The Megyn Kelly Show – Episode 1173

Title: AOC and Bernie's Wild Town Hall, Mamdani Clams Up, and Victoria's Secret is Back, with The Fifth Column
Date: October 16, 2025
Host: Megyn Kelly
Guests: The Fifth Column (Camille Foster, Michael Moynihan, Matt Welch)

Episode Overview

This episode dives into American political trends and culture wars from recent headlines, focusing on the Democratic Party’s messaging crisis, contentious town hall moments with AOC and Bernie Sanders, the rise of “Democratic Socialists” like Zoran Mamdani, the fraught state of race and gender discourse, and the dramatic evolution (and reversion) of Victoria’s Secret marketing. Megyn is joined by the provocative and witty trio from The Fifth Column podcast—Camille Foster, Michael Moynihan, and Matt Welch—to dissect these topics with sharp humor, irreverence, and deep skepticism toward progressive orthodoxy and media narratives.

Key Topics & Discussion Highlights

1. AOC & Bernie Sanders' CNN Town Hall

Theme: The disconnect between Democratic leadership and voter resonance, particularly regarding young men and class politics.

• AOC blames Republicans for “radicalizing” young men:

  • The panel unanimously ridicules her claim, arguing the left has spent years demonizing young white men, leading to alienation.
  • Michael Moynihan:

    "Your side demonized them at every turn and laughed when they ever dared to express any actual pain... You are absolutely disgusting to now try to turn it around and say it is the Republican party which came to their rescue and that quote, radicalized them." (03:01)

• Host’s Outrage:

  • Megyn Kelly:

    “If she runs for president, I might run, honestly... There's no way this person can run for president or be president. No, no, no, no, no.” (04:03)

• Defund the Police & Woke Ideology:

  • AOC is called out for pushing unworkable progressivism and being unrepentant for chaos:

    “[AOC] was certainly at the head of the parade, championing all of these ridiculous causes. Defund the police. She was there front and center…” (15:22)

• Hypocrisy Over Education & Class:

  • Critique of AOC’s elitism—chiding people as “uneducated” for lacking a college degree, while posing as a voice of the working class.

    “Charlie [Kirk] knew it was a lie... you don’t need to go to college to just go and be indoctrinated into left wing thinking... She’s such an elitist snob at the Met Gala, but she's going to wear her dress saying ‘tax the rich.’” (17:18)

• Failure to Connect with Working-Class Voters:

  • The group emphasizes that condescension toward non-college educated “deplorables” is a losing strategy for the left.
  • Camille Foster:

    “You don't do working class politics by saying things like these voters... are uneducated and... having your rallies at Columbia for, for Hamas and not mentioning hostages... This is a mile away from the average working class voter.” (21:50)

Timestamps

• 01:43 – Republican “radicalization” of men
• 12:16 – Critique of “toxic masculinity” narrative
• 17:18 – Education hypocrisy

2. Race, Class, & Identity Controversies

• "Testing the racist waters”

  • Ridiculing viral claims of “white whisperers” who allege to overhear or be tested with racism.
  • Michael Moynihan:

    “Like, what circles is she hanging out in? Because unlike this Jennifer Welch, I actually am surrounded by Republicans all the time, and I've never heard anybody test the... And what does it even mean?” (28:59)

• J.D. Vance, Interracial Family, and Race Discourse

  • Critique of media and Democratic fixation on identity politics—demanding that Vance “defend” his “brown children.”
  • Megyn Kelly:

    “Why do these Democrats always do this? They always bring up the fact that he has a mixed race children and an Indian wife to somehow require more of J.D. Vance.” (41:49)

• Hunter Biden & Double Standards:

  • Hunter’s use of the N-word in private texts is brought up as an example of ‘partisan selective outrage.’
  • Camille Foster:

    “There is a legitimate conversation to be had... about what the right is in this kind of groiper phenomenon. It is a thing... there is a small group of people who are being introduced to conservative politics in a 4chan/8chan way that is troubling.” (49:01)

Timestamps

• 28:59 – Alleged “racist water testing”
• 41:49 – JD Vance and race
• 47:38 – Hunter Biden's racial slurs

3. Media, Messaging, & Democratic Party Woes

• Media Blame Game

  • Democrats increasingly blame conservative media and “oligarchs” for their failures, ignoring messaging issues.
  • Camille Foster:

    “All you saw... was extreme physical discomfort... She doesn’t want to talk about it, which suggests she’s going to do it. Either that or a presidential run, I don’t know...” (59:41)

• Populism & Democratic Drift:

  • Sanders-era economic populism appeals to both sides; “cultural” progressivism alienates swing voters.
  • Megyn Kelly:

    “...You can only win by default with, with Donald Trump and Republicans essentially making themselves unelectable. That’s the only hope that you have if you are going to maintain this course...” (24:44)

• “Resistance fatigue” & Overheated Language:

  • Panelists criticize endless “fascism is coming” rhetoric, arguing most voters are exhausted and see through it.
  • Matt Welch:

    “You got Trump fatigue, but you’ve also got resistance fatigue. I think a lot of people are exhausted by the hyperbolic rhetoric about fascism is coming...” (63:16)

Timestamps

• 26:03 – Media ownership and blame
• 59:41 – AOC’s discomfort with Schumer primary question
• 63:16 – Resistance/Trump fatigue

4. Zoran Mamdani: Mayoral Politics & Israel-Hamas

Theme: Progressive candidates’ unwillingness to take clear stances on terrorism and foreign policy.

