Podcast Summary: The Five

Episode: House To Vote On Ending Government Shutdown
Date: November 13, 2025
Host & Panel: Greg Gutfeld, Kennedy, Harold Ford Jr., Jesse Watters, Dana Perino
Channel: FOX News Podcasts

Episode Overview

This episode focuses on the imminent end of a 43-day government shutdown, with the House preparing to vote to re-open the federal government. The panel discusses the political fallout, who is to blame, the shutdown’s real-world consequences, and the broader dysfunction in Washington. Other topics include air traffic controller shortages, Gavin Newsom’s global climate aspirations, distrust in media narratives, Trump’s White House renovations, and lighter cultural moments.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Government Shutdown: Blame, Consequences, and Political Theater

The Shutdown’s Fallout

• Federal workers missed paychecks; tens of billions in wages were withheld.
  • "Hundreds of thousands of federal employees have missed their paychecks. Tens of billions in wages and benefits were withheld, impacting vulnerable families."
    — Carolyn Levitt (01:08)
• Millions missed SNAP benefits; over 5.2 million travelers were affected by flight disruptions linked to the shutdown.

Political Point-Scoring

• Panel sharply critiques Democrats, accusing them of leveraging public pain for political gain.
  • "We were saying this – that the Dems were leveraging pain and suffering of the public for political gain. And now they're not even hiding it."
    — Greg Gutfeld (02:52)
  • Dana Perino points out some Democrats openly admitted the shutdown gave them “leverage” but ultimately caved, receiving little in return (03:01).

Air Traffic Control Crisis

• Shutdown worsened ATC retirements: from 3-4 per week to 15-20 per day; U.S. system lags behind the world.
  • "Our air traffic control system in our airports is just abysmal and just so second rate compared to the rest of the world."
    — Dana Perino (03:21)

Dysfunctional Politics: Why Shutdowns Happen

• Gutfeld notes shutdowns began post-1980 due to Carter-era legal reinterpretation.
  • "Why can't we just go back before 1980 to the way it was?"
    — Greg Gutfeld (05:04)
• Ford Jr. calls it a “failure of the system,” noting Congress rarely meets its budget deadlines.
  • "For the last 48 years, Congress has only passed the required number of budgets… on time… Four times."
    — Harold Ford Jr. (05:28)

Obamacare (ACA) Subsidies and the Next Fight

• Panel divides on value of temporary ACA subsidy extensions.
  • Kennedy: "It’s not a win that we're going to extend these subsidies... the ACA was broken to begin with." (08:12)
  • Ford: "I want to see members of Congress, Democrat and Republican alike, say that they don't want to give health insurance to those who are the least and the last..." (06:58)

2. Gavin Newsom Goes Global: Climate Conference & 2028 Ambitions

Newsom at the UN Climate Conference

• California Governor Gavin Newsom attends UN talks in Brazil, dubbed “the climate president in waiting.”
  • “Right now, we have an invasive species in the vernacular of climate, by the name of Donald Trump. It's not about the rule of law… but the rule of dawn.”
    — Gavin Newsom, quoted by Harold Ford Jr. (14:41)
• Panel mocks Newsom’s repeated use of “full stop” as empty rhetoric.

Skepticism Toward the Climate Agenda

• Gutfeld describes climate policy as discredited and a money sink.

  • "It's discredited by a number of things… After taking a trillion dollars from taxpayers… it went down this giant thing and it went to, you know, people you don't even know, activists, lobbying groups… It went to save somebody's mansion.” (16:17)

• Kennedy references Bill Gates’ comments, emphasizing science is never settled and arguing that climate debate now leaves developing countries behind for the sake of virtue signaling (17:56).

The Rising Cost of Green Policies

• California’s gas prices projected to hit $8.50 per gallon.
  • “The only way you survive in California is if you're very wealthy or you're homeless. Everybody in the middle gets squeezed out."
    — Jesse Watters (20:04)
• Jesse on Newsom: "He flies down to Brazil, crowns himself the Green Prince. This thing's over. The climate scam—it's like DEI. It's done." (20:18)

Diplomatic Disputes

• Ford: “Any leaders going outside of the country and having foreign leaders say terrible things about our president. They should say, you shouldn't say that…” (21:41)

3. The Media “Bubble” & Trust Issues

Media Echo Chambers

• CNN’s Abby Phillip claims conservatives live in an “information world” divorced from facts (25:00).
  • "Half my job sometimes is knowing what the latest conspiracy is…because it happens a lot where people don't even know that what they're saying or what they've seen and believe is not true."
    — Abby Phillip (25:08)
• Panel scoffs at CNN/MSNBC’s claim to objectivity, arguing both sides are in their own bubbles but questioning Abby’s self-awareness.
  • "Abby Phillips talking to Joy Reid about truth is like talking to Brian Stelter about salad."
    — Greg Gutfeld (25:41)
• Dana Perino observes that Americans are busy, often only skimming headlines, making media literacy even harder (27:17).

