12/31/25
Good morning! It’s Wednesday, December 31st.
New Year’s Eve!
So, I know a lot of people are doing 2025 retrospectives, and I wanted to do one too, but with my own twist. Because when I look back on this year, the thing I learned the most is resilience and community.
This year showed me what resilience looks like up close, in the people I love most, in the people I admire most deeply. I watched them endure hard things, adapt, keep showing up, and somehow not only stay generous but open their hearts even further. This year was unsteady at every turn, except in this one: a steadfast reminder that no one does this alone.
So let’s move forward. Let’s say goodbye to 2025 (please!). But first, let’s at least steal a few lessons out of it. And unfortunately, to do that, we’re going to need to look back briefly. I promise, it’s not going to hurt (that bad).
After all, this isn’t about the news that broke.
It’s about the way we held.
And now, 2025.
The retrospective… thing (it’s the first one. It’ll be smoother next year).
Trump Is Sworn In (Again)
Starting strong!
I actually didn’t cover Trump on the first day of his presidency. Instead, I talked about the death of Cecile Richards.
““It’s not hard to imagine future generations one day asking: ‘When there was so much at stake for our country, what did you do?’ The only acceptable answer is: ‘Everything we could.’”
That is a quote from Cecile Richards, former Planned Parenthood president and daughter of Texas Governor Ann Richards.[KM1] ”
Why? Why would I not cover the inauguration of Dear Leader? Well, first of all...
“There’s just something about a Texas woman.[KM2] ”
But more importantly:
“Cecile Richards was a machine. An inspiration. A relentless fighter.
She was also just a person.
A person who held deep beliefs and spent her life in service of those beliefs.
It’s hard to imagine a world without her.
At the beginning of this episode I said that this wasn’t the episode I thought I’d be making today, and that’s true.
Because while this is not a surprise, Richards announced she had incurable brain cancer in January of 2024, six months after her diagnosis, it’s feels impossible that we have to do this, these next four years, without such a relentless fighter.
But to be honest, this episode was always going to be about something bigger than an inauguration that took place.
That guy is going to take up a lot of oxygen for the next four years. He’s going to be selfish and dangerous. He is going to be a threat to people we love, and a country we hold dear.
But he does not get everything.
These words are not for him.
These words are for us. These words, this episode, is a reminder that we are here in this moment and called to do something so much bigger than we ever imagined we could.
And so, here again, is that quote from Cecile Richards:
“It’s not hard to imagine future generations one day asking: ‘When there was so much at stake for our country, what did you do?’
The only acceptable answer is: ‘Everything we could.’”[KM3]
It’s eleven months later, and I understand that every day it’s a new atrocity. I am, in no way, making that smaller.
This was the beginning of Trump 2.0, but it was also the beginning of us. Democracy didn’t end on January 20th. Democracy still hasn’t ended.
As his polling and support decline, Democracy has only grown louder. We have only grown louder. Neither of those things will change in 2026.
ICE Raids Expand, Communities Respond
In June (I’m not going chronologically, or in order of any ranking other than, just… hey, now I’m talking about this), in June, Los Angeles saw the first ICE raids and National Guard troop takeovers that would soon pop up around the country.
“On Saturday, there were rumors that ICE agents were going to a Home Depot in Paramount, which is a small city south of downtown. Protestors headed there, and there were several clashes between protestors and law enforcement. It became the start of pretty high tensions.
And let’s be super clear about what happened next.
LAPD had it under control.
LAPD is famously overmilitarized. The city council literally calls the equipment they have “military” equipment. We have the third-largest police department in the country.
We had it under control!
Without being asked, while on his way to a UFC fight in New Jersey, Trump authorized 2,000 National Guard troops to be sent to Los Angeles.
Our Governor and mayor both said no.
Trump said he was doing it to stop the looters and rioters.
Can’t stop what you don’t have… There were no riots. There was no looting.
But you can’t trust anything he says. On Saturday, he also thanked the National Guard for quelling the chaos in Los Angeles… the National Guard hadn’t even gotten to Los Angeles yet. So what on earth was he talking about?
The National Guard got to LA Sunday morning.
