yeah, yeah. All the Comey indictment.

[Ronny Chang]

Comey indictment.

[Jordan Klepper]

All that.

[Ronny Chang]

And she's getting. I think the Supreme Court has said, like, you're not a lawyer.

[Michael Kosta]

I mean, the. The fucking.

[Ronny Chang]

You can't.

[Michael Kosta]

The jury didn't even see the indictment.

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah, yeah.

[Michael Kosta]

Like, you know, you went. You went to law school, right?

[Jordan Klepper]

Just.

[Ronny Chang]

Just the law school perspective on this is that one of the things is that you're genuinely scared of being disbarred. That's a genuine feeling. Or lawyer, your number one concern is don't do anything that will get you in trouble as the lawyer. And all these people, the way these people act. I'm like, man, they. I guess, you know, nothing matters anymore because how the lack of following any of these procedures is crazy.

[Michael Kosta]

Or Doge. Cut all the people that enforce that stuff.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah.

[Ronny Chang]

So, yeah, great.

[Michael Kosta]

So go America.

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah, go Lindsey Halligan. I think she hasn't been fired yet, which is crazy to me. So she's one of my favorite characters of this.

[Jordan Klepper]

I'm wondering if you. Do you guys want to play a game?

[Advertisement Voice]

Sure.

[Desi Lydic]

Love games.

[Jordan Klepper]

They've set up a fun game for us here to play. They're calling this one who Am I? And what they've done is. The lovely folks in our podcasting department have pulled descriptors that we've used on the show about characters of the last year that we've talked about. So they're gonna play or they're gonna put up here in the screen. We'll read them out loud, the names, the descriptors of, see if we can guess who these people are.

[Desi Lydic]

Okay.

[Jordan Klepper]

Okay, let's see what we got. Scrooge, if the ghost never visited. Ooh, D.D.

[Michael Kosta]

Devin wrote that.

[Jordan Klepper]

Yeah. That's sometimes a fun detail we get from the inside is you occasionally get funny jokes and the initials of writers who pitch those jokes, so we get to judge them from afar. Elon Scrooge, the ghost never visited.

[Michael Kosta]

It's gonna be someone older. Like Mitch McConnell.

[Desi Lydic]

I'm gonna go Trump.

[Jordan Klepper]

Donald J. Trump.

[Desi Lydic]

Oh, hey.

[Michael Kosta]

Okay. Got it. Nice job.

[Jordan Klepper]

That's very classic. Okay. Half melted. Bob Barker.

[Michael Kosta]

Oh, that's a tricky one. That's Mitch McConnell.

[Josh Johnson]

Steve Bannon.

[Desi Lydic]

No, I think Mitch McConnell's a great guy.

[Michael Kosta]

I think it's Mitch McConnell. I'm going to say Mitch McConnell.

[Jordan Klepper]

Let's go. Mitch McConnell.

[Michael Kosta]

For all of them.

[Jordan Klepper]

Joe Biden. Do you remember. Do you remember he was president of this year?

[Ronny Chang]

It's crazy.

[Michael Kosta]

Joe Biden started the year as president. Action figure that got too close to a light bulb.

[Jordan Klepper]

RFK or a hegseth.

[Desi Lydic]

Pete. Hegseth is.

[Michael Kosta]

But it would have to be melted. Mitch McConnell.

[Jordan Klepper]

We definitely leaned into the melting of Mitch McConnell for sure.

[Ronny Chang]

Oh, man. He started freezing up again recently.

[Jordan Klepper]

I know. Really?

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah.

[Jordan Klepper]

It's a hot take, but I think he should do one more election and then retire. There, I said it. This is fetus in its hundredth trimester.

[Desi Lydic]

I'm gonna say Kash Patel.

[Ronny Chang]

I'm gon. I'm gonna say Steve Bannon.

[Jordan Klepper]

Oh, I'm. You know, I'm gonna go. I'm gonna go Miller. I'm gonna go Stephen Miller.

