Every year, CBS’s Stephen Colbert’s final The Late Show episode before Christmas features a politically-inspired cartoon meant to make his liberal audience feel all warm and fuzzy inside. With liberals feeling extra sad this year, Thursday’s cartoon featured President Trump and various administration officials arresting Santa Claus and his elves only for them to turn the tables at the end.
Narrator Nick Offerman began, “Twas the last Christmas special and all through D.C., folks were drinking their feelings especially me…. While Christmas had once been a season of giving, this year, in the White House, King Jagbag was living. No inch of that fellow was nice, kind, or thankful from his weird rotting hand to his large swollen cankles. He hated Kris Kringle, giving gifts out for free.”
Cartoon Trump was then showing cancelling Christmas because he did not want to be upstaged by Santa while denying he had anything to do with it, “Wasn’t me, but I absolutely love that Santa got fired. The North Pole’s a war zone.” Offerman followed, “That gassy Grinch foamed.”
As various DHS and military personnel arrived at the North Pole, Santa declared, “Invading my workshop’s illegal, good luck,” only to be told by an elf that “The Supreme Court allowed it.”
Eventually, Cartoon Pete Hegseth popped his head out of a tank to announce Santa’s arrest, “Sorry, new rule. No fatties, no beardos.”
After Santa lamented that Bumble, the Abominable Snow Monster, joined ICE, Stephen Miller was shown yelling into a megaphone from a helicopter, “Round up the elves! They’re foreign invaders!” while Kristi Noem added, “Throw them in prison and surround it with gators!”
Trump then announced his plans for the North Pole, “This workshop you got here is ugly and old, so I’ll make it my ballroom and fill it with gold.”
Eventually, Santa broke out of the prison that he happened to share with assorted PBS characters—because, to the liberal mind, defunding PBS is the same as cancelling it— and confronted Trump. As Santa struggled to battle Trump, the PBS characters appeared on the horizon singing “Loo, loo, loo, loo, loser” to the tune of “The First Noel.”
The singing helped Christmas joy return, Bumble switched sides because “Bumble, not ICE. Bumble, nice,” and Santa hurled Trump through the air before he crashed through the White House roof and landed in the Oval Office. Upon arriving at his desk, Trump mourned, “Ugh, back to work,” before falling asleep.
The skit ended up with Cartoon Colbert and Santa riding off into the night together in the sleigh, with both looking forward to finding a new job.
It’s a sad commentary on the state of the late night industry that a bunch of PBS children’s show characters calling Donald Trump a loser is what raises their Christmas spirit, but that is where The Late Show is.
Here is a transcript for the December 18 show:
CBS The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
12/18/2025
11:53 PM ET
NICK OFFERMAN: Twas the last Christmas special, and all through D.C., folks were drinking their feelings, especially me. Remember, it's not a drinking “problem” if you are a cartoon. While Christmas had once been a season of giving, this year, in the White House, King Jagbag was living. No inch of that fellow was nice, kind, or thankful from his weird rotting hand to his large swollen cankles. He hated Kris Kringle, giving gifts out for free.CARTOON DONALD TRUMP: Why’s Christmas about him, when it should be about me.
OFFERMAN: While up in his workshop, just minding his business, Saint Nick got a letter.
SANTA CLAUS: They’re canceling Christmas?
ELVES: What?
SANTA: But we’re the number one holiday.
ELF 1: I simply don’t get it, sir. How can this be?
SANTA: I’ll take one wild guess.
TRUMP: No, no. Wasn’t me, but I absolutely love that Santa got fired. The North Pole’s a war zone.
OFFERMAN: That gassy Grinch foamed.
TRUMP: On Miller, on Bobby, on Hegseth, on Noem.
SANTA: Invading my workshop’s illegal. Good luck.
ELF 2: The Supreme Court allowed it.
ELVES: Really.
SANTA: Oh [bleep]
Hands off my workshop, you sick big of weirdos!
CARTOON PETE HEGSETH: Sorry, new rule. No fatties, no beardos.
SANTA: Bumble, you joined ICE?
BUMBLE, THE ABOMINABLE SNOW MONSTER: Bumble saw a commercial during football game.
CARTOON STEPHEN MILLER: Round up the elves! They’re foreign invaders!
CARTOON KRISTI NOEM: Throw them in prison and surround it with gators!
RUDOLPH: Stop it at once. You’re acting insane here.
CARTOON ROBERT F. KENNEDY JR.: Yum, yum, Christmas dinner. It’s fresh road kill reindeer.
RUDOLPH: Don’t eat me! I take Tylenol!
TRUMP: This workshop you got here is ugly and old, so I’ll make it my ballroom and fill it with gold.
…
OFFERMAN: Then Trump heard a sound rising over the snow. It started in low, then started to grow.
TRUMP: That's not Lee Greenwood.
ASSORTED PBS CHARACTERS [Singing to the tune of “The First Noel”]: Loo, loo, loo, loo, loser.
TRUMP: What?
SANTA: They’re free, but how?
Bumble!
TRUMP: Put that down, Piggy! You are supposed to be ICE!
BUMBLE: Bumble, not ICE. Bumble, nice.
CHILD: Thank you, snow beast.
SANTA’s WATCH: Joy levels restored.
SANTA: My sack is back! Ho, ho, ho.
TRUMP: No! They are stealing my stolen presents!
SANTA: Donald, you’re canceled.
TRUMP: Ugh, back to work. [snores]
ELF 3: Santa, what are you going to do now that you lost your workshop?
SANTA: I don’t know, maybe a podcast.
STEPHEN COLBERT: I heard you're doing a show with Rachel Maddow on Netflix.
SANTA: Stephen!
COLBERT: Hop in, big guy. Let’s go find some jobs, but first—
COLBERT AND SANTA: Merry Christmas to all and to all—
COLBERT: We’ll be right back with Hugh Jackman.