You’ll be shocked to hear they didn’t have much to do because again… these are protests. Not riots.
Protests have spread around downtown. They’ve been largely peaceful. The 101 was shutdown for about 90 minutes. Tear gas was shot into the crowd to try and disperse the crowd. But again… protests not riots.
It’s important to note that I’m recording this while the sun is out. Things change when the sun goes down, and we don’t know what tomorrow will look like. [KM4] “
And while there’s been a marked escalation in deportations all around the country, this specific pattern of ICE followed by the deployment of the National Guard was also attempted in Portland and Chicago, with troops in DC being deployed after someone who, by choice, goes by the name Big Balls, narrowly survived an alleged carjacking, while court after court told the administration to stop.
“One key piece of testimony of the day came from Major General Scott Sherman, who was deployed at one point as the commanding general of the National Guard task force and said he never heard the term “rebellion” used to description the situation in Los Angeles.
Here’s why that’s important: the executive order that called up the National Guard used a law called Title 10 US Code Section 12406 which deals with the role the National Guard plays in federal service. They can’t just go all whilly nilly, ya know? What if we, as a country, went wild and elected a twice impeached grifted who’s been found liable for sexual assault, and suddenly that man started going around trying to just post up the National Guard anywhere he wanted simply because he’s obsessed with being an authoritarian because his dad never said he loved him? We gotta have barriers, ya know?
So that section of the US code specifically says the President can federalize the National Guard when: “The United States, or any of the Commonwealths or possessions, is invaded or is in danger of invasion by a foreign nation; there is a rebellion or danger of a rebellion against the authority of the Government of the United States; or the President is unable with the regular forces to execute the laws of the United States.”
It's not our fault that the President is so weak and Los Angeles is so powerful. But he didn’t say the magic world He didn’t say “rebellion.”[KM5] ”
They came for our neighbors. And while we can’t take our foot off the gas here, because these raids are still happening, these kidnappings are still happening, we are also still out there. Standing up for our community. Standing up for our neighbors.
The fear was the point.
Isolation is the tool of fascism.
Connection, community, breaks it every single time.
The LA Fires and Camp Mystic
And of course, there were the fires in Los Angeles.
“On January 2nd, the National Weather Service warned of strong Santa Ana winds and extreme fire conditions.
On Monday the 6th, those warnings were escalated as the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services repositioned equipment in preparation of those extreme conditions, while the National Weather Service upgraded their warning to a “Particularly Dangerous Situation” which, looking back… seems a little too mild.
Because suddenly it was Tuesday.
Around 10:30 AM came the first signs of the Palisades fire.
That same day, just after 6:15 PM, the Eaton fire started.[KM6] ”
And Texas’ Camp Mystic tragedy.
“the heartbreaking story of the flash floods in Texas that have killed at least 129 people. A number that is expected to possibly more than double, as more than 160 people are missing in Kerr County alone.
The search was paused over the weekend due to the possibility of further flooding in the area.
This time, authorities in the area conducted door-to-door visits to ensure people were aware of the danger of flooding. A service that was not offered in the first flood and would have saved lives.[KM7] ”
Two horrific reminders that climate change is here. Has been here. Two horrific reminders of what happens when the infrastructure we are supposed to depend on, fails us. In the case of Los Angeles, it’s the power companies. In Texas, the Camp Mystic staff is being sued for their disastrous response to the floods that, in the end, caused the death of 27 campers and counselors.
But while those system failures were exposed, humanity was as well. People opened their doors, wallets, and closets. In Los Angeles, donation centers were opened all over the place. Brand new ones. And they’d be instantly overflowing with donations.
Disasters expose systems and people. And people win every time. By a rate of about a million to one. Conservatively speaking.
Gerrymandering Makes Waves
2025 was also the year that gerrymandering became very fashionable. (joke! We hate it!)
“Monday saw the Texas House Democrats holding strong in their move to block Republicans from redrawing a congressional map that would give Republicans an advantage in the House. Maps get drawn every ten years, based on the census, but Texas Republicans are attempting to do it now because Trump asked them to in an effort to increase their lead in the House.
They left on Sunday.
