The Federalist Staff’s 2025 Winners And Losers Of The Year

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.

Joy Pullmann

Winner: Immigration Realists

This has been a year of amazing news stories about the horrors of mass immigration, from the Trump administration trying to find the 300,000 lost children the Biden administration helped traffic into various forms of slavery to the completely unsurprising Somali fraud story. It’s deeply refreshing to be able to finally talk about the many downsides of mass immigration from non-Western cultures. It’s liberating to stop caring about the craven power-mongers who smear people as racist for recognizing that all cultures and people are not equally good or compatible. 

Yes, God cares about every individual soul, but the nation-state is not the vehicle for awarding eternal life or even evangelism. And other people and cultures reject the Christian God who is the source of our inalienable rights secured by our particular government, making such peoples especially incompatible with the American way of life. As Russell Kirk explained, the gods a people worship form the center of their culture. So pagans are incompatible with America, which is why the nones and non-Christians overwhelmingly vote Democrat.

These realities are both obvious and difficult because of how far Americans have wandered from our roots. But difficult conversations are better than being coerced into an uneasy silence that allows evil to grow.

Loser: DOGE Follow-Through

The Department of Government Efficiency was a huge part of the shock and awe of the exciting first 100 days of the second Trump administration. But like those 100 days, its efficacy has fizzled through lack of implementation. We have no archives of disclosed public records to pore through and report out, no mass layoffs of bureaucrats who are spending every day resisting the policies of the elected president, not even credible cuts to agencies revealed as wasting money on regime change here and abroad in addition to Peruvian trans comic books! Was it all just a flashy news story with little long-term effect? So far it looks that way.

It’s yet another stinging example underscoring why voters seem to think there’s little point in electing or redistricting into a Republican Congress, because we get nothing from Republican Congresses remotely comparable to what Democrats get when they have Congress. The Big Beautiful Bill was fabulous (except for the pork required to pass it), but where are all the codifications of President Trump’s executive orders? Nowhere to be found. Where is the replacement for Obamacare? Republicans won elections promising one for 15 years and now they are securing funding they promised to erase! 

Everyone enjoys a fun news cycle, but those are empty calories if not leading to strategic, effective results. The lack of results people can see in their everyday lives is exactly what fueled the voter unrest that led to Trump’s disruptive presidency, and voters are going to bolt for Bernie Sanders and Zohran Mamdani types if Trump’s two presidencies don’t deflate the building Marxist social and economic pressure Americans live with every day. Tweets, press gaggles, and executive action only go so far, and it’s not remotely far enough.

Kylee Griswold

Winner: Fantastic Four

For all of Marvel’s flops in recent years, including the unbearable Captain America: Brave New World earlier this year, it finally released a fantastic film, The Fantastic Four: First Steps. The movie, released in July, stars Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, and Joseph Quinn as a group of astronauts-turned-superheroes who embark on a quest to save Earth after a space god marks the planet for destruction. 

The retro-futuristic aesthetic is a captivating backdrop for the high-stakes, intergalactic showdown, but what makes the film so wonderful is that it’s undeniably conservative — but not because it tries to be. In fact, it’s decidedly apolitical. Instead, it communicates truth about the sanctity of unborn life, the importance of family, and even the ordo amoris just by accurately reflecting human nature and virtue as virtue. It’s the most pro-life movie Hollywood has released in years, and maybe ever. It’s the whole point of the plot — and that’s a win in my book!

Loser: Jake Tapper 

Jake Tapper is always a loser, but this year has been especially notable with the release of his book with co-author Alex Thompson about Joe Biden’s cognitive decline and its “cover-up.”

Who could forget the 2020-2024 era, when Americans were treated almost daily to new episodes of Biden’s cognitive decline? He fell down and then fell down again. He alternated between inappropriately yelling and weirdly whispering abject nonsense. He wandered. He seemed to take naps mid-interview. He was even let off the hook in Robert Hur’s classified documents investigation because the special counsel surmised that a jury would perceive Biden as little more than a feeble old fool.

The whole time, the corporate media complex, with Jake Tapper at the helm, deployed a full-court press to deny and downplay Biden’s decay and tarnish anyone who noticed as kooks and conspiracy theorists. After all, they had an election to rig. 

