The Daily Show: Ears Edition

Episode: Trump Renames U.S. Institute of Peace After Himself & Epstein Island Was a S**thole | Ken Casey

Date: December 5, 2025
Host: Jordan Klepper (styled as "Jordan Clover")
Guest: Ken Casey (Dropkick Murphys)

Overview

In this episode, Jordan Klepper and the Daily Show news team delve into recent headlines with their signature satirical tone. The episode covers:

• New photos from Jeffrey Epstein's infamous island and its bizarre, tacky aesthetic
• The Pentagon’s controversial handling of press access and leaks
• Donald Trump renaming the U.S. Institute of Peace after himself and his ongoing quest for the Nobel Peace Prize
• The unending "War on Christmas” and a satirical Trump-themed ornament
• An interview with Ken Casey of Dropkick Murphys, exploring the relationship between politics, punk music, and masculinity

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Release of Epstein Island Files ([01:30] – [06:49])

• The DOJ’s deadline for releasing Epstein files is looming, but House Democrats leak their own batch: over 150 photos and videos of Epstein’s notorious Caribbean estate.

• Content of the files:

  • Tacky décor, questionable furniture arrangements, and a general sense of decrepitude.
  • Oddities include a chalkboard with the words “power, deception, plots” and a dentist chair with masked faces on the wall.

• Satirical takes:

  • Klepper skewers the irony of a billionaire’s island looking so shabby.
  • The presence of a dentist chair is explained as being for an Epstein girlfriend studying dentistry, which is mocked as “somehow way worse.”

Jordan Klepper (03:24):
“How does a billionaire's private island look like a two-star Airbnb? I'm not even talking about the sex rooms. The common spaces are even worse.”

Jordan Klepper (04:27):
“The pedophile billionaire couldn't find one pedophile decorator to help out here? And don't say it was Ghislaine's job to decorate, because that's sexist. She was a working professional — very busy with her own sex trafficking career.”

• Memorable visual:
  • A “library” with four La-Z-Boys arranged in close proximity provides fodder for a running joke about bad design and sinister intent.

2. Pentagon Press Corps & Leaks ([07:03] – [10:33])

• Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is embroiled in controversy after sharing sensitive bombing details in a group chat that included a journalist.
• Hegseth refuses interviews or full transparency, offering only selective screenshots.
• The Pentagon bans uncooperative journalists, replacing the press corps with right-wing influencers and personalities.

Jordan Klepper (07:58):
“Kind of sounds like you were texting war plans… In fact, texting those words makes the iPhone send little bomber jets across the screen.”

Jordan Klepper (09:29):
“The entire Pentagon press corps has been replaced by MAGA personalities. You got Matt Gaetz, Laura Loomer, James O’Keefe, Jack Posobec. And if you know who all these people are, I am begging you, please get offline. Touch grass or snow or whatever.”

• Introduces “journalists” whose credentials are dubious, e.g., a TikToker banned for anti-trans statements ([11:01]), exposing the absurdity of “approved” press.

3. Trump Renames U.S. Institute of Peace ([11:30] – [13:37])

• Trump rechristens the U.S. Institute of Peace as the “Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace.”
• Klepper lampoons the move as peak egotism and situates it alongside imagined parallels like the “RFK Jr. School for Singing.”
• Trump fumbles pronouncing African leader’s names at a peace ceremony, which Klepper roasts.

Jordan Klepper (12:54):
“[after Trump mangles a name] You really just went for it, right? Like a driver plowing over the school's own speed bumps at 90 miles an hour.”

• Recurring bit: Trump’s ongoing resentment at not winning a Nobel Peace Prize, including clips of Trump’s own claims and street interviews with Norwegians doubting his merits.

Norwegian Interviewee (14:29):
“Do you have any reason he shouldn’t get it?”
“Well, like maybe everything he does.”