On Monday, Governor Abbott gave them until 3PM to return. When they didn’t, the state House (filled with Republicans) voted to basically track down and arrest the more than 50 democratic state House members who weren’t there when the chamber gaveled into action. Upon the vote passing, the Speaker said he would immediately sign civil warrants for each of the democrats, giving the chamber’s sergeant-at-arms and state troopers the power to arrest them and bring them to the Capitol
Okay babe.
These are not civil or criminal charges. And as for that tracking down part… the democrats left the state, and these warrants don’t extend past the border.[KM8] ”
In response to Texas’ map, California’s Gavin Newson announced his own redistricting campaign proving the impossible. That I could actually change my own mind about things.
“Though it brings me no pleasure to announce that all of these fun and games have led them to say… they believe Gavin Newsom may be leading the charge. Because he’s been saying that if Republicans are going to redraw the maps then so are Democrats.
Fine. Whatever.
Look… all I’m saying is injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. Gerrymandering hurts democracy across the board.
I get it. I get it!
I understand the moment.
But to quote Shakira in the hit Disney movie Zootopia – try everything.
Try everything first.
They’re cheating so we’re cheating.
Okay, can I pitch a quick rewrite?
They’re trying to cheat, so we’re going to stop them. And if we can’t, then we will meet them at their level.
Gerrymandering hurts democracy across the board.
Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.[KM9] ”
Cut to: “(A clip from my changing my mind)[KM10] ”
Here’s the truth – Texas could have gotten away with it. They got those five seats anyway. But here are two inarguable truths. One: transparency changed everything.
Texas Democrats risked everything to make sure we knew what was happening, and because of that, California pushed back. Virginia pushed back. Indiana blocked Trump’s map. Yes, states are still folding but not everyone. Not everywhere.
And two: In states where this redistricting is happening, it is still not a guarantee that these seats will automatically go to Republicans. Nothing decides elections except for voters on election day. We are the deciders. Polls don’t decide elections. Districts don’t decide elections. Donald Trump calling a state and telling them to do gerrymandering doesn’t decide elections. Voters decide elections. Nothing is predetermined. We are the deciders. And we decide when we cast that ballot.
The Courts Still Work
It felt hard to remember in 2025, but the truth is – the courts still work. The Supremes might not be the most supreme, but otherwise:
“On Monday a federal judge blocked the Department of Justice from handing over full grand jury defense materials to former FBI director James Comey’s attorneys, but only temporarily, noting "a disturbing pattern of profound investigative missteps" which he believes may have irreversibly tainted (hate that word, so sorry about its use!) the Comey case.
"The Court recognizes that the relief sought by the defense is rarely granted. However, the record points to a disturbing pattern of profound investigative missteps, missteps that led an FBI agent and a prosecutor to potentially undermine the integrity of the grand jury proceeding."[KM11] ”
When the Trump administration attempted to federalize National Guard troops for immigration enforcement in major cities, courts stepped in. They stopped, or at least delayed, extreme gerrymandering in some places. Those delays matter. They refused to allow the political games against James Comey, Jack Smith, or Latish James to continue.
I know it doesn’t feel like it, but the courts still work.
Epstein Survivors Were Finally Heard
Yes, the Epstein files are sort of being released. Slowly. Complicatedly. Who knows what January will bring. That is certainly one of the biggest stories of 2025.
But here is the story I want to tell:
“On Tuesday, the House and the Senate finally voted, with near unanimous numbers (except for a few absolute losers in the House) to give voice to the survivors and make it clear that it does not matter how much money or power you have… you are not above the law when it comes to things like this.[KM12] ”
This story only happened because survivors of the worst kind of crime, at the hands of an absolute monster, a ring of monsters, in fact, stood up. Again and again and again.
Why so many agains? Because we don’t believe women in this country. Neat! Fun! Fun to be a woman in this country!
And yet, they continued to speak up. To speak out.
Silence didn’t win.
As Jess Michaels, one of the survivors, said: “We are the proof that fear did not break us… This moment began with Epstein’s crimes, but it’s going to be remembered for survivors demanding justice, demanding truth, demanding accountability.”