So it was beyond laughable when Tapper, the ringleader of the Biden decline cover-up, came out with a tell-all book to blame anonymous White House staffers for his own sins. The gaslighting knows no bounds for the loser of the year.

(If you appreciate I Think You Should Leave as much as I do, enjoy Tapper’s Biden gaslighting saga, explained entirely by Tim Robinson memes here.)

Joshua Monnington

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. 

Loser: Kansas City Chiefs

Of course there are numerous other losers in the political world (some detailed here by my colleagues), but all politics and no sports makes Jack a dull (and mentally challenged) boy. A lot of other sports teams lost big this year (e.g., Michigan football — yikes), but the decline of the Kansas City Chiefs dynasty hits close to home for this writer, who is a devoted Kansas City fan. So while the rest of you NFL fans have probably been basking in the failures of Mr. Pfizer and now 30-year-old whiz kid Patrick Mahomes, it’s been rough going in the heart of America. 

After starting 2025 with two big playoff wins, the Chiefs fell mightily in one of the worst Super Bowl drubbings in history. By the time the Red Kingdom saw their team first cross midfield, it was after halftime and the score was 34-0 — and what might have been the first Super Bowl three-peat was a dumpster fire. As bad as that loss was, the Chiefs’ 2025 season was even worse. In a campaign filled with miscues, the team went 1-7 in one-score games and was eliminated from playoff contention on the same day star quarterback Patrick Mahomes tore his ACL. Kansas City had made seven straight AFC championship game appearances before this season, but “the dynasty is over” rumblings are already in full swing.

M.D. Kittle

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.  

Some have described the Marine Corps veteran as President Trump’s “enforcer.” They’re not wrong. Remember when Vance put ingrate Volodymyr Zelensky in his place during that tense White House meeting earlier this year? Ukraine’s crewneck sweater-wearing president, demanding more money for Europe’s Everlasting Gobstopper of a war, was advised by the VP to add “thank you” to his vocabulary. 

Vance has also been a warrior for free speech, persecuted Christians around the world, and the enforcement of our immigration laws. 

Trump has entrusted his vice president with more frontline responsibilities in the opening year of his second term than most VPs see in a term. And for the most part, Vance has acquitted himself nicely. 

In talk of ’28, Vance rises to the top of probable Republican presidential candidates. A new poll finds Vance the faraway favorite for the GOP presidential nomination. Expect expanded policy leadership roles and even greater visibility for Trump’s enforcer in 2026. 

Loser: Gov. Tim Walz

We’ve long known Minnesota’s schmuck of a governor is a phony. Now, we’re finding out Walz truly is Governor Fraud. 

One of the left’s best empty vessels, Walz was either asleep at the switch or knew about and did nothing to stop the “largest pandemic fraud in the United States.” As we are finding out, he had plenty of warnings about leftist nonprofits like Feeding Our Future bilking taxpayers out of hundreds of millions of dollars.

State Sen. Jordan Rasmusson told Fox News Digital what should have been obvious to Walz: Somali scammers “were claiming to feed 6,000 kids a day, seven days a week, in a community of only 2,500 people. … You don’t need to be an FBI analyst to figure out that there’s probably fraud occurring.”

But the Feeding Our Future scam was just the tip of the swindling iceberg in a fraud scandal believed to have cost taxpayers $1 billion, likely more. Of course, the fraud scandal is bigger than Minnesota. Just look at all the blue state governors who are prickly about opening their books to federal auditors.

Walz is a loser. Anyone who claims to hunt and loads a shotgun like he did on the campaign trail is either mentally challenged or a liar. The failed vice presidential candidate is definitely the latter, and there’s a good body of evidence to suggest he’s the former. 

Maisey Jefferson

Winner: Conservative Media 

After years of Big Tech censorship and propaganda press hoaxes — not to mention legacy outlets shamelessly covering up President Biden’s clear decline — alternative media played a huge role in the 2024 election. While real journalists must never stop calling out the corporate press’s lies, Americans are increasingly realizing that leftist outlets like The New York Times, Politico, and The Washington Post are not to be trusted.