[Desi Lydic]

That's a good guess, too.

[Michael Kosta]

Mitch McConnell.

[Jordan Klepper]

Eric Trump.

[Desi Lydic]

Oh, yes. That's a good Trump.

[Ronny Chang]

Bit of an indictment on these descriptors.

[Jordan Klepper]

I was gonna say. They clearly don't know the voice of the host of the show.

[Desi Lydic]

Clearly not.

[Jordan Klepper]

Off Broadway. American Psycho.

[Desi Lydic]

Stephen Miller.

[Jordan Klepper]

Stephen Miller.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeahseth could work the hair.

[Jordan Klepper]

What do we got? Gavin Newsom.

[Michael Kosta]

Okay.

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah, that's right.

[Josh Johnson]

And that seems true.

[Jordan Klepper]

You don't think he'd make it to Broadway?

[Josh Johnson]

Not quite. You know, I feel like he. I don't know. I feel like he would just be so excited to be in a theater that he'd be like, I'm gonna stay.

[Jordan Klepper]

We have man, who has definitely fucked a robot already.

[Ronny Chang]

I mean. Elon.

[Advertisement Voice]

Elon.

[Jordan Klepper]

Elon. Elon Musk. Yep. Nailed it. Friendless Ziploc bag full of jizz.

[Ronny Chang]

Zach. Very Zach.

[Jordan Klepper]

That is a Zach quote.

[Ronny Chang]

Friendless Ziploc bag full of jizz.

[Desi Lydic]

Mike Johnson.

[Josh Johnson]

Elon Musk. Elon. A little bit, yeah.

[Ronny Chang]

Oh, friendless.

[Jordan Klepper]

Friendless is a good specific there. The rest is just. We're just being mean. We're coming up with the grossest possible thing.

[Josh Johnson]

But he does have a lot of kids. That's why he's full.

[Ronny Chang]

Oh, that's.

[Josh Johnson]

Oh.

[Jordan Klepper]

So I guess that is more specific. You're right. Because of the kids. Yes.

[Josh Johnson]

Okay.

[Desi Lydic]

See, it was grounded in something.

[Jordan Klepper]

It was grounded In a truth, yes. A caterpillar in the middle of becoming an uglier. Oh, no.

[Ronny Chang]

Oh, this could be Stephen Miller.

[Desi Lydic]

This could be Stephen Miller.

[Josh Johnson]

Man, I can't. Yeah, I don't remember doing that.

[Jordan Klepper]

You wrote that one. There's a JJ Right there. Oh, jj.

[Michael Kosta]

There you go.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah. Wow.

[Michael Kosta]

You probably used AI.

[Jordan Klepper]

Star of Kubrick's lesser known sequel, Eyes Wide Open.

[Michael Kosta]

Cash.

[Desi Lydic]

Cash Battle. That's a Cash.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah.

[Jordan Klepper]

What do we have? Recently we had. It made me laugh out loud. It was like, oh, that's the Kash Patel. It was like the picture of Kash Patel was. Here's Kash Patel reacting to the information that Kash Patel is in charge of the FBI.

[Desi Lydic]

The director of the FBI is Cash Patel. Yeah, that was last week.

[Jordan Klepper]

That's pretty spot on.

[Desi Lydic]

It's a good one.

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[Josh Johnson]

Your planet is now marked for death.

[Michael Kosta]

Marvel Studios the Fantastic Four First Steps.

[Ronny Chang]

Is now streaming on Disney.

[Jordan Klepper]

We will protect as a family.

[Michael Kosta]

Light em up, Johnny. Marvel's first family is certified fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.

[Josh Johnson]

That is fantastic.

[Michael Kosta]

And critics say it's one of the best superhero movies of all time. Marvel Studios the Fantastic Four first steps now streaming on Disney. Rated PG 13. What time is it, Ben?