Justice didn’t arrive neatly, and being heard isn’t everything – but it’s not nothing.
Survivors will not be erased in this story.
Bodily Autonomy Didn’t Disappear. It Adapted.
While we continue on in a post-Roe world, 2025 saw state ballot measures and state court rulings that upheld the right to choose. Not only that, but while the Big Beautiful Bill (still tragically named that) attempted to cut Planned Parenthood funding (literally spending money to cut their funding).
“They were willing to PAY $100 million, to defund Planned Parenthood. And I don’t know if you know this, but I did the math on this, and it would have led to about 3,440 additional deaths, just in that one year. Deaths they were fine with. $100 million they were happy to add to the deficit.
All so they could try and tell people that they are the pro-life party.
Incredible.
However, this has now been blocked because the language of the law makes it clear that, although the bill was only supposed to defund certain organizations if they provide abortions, the language and structure very clearly was built to affect every member of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, whether they were named or not.
That then turned it into something called a “bill of attainder,” which is an act of Congress that wrongly seeks to inflict punishment without a trial. Which is a brilliant ruling! Cause that’s a tricky one to untie!
Additionally, the judge said the law also violated Planned Parenthood members' equal protection rights under the Fifth Amendment.[KM13] ”
Wisconsin struck down an 1849 abortion ban!
We lost national protections, but it doesn’t mean we lost every protection.
And on transgender rights, judges stepped in as well. Montana judges put a stop to a ban on trans youth care in the state, while a federal appeals court in California preserved privacy protections for trans students, preventing them from being forced to come out as trans if they’re not ready.
Though, to be clear, by no means am I saying everything is magically okay now. It’s not. This administration is choosing to make this a more dangerous and difficult country for trans people, as well as people who can get pregnant.
They are removing bodily autonomy. But there are places, sometimes whole states, where judges are holding space for care.
That resistance matters. Just knowing it’s out there can save a life.
Labor/Collective Power
“A federal judge has blocked the Department of Health and Human Services from their plan to lay off about 10,000 employees as well as reorganize how the rest of the department does its work, moving most to a new department that he wants to create called the Administration for a Healthy America.[KM14] ”
In a year when power felt increasingly tilted toward corporations and hostile policies, collective action still shaped outcomes. In Oregon, nurses went on strike for 46 days and won a contract with wage increases and improved staffing. In Pennsylvania, cannabis workers secured their first Teamsters contract after 45 days on strike. Public service unions in Philadelphia won multi-year pay raises after coordinated action. Collective action still works.
Not only that, but according to the AFL-CIO year-end report, 273 union members from 30 different unions ran and won elected office (with a 78% win rate!) in 2025. This includes state legislators, judges, and municipal officials. Meaning labor will be directly tied to democratic power in those areas.
What the Media Missed
With so much news happening every second, it’s easy to miss stories. I am but a Kim, I probably did it a million times. But the flattening of stories is where the media did just as big a disservice. Venezuela is a great example.
“Trump authorized the CIA to operate in the country. He’s previously said he weighed the possibility of striking within the country. He’s hitting boats in the Caribbean that he claims are trafficking drugs left and right, killing at least 76 people, and offering zero evidence that they are, in fact, drug traffickers.
Meanwhile, here in America, Trump has increased Venezuelan deportations, canceled their Temporary Protected Status, and pretty much decided any man from Venezuela is a gang member and has either been deported to a third country that they're not from or, in the case of approximately 252 Venezuelans, sent to a self-proclaimed torture prison in El Salvador. All without ever being accused of any actual crimes.[KM15] ”
There are still hundreds of Venezuelans in that torture prison in El Salvador. Just two weeks ago, CBS was prepared to air a story about what was happening over there, but was forced to drop it thanks to the Trump administration.
Venezuela is real. It’s not a metaphor. It’s not a punchline. And the fact that the truth of this story keeps trying to be told — even when it’s suppressed — matters.
People can handle complexity. We deserve it.
Voters Did Their Job
If this is an episode about things that held, November’s election results are the perfect example. Democracy didn’t hold because it was inevitable. Because it’s invincible.
