Top Ten Sound Bites of 2025: Part II
By Kevin Howley
Wasn’t that a time?! Part Two of the Top Ten Sound Bites of 2025 picks up where we left off in June––with a sense of dread and exhaustion. The word “surreal” doesn’t begin to describe America’s descent into cultural chaos and government sanctioned lawlessness. Nonetheless, there’s a glimmer of hope in these dark days. The following sound bites register a glass half-full sensibility: our best bet for surviving the next twelve months.
10. “So, hear me, President Trump, when I say this: To get to any of us, you will have to get through all of us.”
NYC Mayor Elect Zohran Mamdani concludes his victory speech by taking the tyrant to task on his mass deportation program, November 4.
9. “They’ll get over it.”
Mitch McConnell (R-KY) reassures US Senate colleagues that the public will forget the GOP’s vote to slash Medicaid while giving massive tax cuts to billionaires, June 24.
8. “This Epstein list. It’s the first time Trump didn’t want his name on something.”
Late night host and thorn in Trump’s side Jimmy Kimmel sticks it to the man-child where it hurts––his brand, September 3.
7. “She’s full of shit.”
New York Governor Kathy Hochul delivers a pungent assessment of Elise Stefanik (R-NY),
the MAGA loyalist who abruptly ended her NY gubernatorial campaign and declined to seek reelection to Congress, November 21.
6. “Either they’re having an affair, or they’re just very shy.”
Coldplay frontman Chris Martin’s quip goes viral after not-so-happily-married tech CEO Andy Byron is caught on a “kiss cam” with a married co-worker, July 16.
5. “Call me a boomer, but these participation trophies have gone too far.”
Late Night host Stephen Colbert mocks the would-be dictator’s childish glee upon receiving the inaugural FIFA Peace Prize, December 8.
4. “Things happen.”
Donald Trump makes excuses for Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed bin Salman when he was questioned about Prince Bone Saw’s role in the murder and dismemberment of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, November 18.
3. “I have nothing against kids having ketchup on their burgers, ketchup with their fries. Even, which is hard for me to watch, ketchup on hot dogs. But at a certain point you gotta kinda outgrow it.”
Former President Barack Obama sparks outrage over remarks about using the
controversial condiment past the age of 8, July 24.
2. “Maybe it’s time to pick a fucking side.”
Senator Chris Murphy (D-CONN) registers his disgust with Republicans giving Trump yet another pass––this time for the president’s suggestion that a group of Congressional Democrats be executed for sedition, November 20.
1. “No Kings!”
Rally cry for nationwide protests resisting deportations, corruption, lawlessness, and abuse of power under Trump 2.0, October 18.
From Your Mouth to God’s Ear Quote of The Year: “Republicans will likely lose the midterms.”
Former MAGA disciple turned anti-Trump anti-heroine, Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene (R–GA), reads the tea leaves ahead of the 2026 midterm election, November 22.