The Federalist "From winners like J.D. Vance and DOGE to losers like Jake Tapper and (also) DOGE, here are The Federalist Staff’s picks for 2025."
"Kenny Rogers sings that “every hand’s a winner and every hand’s a loser,” and the same is true for each calendar year. Anno Domini 2025 saw some big winners — six people won Powerball Jackpots this year, a handful of countries got peace deals thanks to Donald Trump, and Kieran Culkin got the baby his wife promised him. It also brought us some losers, like CNN, which a jury found to be literally fake news earlier this year.
"Here are our picks for the winners and losers of 2025." . . . Examples below:
Winner: Charlie Kirk: "Everyone dies but not all die well. As brutal and horrific as Charlie’s death was, he still died well — doing what he loved, doing what he was called to do, living courageously. Many men start strong, but few finish strong, and Charlie did both. He loved his wife, his children, and his country. His wife and children loved him deeply, and so did a great many of his countrymen. He “fought the good fight … finished the race [and] kept the faith,” leaving a legacy of bravery, faith, energy, and winning.
"And Charlie will keep winning. Jesus taught that “whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” Yes, Charlie died, but like all Christian martyrs he will ultimately triumph over death because of and through Jesus Christ. Now the responsibility of those who are left is to “take increased devotion to that cause for which [he] gave the last full measure of devotion.”
Loser: Candace Owens "Sure, the FBI didn’t magically become the purest and most effective organization in the world simply because Trump is back in the White House and Kash Patel and Dan Bongino are in the driver’s seat. Yes, every agency involved in the investigation into Charlie Kirk’s assassination needs to be held accountable and pressured to bring everyone involved to justice. But holding authority accountable doesn’t have anything to do with Candace Owens asserting that Trump and/or the feds (and Israel) orchestrated Kirk’s assassination, hypothesizing that “nothing in Charlie’s life was real,” criticizing his widow because she doesn’t pass the “vibe check,” and declaring that “Charlie was betrayed. By everyone” — among other things. (And, no, she’s not “just asking questions” either.) Regardless of what her motives are, I’m fairly certain that Candace turning her podcast into a tabloid-style “true” crime show that seems bent on degrading Kirk’s legacy and his organization is one of the last things Charlie would have wanted. " . . .
Winner: J.D. Vance "The left hates the vice president. Corporate media despise him. Good. That means he’s doing something right. "Vance has proved to be a bare-knuckle brawler for his president, the MAGA movement, and average Americans. In his first 11 months on the job, Vance has shown he’s not your usual second-in-command. He’s no Mike Pence, thank God." ....
Winner: Joe Biden’s Autopen: "Normally, the humble autopen stays in the background, a forgotten soldier in the battle of official paperwork. But former President Joe Biden’s autopen, perhaps the highest profile autopen to have ever accepted a civil service position, worked tirelessly on Biden’s behalf, officiating over many vital documents without chain-of-custody proof that the president actually approved the decisions. Biden’s name was affixed to a record-breaking 4,245 pardons and clemencies — more than any other president in history except Andrew Johnson, who pardoned ex-Confederates en masse. Last year Biden’s signature moved 37 violent killers off federal death row." . . . Now lets move on to the morefun losers:
Loser: Democrat Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen "We reached peak anti-Trump hysteria this year when Van Hollen left his constituents (actual American citizens) behind to hop on a flight to Central America for the purpose of reimporting a professed illegal alien by the name of Kilmar Abrego Garcia." . . .
Loser: The United Kingdom "Isabel Vaughan-Spruce was informed last week that she is being criminally charged for silently praying in front of an abortion facility in Birmingham, England. She has previously been arrested and acquitted — in one case receiving a settlement from the police — for the same “crime.”
Loser: Kamala Harris "Harris’ presidential loss happened at the end of 2024, but her overwhelming defeat has been painfully drawn out over 2025, too — thanks in large part to her insistence on advertising her own failed campaign during her 107 Days book tour. Continuing to subject us to her word salads and obvious attempts to regain “brat” status, Kamala has proven herself utterly incapable of being unburdened by what has been. " . . . Much, much More ...