It held because voters gave it no other choice.
“There have been a few elections since Trump’s second term began, but with mayoral, gubernatorial, and public policy elections all over the country, Tuesday truly was the first referendum on Trump’s second term.
And what are the people thinking about Trump?
They are… not fans!
Yeah, turns out Americans are not super into fascism. Some would even say they’re anti… it.
Used the ol democracy to fight a dictator.
A tale as old as time.[KM16] ”
“Our democracy is the envy of the world.
America is the great experiment.
And I know right now it feels like we’re watching the beaker overflow and the whole thing catch on fire.
But there are two things that I have said over and over and over again. Two separate ideas that I want to come back to yet again.
First – that story about the car being parked on top of the missile silo in Wyoming. I’ve told this story a few times. I’m very honest about the fact that I heard it on Rachel Maddow’s show first and it’s something that I really latched onto, but there’s a missile silo in Wyoming. Missile’s underground, all of the sudden the alarm goes off as if the missile is going to pop out of the silo and take off (normally I tell this better). And so everyone’s trying to figure out what to do and someone thinks – I’m just going to park on top of the silo cover. The idea being that when it opens, it’ll be like yanking a tablecloth off a table really fast and then the car will crash down on the missile and maybe that’ll stop it.
Not the strongest idea but this is America and in times of crisis – under, over, or around, we find our way through.
We are in the middle of a hostile government takeover. Literally, in some places. The worst kind of person, one who chooses to be cruel and vindictive, who stands against everything this country is meant to stand for, is our president.
But he is not forever. This moment is not forever. Under, over, or around.
A man whose supporters barely even knew his name a year ago became the mayor of the most populous city in country on Tuesday.
The biggest state in the country is going to redraw its maps to fight back against the gerrymandering the Republicans are doing, and that’s giving other states the courage to do the same.
A car over a missile silo.
Under, over, or around. We are finding our way through. Because the experiment isn’t over yet. It does not even with a man who is so vindictive that he takes food away from hungry children while he builds a $300 million ballroom, destroying the hundreds of years of history instead of it.
And if you are looking for what it is that is still here worth fighting for. What on earth we would drive a car onto a missile silo for: In Colorado, voters had the chance to literally get their own money back.
Instead, they chose to give $12.4 million to make sure school kids could get free meals.[KM17] ”
Ending
One of the main ideas of this show is that, unless news breaks literally as I’m recording it, it’s not going to break news. It’s actually never going to break news because I’m recording at night and then you see it in the morning. Or at least I say good morning, so I just assume. And you know what they say when I assume… I’m right.
But these stories here - they broke and they were meant to break us.
I think about the fires, the sound of the Watch Duty alerts. I think about the two worst nights and how I didn’t sleep at all, because my phone was on full blast. Certain that every Watch Duty alert was THE alert. Everyone in LA knows that very specific feeling.
It was awful.
It did not break us. Not all the way. It changed all of us. For a lot people, people I truly cherish, it may have broken pieces of them. But the pacific salt air carries the sand that smooths the edges. And eventually, what we thought was broken is just… changed.
News breaks.
We decide if it will break us.
In Los Angeles, when the fires broke out, we didn’t wait for a national or state response. We were able to organize immediately, with so many donations pouring in that new centers were opening daily, only to fill up and be unable to accept anything else. And that would often happen in one single day.
4 million people, tripping all over ourselves to help each other. And you know, maybe it is just that special kind of sadness, tragic set of charms, but if 2025 showed us anything, it’s that you can find bad pretty easily. But you can find the good just as easily, if you know where to look.
This is an episode about the news that broke, not about the things that broke. Instead, it’s about the things that hold.
Sometimes by the skin of our dang teeth, but it held.
You are allowed to think anything you want about 2025.
But if this year took from us, then we get to take from it as well. Take all of the love and lessons and all of those loud silly absurd laughs you had; tuck them into your pocket, or a little jar, and let’s get out of here. Take only the good in 2026.
Because we don’t know what 2026 will be. And if we have no idea what it can be, and if it truly can be anything… why can’t it be good?
And hey, at the very least, there’s this one truth… I’m proud of you.