Recognizing this changing atmosphere, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced plans in January to expand White House access to new outlets, “independent journalists, podcasters, social media influencers, and content creators,” and establish a “new media seat” in the White House briefing room. Leavitt also revealed efforts to “restore the press passes” to the hundreds of journalists whose “passes were wrongly revoked” under Biden. 

Shortly after, the White House moved to strip the White House Correspondents’ Association of its “monopoly” on access to the president. After all, the WHCA proved it “cared more about protecting Biden than defending the First Amendment.” While legacy media outlets are still included in the White House press pool, these changes provided alternative outlets like The Federalist with more immediate access to the administration.

Shawn Fleetwood

Winner: The Federalist Staff

The Russia collusion hoax was arguably one of the most destructive ops perpetrated against the American people in our nation’s history. And its most damaging effects would have been impossible without the full participation of the propaganda media. 

Legacy media parroted every leak and allegation fed to them by deep-state actors with virtually no questions asked. In essence, they acted as mouthpieces for a corrupt intelligence apparatus seeking to undermine Donald Trump and those who voted for him in the 2016 election. 

But the same cannot be said for The Federalist. Under the fearless leadership of Sean Davis and Mollie Hemingway, our staff helped expose the hoax and covered the stories legacy media chose to ignore.

The Federalist’s continued coverage of the Russia hoax culminated in our staff receiving the 2025 Dao Grand Prize for Investigative Journalism. It rewarded a decade of incredible reporting by Davis, Hemingway, Margot Cleveland, and many others.

Loser: Congress

During the 2024 election, Republicans asked voters to send them to Washington so they could deliver transformational change and enact an “America First” agenda. Now, roughly a year later, the Grand Old Party has little to show for its congressional majorities.

From slow-walking confirmation of Trump’s executive nominees, failing to codify Trump’s executive orders and DOGE cuts, or fumbling health care reform, Republicans have botched meaningful opportunities to deliver on the promises they made to voters. They either don’t want to govern or are too stupid to figure out how.  

Jordan Boyd

Winner: Pardoned Pro-Lifers

President Donald Trump’s pardoning of 23 pro-lifers targeted by the Biden administration for their peaceful opposition to abortion was one of the most consequential decisions he made all year. 

Trump’s pardons didn’t simply right a wrong done by the weaponization of an unconstitutional law. It also signaled that the commander-in-chief considers propelling the pro-life movement a duty and a “great honor.”

There’s still plenty of lifesaving work for this administration to do, starting with speedily reviewing and reinstating safeguards on the dangerous abortion drug mifepristone and ditching support for in vitro fertilization. But freeing people who were charged for worshipping, praying, and protecting tiny lives was a great start. 

Loser: Gen Z Females

Married women with children are twice as likely to be “very happy” as unmarried women without kids. Young women, however, are increasingly failing to see the emotional, physical, and financial value of getting hitched and having babies.

One recent Pew survey analysis found that 12th-grade girls are significantly less likely than their male peers to say they want to get married — 61 percent compared to the boys’ 74 percent. In fact, the young females’ desire to “get married in the long run” is down more than 20 percentage points from 1993, when girls’ hopes to tie the knot outpaced boys’.

Not only are girls less interested in marriage, but they are also less interested in having children than their predecessors. Overall, both Gen Z men and women rank raising a family below a fulfilling job, money, financial independence, and owning a home as a marker of personal success.

The steep decline in willingness to get hitched and have kids aligns with declining national marriage and fertility trends. But it’s not too late for the next generation — especially females — to find love and settle down. Even pop culture offers glimmers of hope, such as celebrity Kelsea Ballerini’s exposé of “girl boss” lies and Millie Bonnie Bongiovi’s recent motherhood debut.

Beth Brelje

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.

Biden signed some things on his own (like a pardon for his son Hunter), but the House Oversight Committee has asked the Department of Justice to investigate and potentially void Biden’s autopen actions. For its part, the autopen’s career has been honored with a framed photo at the White House where Biden’s photo would have been.

Loser: Government-Run Media

It has been a terrible year for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the middleman that distributes taxpayer cash to National Public Radio (NPR) and the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS). NPR famously helped bury the bombshell Hunter Biden laptop story in 2024, and has been responsible for “journalism” such as broadcasting the abortion of a baby in utero and pushing racially divisive stories.

