Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul on Tuesday released the latest edition of his annual Festivus report, detailing more than $1 trillion in projected wasteful spending by the U.S. government through 2025.
Newly released report found that the total amount of government waste last year was $1,639,135,969,608. Floorrenowned financial hawk serving as This was stated by the chairman of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. statement that “nNo matter how much taxpayer money Washington spends, politicians can't help but demand more.” (RELATED: Sen. Rand Paul Warns Both Sides' Tug of War Over Redistricting Could Spark More Political Violence)
“Financial responsibility may not be the busiest road, but it's one I take year after year, and this holiday season will be no exception,” Paul continued. “So before we get to Feats of Strength, it’s time to voice grievances (about spending).
It's time for the holidays 🌲
This year's waste report contains
INCREDIBLE $1,639,135,969,608💸Read the report, voice your grievances, and let us know which points you like best.https://t.co/NY9skPZTKR pic.twitter.com/lIg65SazAJ
— Senator Rand Paul (@SenRandPaul) December 23, 2025
Holiday Report 2025 highlighted a spate of wasteful spending by the federal government, including the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) spending $1.5 million on an “innovative multi-layered strategy” to reduce drug use in “Latino” communities through celebrity campaigns, and committing $1.9 million to a “hybrid family cell phone intervention” aimed at reducing childhood obesity among Latino families living in Los Angeles County.
The report also mentioned that HHS spent more than $40 million on influencers to promote COVID-19 vaccinations among racial and ethnic minority groups.
The State Department gave $244,252 to Stand for Peace in Islamabad to produce an animated television series that teaches children in Pakistan to fight climate change, and also spent $1.5 million to promote American films, TV shows and video games abroad, according to the report.
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) spent more than $1,079,360 this year training teenage ferrets about alcohol abuse, according to Paul's report.
The report states that the National Science Foundation (NSF) allocated $497,200 to the “Video Game Challenge” for children. NSF and other federal agencies also paid $14,643,280 to force monkeys to play a “Price is Right”-style video game, the report said.
“Holiday” of Paul 2024 report similarly, several examples of wasteful spending by the federal government were shown, such as the Las Vegas pickleball complex and the cabaret show on ice.
The Trump administration is trying eradicate wasteful government spending and a shrinking federal workforce this year. Administration cuts cut the federal workforce to its lowest level in more than a decade, according to to the latest economic data.
Festivus is a humorous holiday celebrated annually on December 23rd that dates back to the popular 1997 episode of the sitcom Seinfeld. Celebrating the holiday, in part, involves “voicing grievances,” according to the Seinfeld episode in which it originated.
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