[Jordan Klepper]

It's clobber time, guys, to wrap this thing up. I wonder if there is a prediction. 2026 prediction. What do we think we're heading into? What are we gonna cover? Are there people that are gonna pop up? What do you imagine 2026 has in store for us?

[Ronny Chang]

I think Trump will turn over a new leaf and become a better person. The signs all pointing to it.

[Jordan Klepper]

He learned the error of his ways. I see that his health problems will allow him to reflect on the things he can do, the good he can.

[Ronny Chang]

Do in the world. Hone on to rhetoric and have coherent policies decision.

[Desi Lydic]

The full Marjorie Taylor Greene arc is gonna follow through and there will be world peace.

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Michael Kosta]

I think it's been a year. It's been a year.

[Ronny Chang]

He's got three more.

[Michael Kosta]

Three more. I think it'll be interesting to watch. Desi and I were speaking about this on one of our holiday trailer shoots recently. It really feels like the last week he's been getting very angry, like truly angry. You've watched him call like the reporters piggies and the one called stupid.

[Jordan Klepper]

Right.

[Michael Kosta]

But like it's like, it's funny.

[Jordan Klepper]

Haha.

[Michael Kosta]

But like the way he says it, he's angry.

[Ronny Chang]

No.

[Michael Kosta]

It'll be interesting to see how that anger progresses throughout the next year. And the next year. The next year I think he's gonna start to become a little more unhinged and really test all of us and our legal system's ability to handle how far he pushes. I think it's gonna get gnarly.

[Desi Lydic]

Do you think he will become unhinged in a way that makes him less harmful? Like makes him more transparent to the people who need to recognize him?

[Michael Kosta]

Yeah, I know. That's a good question. Yeah.

[Ronny Chang]

Another problem with this. What's happening in 2026 is that a lot of the economic things that he's up take time to see that up. So we're gonna see the effects of the up.

[Michael Kosta]

Yeah.

[Ronny Chang]

More next year.

[Michael Kosta]

The anger will. Yeah.

[Jordan Klepper]

I think the midterms are going to be fascinating because there's a decent chance you start to see the, the economics not turning around, these tariffs really affecting people, the health insurance. Trump, at least what it's looking like right now is not a good thing to run on for these midterms. And you're going to see a party attempting to distance itself from the Donald Trump.

[Ronny Chang]

You predict that?

[Jordan Klepper]

Well, I think they might. Out of self preservation. He is a lame duck president and starting to grapple with. Is that true? Well, I mean, yeah.

[Michael Kosta]

That's why he's gotta figure that out. Attempt to.

[Jordan Klepper]

But I think he might. I bet he will harden that narrative because he's going to feel the slipping away of a party that's like. Like you're not helping me win. We've already seen this happen in these special elections as we get to the midterms. It's not popular. And if you aren't running again, then we have to come up with our own identity, which that party can't do without Donald Trump, but is going to be faced with having to attempt that in four, five, six months. And Donald Trump will probably react in kind, which could be more so the narrative of a third term, at least in a much stronger, angrier, more plausible way.

[Josh Johnson]

Wow.

[Ronny Chang]

What educate analysis.

[Michael Kosta]

I hope he's right. Well, I don't know.

[Ronny Chang]

You don't?

[Michael Kosta]

The fact that we're even saying third term like Casually shows that the way he drops this shit on us is effective because we should not even be fucking saying it.

[Josh Johnson]

Yes.

[Jordan Klepper]

It's the Overton window of it all. He keeps saying it. He puts it on hat. It's a joke. It's a joke until it's a thing that, like us. And right now, right, even where you're like, that can't happen. And it technically cannot happen.

[Desi Lydic]

But here we are talking about it.

[Jordan Klepper]

Here we are talking about it.

[Desi Lydic]

Hey, Alan, can you just take this part right out of the podcast?

[Jordan Klepper]

Yes.

[Desi Lydic]

Just edit this.

[Jordan Klepper]

Don't give any ideas out there.