In April, the Trump administration notified three members of the CPB board — Laura Ross, Thomas Rothman, and Diane Kaplan — that the president was removing them, effective immediately. They went to court to block their removal and lost, but stayed anyway. While removed, they even held a voting meeting and tried to change the bylaws governing their own removal.  

In July, Congress defunded the CPB, rescinding $1.1 billion. It must have been a blow to CPB CEO Patricia Harrison, 86, whose $524,000 salary was paid by your tax dollars.

Brianna Lyman

Winner: American Sovereignty

After four terrible years during which Americans watched millions of foreigners rush the southern border and invade the nation, 2025 brought a collective sigh of relief for American sovereignty. Upon taking office, President Trump immediately did what the last administration refused to do: secure the southern border. Not only is that a win for our brave and tireless Border Patrol agents and our border states, but it’s also a win for our sovereignty. A nation cannot exist without sovereignty, and sovereignty cannot exist without enforced borders. Thanks to Trump, sovereignty has been restored. 

Loser: Cracker Barrel

Earlier this year, Cracker Barrel ditched its iconic logo and aesthetic in favor of a modern, soulless redesign. Executives rejected the very reason Cracker Barrel became popular in the first place: it tapped into things that are authentically American, from the iconic roadside store and family dinner to the sense of familiarity in a nation that’s always on the go. 

That’s precisely why people fought for the old logo. It wasn’t mere nostalgia for nostalgia’s sake; it was a stand against the corporate instinct to strip everything of its roots. Americans want to live in a country that still looks like America. Tired of their traditions being trampled, they spoke out, loudly. There was immediate pushback and ultimately, Cracker Barrel reneged on its rebranding. Americans won the battle, and Cracker Barrel lost.

Eddie Scarry

Winner: The DOGE Experiment

Results were ultimately mixed but Elon Musk’s valiant effort to cut waste and fraud from the federal leviathan was worth it 10 times over. Meaningless jobs were eliminated, scam spending streams were cut, and Democrats continued to reveal themselves as devotees to the spirit-crushing mega bureaucracy. 

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. It’s one thing to oppose the president’s immigration law enforcement policies, but it was truly awe-inspiring to see a Democrat literally leave U.S. territory using American taxpayer dollars so that he could retrieve a foreigner from his own home country — a man who had no right to be here.

Elle Purnell

Winner: Arlington Cemetery’s Reconciliation Monument

In an age when statues of Confederates, Founding Fathers, presidents, explorers, and abolitionists are torn down with equal fervor, one previously-removed monument has been saved from the scrapyard. The Confederate Monument — also known as the Reconciliation Monument — was removed in 2023 under the Biden administration after standing in Arlington National Cemetery for more than a century. In an effort begun by President William McKinley, a Union veteran, the memorial had been commissioned to honor the nation’s reunification after the Civil War. A woman representing the South is accoutered with a plow and other instruments of peace, and the monument is inscribed with Scripture about those who “beat their swords into ploughshares.”

In August, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth announced the monument would “rightfully” return to Arlington in 2027, after undergoing refurbishment. Its message of reconciliation between political foes should be a timely one.

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.” A few weeks prior, British police reportedly arrested a man who posted photos holding a shotgun from a trip to the United States. Some reports estimate as many as 30 people per day are arrested for things they say on social media.

While British citizens are arrested for peaceful expression, the U.K. government continues to import tens of thousands of migrants every year, many of whom hail from Muslim-majority countries where hatred of the West and its ideals is rampant. As of November, the number of migrants entering the U.K. via the English Channel had already surpassed the total from 2024. Headline after headline reveals the result of this population shift: deadly terror attacks, random murders of Britons by so-called asylum seekers, and the rape of children by men from countries where sex slavery is common. Just last week, two Afghan men were sentenced for the rape of a 15-year-old British girl. Nowhere in the world is a government’s preference for foreigners and hatred for its own people more stark than in once-great Britain.

Read More From Original Article Here: The Federalist Staff’s 2025 Winners And Losers Of The Year