• Clip Analysis – Mamdani Clams Up:

  • When pressed to credit President Trump for the Israel-Hamas ceasefire or denounce Hamas, Mamdani dodges.

  • Michael Moynihan:

    “You’re an asshole. We have fucking 12, 20, 20 hostages are free. Don’t be such a dick... If you can’t share in that joy, something’s really wrong with you.” (92:35)

  • Refusal to state Hamas should disarm or leave Gaza as “mayor of New York” is slammed as cowardly and disqualifying.

  • Camille Foster:

    “If you cannot say that this is a knuckle dragging death cult that murders Jews and enshrined in their charter is the elimination of the state of Israel... I don’t think you should be mayor of this city.” (96:11)

Timestamps

• 91:49 – Mamdani’s evasion on ceasefire
• 96:00 – Refusal to denounce Hamas

5. Culture Wars: Victoria’s Secret, “Male Gaze,” and DEI Retreat

• Victoria’s Secret: Return of the Angels

  • Woke “body positivity” marketing reversed after business flop—traditional “Angels” and conventional beauty standards return.
  • Panel pokes fun at the brand’s brief flirtation with plus-size/trans “empowerment” and the assumption women “want” to see themselves in lingerie ads.
  • Michael Moynihan:

    “We don’t want to look at Megan Rapinoe any more than a man does. Nobody wants to look at her... everyone, male and female, if they have eyes, would like to look at those Victoria’s Secret Angels and say hashtag goals.” (102:23)

• The “Male Gaze” Backlash

  • CNN’s lament over the “return” of the male gaze is dismissed as out-of-touch with both reality and consumer demand.
  • Camille Foster:

    “Have you ever seen a fat guy with a shirt off on a cover of a magazine?... It must have been like a Chris Farley... It’s a laugh line.” (107:41)

• DEI Layoffs & Social Contagion Retreat

  • Noting widespread layoffs in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) departments and plummeting “nonbinary”, “trans”, and “bisexual” identification among incoming college freshmen.
  • Megyn Kelly:

    “That layoff at NBC, as much as I do feel for people losing their jobs is a very positive sign, as is the news... the incoming freshman class is far more, forgive me, normal than the senior class at these universities.” (113:36)

Timestamps

• 100:52 – Victoria’s Secret Angels' return
• 103:40 – “Male gaze” critique
• 113:36 – DEI layoffs and gender identity stats

6. Supreme Court & Race Law

• Racial Gerrymandering Case:
  • Ketanji Brown Jackson’s analogy comparing Black Americans to disabled Americans under the ADA is criticized as infantilizing and backward-looking.
  • Megyn Kelly:

    “It is antithetical to the principle of equality under the law... the argument she has to level is, well, no, no. I mean, we just haven’t done enough yet. I mean, they’re basically just children.” (84:07)

Timestamp

• 83:51 – SCOTUS Voting Rights/ADA analogy

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On AOC’s Messaging:

  “But now, not in the last election and not in the Next election. If this is what the Democrats took away. Keep going, Camille.”
  — Michael Moynihan (15:04)

• On Culture War Fatigue:

  “Resistance fatigue... a lot of people are exhausted by the hyperbolic rhetoric about fascism is coming...”
  — Matt Welch (63:16)

• On the “Return of the Male Gaze”:

  “But through all that period, I heroically, as a dissident, kept on gazing at women and no one stopped me.”
  — Camille Foster (109:13)

Conclusion & Tone

The show blends incisive political-media analysis with humor and irreverent cultural commentary. The hosts and guests are unapologetically critical of progressive orthodoxy, media complicity, and political cowardice, while lambasting virtue signaling, performative wokeness, and the inability of the Democratic Party to adapt post-2024. They argue the pendulum is swinging back—less social contagion in gender/race identity, a retreat from DEI in corporate America, and brands like Victoria’s Secret readopting traditional standards after a detour into woke marketing.

Their message: Cultural and political excess carries a price, and the public is snapping back. Democrats, take note—or face irrelevance.

Segment Timestamps (Quick Reference)

• 01:43 — AOC’s town hall, “radicalized” men
• 17:18 — Education, elitism, working class disconnect
• 28:59 — Race discourse and media narratives
• 41:49 — The Vance “brown children” saga
• 52:20 — Messaging blame and media critiques
• 91:49 — Mamdani on Israel-Hamas, dodge and denounce
• 100:52 — Victoria’s Secret Angels return
• 103:40 — “Male gaze” CNN article and sexual politics
• 113:36 — DEI layoffs, identity trend reversals
• 83:51 — SCOTUS, racial gerrymandering, and ADA analogy

Final Thoughts

This episode of The Megyn Kelly Show is a sweeping, fast-paced scan of the American political and cultural horizon—illuminating the contradictions, hypocrisies, and ironies of 2025 with sharp wit, skepticism, and a refusal to genuflect to fashionable orthodoxy.