On Building Stronger Arguments

• Kennedy: "There's a big difference between the power of suggestion and actual, objective facts. And Abby Phillip is unfortunately conflating and confusing the two." (29:19)
• Ford offers a dissent, seeing Phillip’s take as “brilliant”: “You can disagree with someone and not hate them… You should learn more about your position and the position of the person you're arguing with.” (31:03)

4. Trump’s White House Ballroom and Populism

Trump’s White House Renovations

• Trump tours his new, privately funded White House ballroom with Laura Ingraham (32:59).
  • "Everything's my idea."
    — Donald Trump (33:05)
  • "We took it, I restored it. I put in new chandeliers." (33:31)

Populist Reflections

• Gutfeld frames Trump as “the public’s agent,” pushing back against decision-making elites.
  • "Trump is kind of like...the public defender. He's like the guy saying, enough, stop that stuff. It's bad… He's got such a necessary role right now." (37:11)
  • "So what if he wants to build a ballroom? It's not our cash. My point is he's our agent. And our agent is eccentric." (38:20)

Political Optics and Priorities

• Ford acknowledges that while the ballroom was privately funded, it may raise questions among Americans struggling economically (35:48).

5. Notable and Humorous Moments

Airline/Travel Frustrations

• Jesse Watters on switching to Amtrak: “The bathroom's very spacious, that bathroom... And the WiFi always works on the train. Always works.” (12:09)

San Francisco Train Incident

• Brief segment on a light rail accident, ending in jokes about workforce tiredness and government standards (40:00).

Media Bubbles, Cynicism, and Their Kids

• Jesse: “I told my twins the other day about how the Democrats were stealing billions of dollars from the government and they couldn't believe it. ...Now they're based." (28:39)

Trump’s Height

• “Is he really 6 foot 20?”
  — Dana Perino, referencing the Ingraham interview (37:05)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 01:08: Carolyn Levitt outlines shutdown’s real-world impact
• 02:52: Panel criticizes Democrats’ handling of the shutdown
• 03:21: Air traffic controller staffing crisis detailed
• 05:28: Ford Jr. explains Congressional dysfunction since 1980
• 08:12: Kennedy on the ACA and government bloat
• 14:41: Newsom’s speech at the UN climate conference
• 16:17: Gutfeld on the climate agenda’s failures
• 20:04: Jesse Watters on California’s rising cost of living
• 25:08: Abby Phillip on media and “information worlds”
• 27:17: Dana Perino on Americans’ media consumption
• 33:05: Trump shows off his White House renovations
• 37:11: Gutfeld on Trump as the “public’s agent”

Notable Quotes

“We were saying this – that the Dems were leveraging pain and suffering of the public for political gain. And now they're not even hiding it.”
— Greg Gutfeld (02:52)

“For the last 48 years, Congress has only passed the required number of budgets… on time… Four times.”
— Harold Ford Jr. (05:28)

“It’s not a win that we're going to extend these subsidies... the ACA was broken to begin with.”
— Kennedy (08:12)

“He flies down to Brazil, crowns himself the Green Prince. This thing's over. The climate scam—it's like DEI. It's done.”
— Jesse Watters (20:18)

“Abby Phillips talking to Joy Reid about truth is like talking to Brian Stelter about salad.”
— Greg Gutfeld (25:41)

"Trump is kind of like... the public defender. He's like the guy saying, enough, stop that stuff. It's bad… He's got such a necessary role right now."
— Greg Gutfeld (37:11)

Conclusion

This episode highlighted frustrations over endless shutdowns, government inefficiency, and what panelists see as partisan manipulation at the public’s expense. California’s climate policies and Newsom’s ambitions elicited skepticism about green “scams.” The panel also lampooned media partisanship and progressive elites, while maintaining a humorous tone throughout, especially when discussing flights, trains, agents, and Trump’s ballroom. If you missed the show, this summary brings you the feisty debate, the zingers, and the serious critiques at the heart of The Five.