[Michael Kosta]

Thank you. I can see through the window. Alan's actually hung himself.

[Josh Johnson]

I do think in 2026, there'll be another Diddy documentary. It doesn't seem like he's done. I think there's more coming. Yeah, Yeah, I agree.

[Michael Kosta]

Underserved in the documentary world.

[Josh Johnson]

It's up to this point, but there's more. There's so much more to uncover. And I do think that, like, I don't know if you've seen it, but it. It's harrowing and it. I.

[Jordan Klepper]

It.

[Josh Johnson]

There's no cliffhanger but you. Diddy's still alive, so there's. He's gonna be Diddy Moore.

[Jordan Klepper]

There will be more analysis of Diddy. Do you think there'll be new Diddy stories or more? So a look back.

[Josh Johnson]

Oh, 100%. Like, here's the thing. Here's the thing. 50 Cent, you know, produced this documentary, sold it to Netflix and everything, but that's four episodes. But what they cover is like sort of an arc history of Diddy right to this point. I think that there's so many more people in the woodwork that he screwed out of money. There are people that get talked about in the documentary that aren't in the documentary. So then there's hearing their side of things and everything. So there's. As far as content goes, there's a wealth of it because he screwed people over for, like, easily, what, like 35 years? So it's like, that's. That's already bad. But then also.

[Ronny Chang]

So it sounds like he'll be our next president, probably.

[Josh Johnson]

I mean, he only has 77 civil cases against him, and so I feel like pending.

[Michael Kosta]

That's a lot.

[Desi Lydic]

Are there any words.

[Ronny Chang]

Can't wait to cover it.

[Desi Lydic]

Words or phrases that you guys don't want to hear next year?

[Ronny Chang]

I don't.

[Desi Lydic]

That you heard too much this year, man.

[Ronny Chang]

Trump 6767 is not great.

[Jordan Klepper]

Done with 6 7. Anti vaxx.

[Desi Lydic]

Anti vax. I don't want to hear executive order. If we could just go for a little while without hearing that one.

[Josh Johnson]

Plausible deniability. People know what they're doing.

[Michael Kosta]

I hope we lessen the over celebration and marketing of AI.

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah, I hope that too.

[Jordan Klepper]

I 100% agree with that. Yes. Yeah, I think we've. I think there's. I feel as pumping up the idea of AI being such a game changer in a way that is affecting markets before it is completely proven up. It will have its effects, but it seems as if that's taken up a lot of space around conversation.

[Michael Kosta]

I choose humans.

[Jordan Klepper]

Do you think I saw you made those T shirts? Yeah.

[Michael Kosta]

I choose humans.

[Desi Lydic]

Will this podcast be hosted by AI in 2026?

[Jordan Klepper]

Oh, my God, no. This is. We're gonna. Next year we're gonna add three more hosts. The room is gonna be half the size, so it's gonna be sweaty and tight, but it's gon human sweaty space you could ever fall in.

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah.

[Desi Lydic]

Bring it on, baby.

[Jordan Klepper]

All right. That is every single thing that happened in 2025 and probably also 2026. From everyone here at the Daily Show. We wanna thank you for watching and or listening. This year the show is gonna take a winter break. We'll be back on January 5th. Happy holidays.

[Michael Kosta]

Merry Christmas.

[Ronny Chang]

Happy January 6th.

[Jordan Klepper]

Explore more shows from the Daily show.

[Michael Kosta]

Podcast universe by searching the Daily Show.

[Jordan Klepper]

Wherever you get your P.O.

[Michael Kosta]

Watch the Daily show weeknights at 11:10 Central on Comedy Central and stream full episodes anytime on Paramount.

[Ronny Chang]

Plus.

[Michael Kosta]

This has been a Comedy Central podcast. Meet Dan. Hey, how's it going? Dan has big life goals. I'd love to own a home one day. Numerica Credit Union is the perfect partner to help make Dan's goals come to life.

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