4. The “War on Christmas” Returns ([15:00] – [17:48])

• Churches and cities stage contentious holiday scenes:
  • Illinois church displays a nativity with Baby Jesus zip-tied, Roman ICE agents, and gas-masked Mary and Joseph as a protest.
  • In Portland, the city omits the word “Christmas” from its tree-lighting ceremony, stoking online outrage.

Jordan Klepper (16:06):
“I too am a big supporter of free speech. Unless it’s done on purpose. Now, accidental free speech, that’s where it’s at.”

• Satirical “Trump Tinsel” ad claims to have shredded the only copy of the Epstein files to create Christmas tree tinsel, mocking both Trump’s secrecy and commercialization.

5. Interview: Ken Casey of Dropkick Murphys ([19:23] – [28:40])

Punk Music & Politics ([20:23] – [22:51])

• Punk music has historically been political, but some fans express backlash, wishing bands would “just play.”
• Ken Casey notes that backlash is amplified by online trolling, not representative of true fanbase sentiment.

Ken Casey (20:36):
“To me, if you’re a punk band, this should be your moment… when you should stand up, speak out.”

Dealing with Division & Conservative Fans ([22:51] – [24:42])

• Casey reflects that the Dropkick Murphys have held consistent pro-worker, social justice messages since 1996.
• Political divisions increased after Trump entered politics, persuading “regular people, working people, to fight amongst themselves so they could steal all the money out the back door.”

Ken Casey (23:02):
“…since 1996, we have always had the same message. It’s always been workers’ rights, social justice… Who’s changed?”

Masculinity and Political Stereotypes ([24:48] – [27:47])

• The band’s confrontational, masculine image surprises people when paired with leftist politics.
• Casey mocks performative masculinity:

Ken Casey (25:40):
“You know what I don’t find to be masculine at all? Someone who talks all the time about masculinity and tries so hard to be masculine.”

• He describes a viral concert moment where he bet a Trump-supporting fan that his merchandise wasn’t truly “Made in America”; the fan turned out to be genial—reminding Casey (and listeners) not to judge so easily.

Takeaways & Closing ([27:47] – [28:40])

• Casey encourages dialogue and seeing beyond surface-level tribalism.
• Personal note: Casey’s appearance is endorsed by his daughter, whose birthday gets a shout-out:

  Ken Casey (28:30):
  “It’s my daughter’s 23rd birthday… She said, ‘Fire. Go do the show.’ That’s what kids say — fire.”

Memorable Quotes

• Jordan Klepper (03:08):
  “That’s the most game recognized game photo I’ve ever seen. Fun fact — you know who took that photo? Bill Cosby.”
• Jordan Klepper (12:08):
  “I look forward to seeing it [the Trump Institute of Peace] alongside the Benjamin Netanyahu Bureau of Urban Planning and the RFK Junior School for Singing.”
• Ken Casey (23:02):
  “A billion is so much more than a million… people just making billions and billions in tax breaks while people fight over someone getting $6 a day in food subsidies.”

Important Timestamps

• Epstein files segment: [01:30] – [06:49]
• Pentagon press corps shake-up: [07:03] – [10:33]
• Trump Institute of Peace / Nobel segment: [11:30] – [14:36]
• War on Christmas & Trump Tinsel ad: [15:00] – [18:57]
• Ken Casey interview (music, politics, masculinity): [19:23] – [28:40]
• Viral Trump-supporter merch moment: [26:03] – [27:47]

Tone & Style

Consistently irreverent, biting, and satirical, the episode lampoons political hypocrisy and cultural absurdities with rapid-fire jokes, parodies, and playful banter, particularly between Klepper and Ken Casey.

For Listeners Who Missed the Show

This episode delivers both sharp political critique and comedy, skewering the news of the day — from the bizarre banality of Epstein Island’s décor to the Pentagon’s transparency failings, Trump’s rebranding spree, and the performative battles over Christmas. The interview with Ken Casey adds thoughtful reflection on punk’s radical tradition and the importance of open dialogue in increasingly polarized times.