Who showed courage and who’s getting coal?
Santa sees you when you’re sleeping. He knows when you’re awake. He knows when you’ve shown courage and stood up against attacks on the Constitution and abuses of power.
In 2025, he’s kept a close eye on all things politics and written up his Courageous or Cowardly List and he’s checked it twice.
Courageous
Samuel Garcia, Fred Higginbotham, Disney+ subscribers, and everyday Americans who are standing up to abuse of power
Samuel Garcia drove 3 hours to confront the Texas legislature about corruption. Fred Higginbotham told his Member of Congress what we’re all thinking. 300,000 Missourians signed a petition to force a public vote against a corrupt gerrymandering proposal. Millions of Americans canceled their Disney+ and Hulu accounts to bring Jimmy Kimmel back on the air after the FCC tried to silence his free speech. Across the country, ordinary people are standing up to power.
The Republican Senators who reclaimed their constitutional power and voted against tariffs
Tariffs are a signature policy of President Trump, but the Constitution gives Congress alone the power to impose tariffs. For much of the year, Republicans have sat on the sidelines while the effects of Trump’s tariffs have hit Americans’ pocketbooks hard until Senators Thom Tillis, Rand Paul, Lisa Murkowski, Susan Collins, and Mitch McConnell finally stood up, reclaimed their constitutional power, and voted to block tariffs on Brazil.
The Indiana state senators who defied Trump’s redistricting pressure
Indiana’s Republican-led State Senate rejected a Trump-backed plan to redraw the state’s congressional map in a way that would have favored Republicans in future congressional elections. Despite intense pressure from President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance, a majority of Republican senators voted no, citing concerns raised by their constituents about fairness and community representation.
The district court judges maintaining their independence despite threats and intimidation
As the Executive Branch under President Trump has repeatedly overstepped its constitutional power, district court judges have stepped in to enforce the law. In response, several of these judges who have ruled against the administration have faced harassment, threats, and even attacks targeting their families. Rather than backing down, these judges have continued to issue rulings based on the Constitution even in the face of personal risk.
The Senators standing up against unauthorized war
Under the Constitution, Congress, not the president, decides when America goes to war. With military strikes happening in the Caribbean almost daily without Congressional approval, Congress has all but ceded its war powers authority, but there are a few Republican Senators who have been vocal despite intense party pressure: Sen. Rand Paul called out the troubling lack of due process, and Sen. Lisa Murkowski voted with Democrats on a resolution requiring congressional approval.
The Members of Congress who refused to back down on the Epstein Files
Despite a majority of Americans wanting the Epstein Files released, the White House and Republican Party leadership stymied their release at every turn. That is, until a few Republicans went against their party and demanded their release: Rep. Thomas Massie co-sponsored the Epstein Files Transparency Act and Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Nancy Mace, and Lauren Boebert all resisted intense pressure to remove their support. This courage led to Congress approving their release by a near-unanimous vote, giving President Trump no choice but to sign the bill into law.
Cowardly
Per Santa’s orders, the following are definitely getting coal in their stockings:
The House Armed Services Committee members refusing to fully investigate the strikes in the Caribbean
With so many questions about constitutionality and legality surrounding the military strikes happening in the Caribbean, the House Armed Services Committee, one of Congress’ most powerful committees, had a real opportunity to exercise oversight and make the Executive Branch answer to Congress and the public. Instead, they’ve decided to wind down an inquiry into the matter after just two weeks.
The Supreme Court majority continually hiding behind its shadow docket to issue pro-Trump rulings with no explanation
The Supreme Court makes decisions that affect all of us. They usually issue their rulings after months of written arguments, oral hearings, and detailed opinions. But lately, when it comes to cases surrounding the Trump administration, they’ve been using the “shadow docket” to expedite cases and issue rulings. The problem: these shadow docket rulings are happening quickly, without oral arguments, and sometimes with very little written explanation. If the Supreme Court is going to affect all of our lives, the least they can do is explain themselves.
House Speaker Mike Johnson cancelling sessions to avoid tough votes during shutdown negotiations
In the fall of 2025, as the longest government shutdown in history dragged on and millions of Americans felt the effects, House Speaker Johnson kept members of the House away to avoid negotiations and tough votes. He even neglected basic duties like swearing in newly elected Rep. Adelita Grijalva after her special election victory.
The Members of Congress avoiding town halls
Members of Congress work for us, and they should be willing to face their constituents and answer for their actions. Yet many lawmakers have been skipping in-person town halls this year, avoiding direct accountability. Rep. Hudson, chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee, has even urged his colleagues to switch to all virtual events to avoid dealing with the uproar from their constituents.
The Members of Congress getting rich off stocks in sectors they oversee
Members of Congress serve on powerful committees and often have access to information the public doesn’t. That’s why it’s so troubling when Sens. Markwayne Mullin and John Boozman, and Reps. Gilbert Cisneros and Julie Johnson profit from defense stocks while helping oversee the defense industry. If lawmakers stand to gain financially from the companies they regulate, how can we be sure they’re acting in the public’s best interest rather than their own? Instead of drawing a clear ethical line, they’re hiding behind their positions and hoping no one notices the conflict.
In 2026, we need more courage, less cowardice.
That’s why we’ve launched the Congressional Courage Campaign to bring together ordinary people across the country to press Members of Congress to:
- Hold the Executive Branch accountable for corruption and abuses of power
- Uphold and defend the Constitution by taking back control of federal budgets, tariffs, and other powers that the Constitution has granted to Congress and Congress alone
- Represent their constituents, not their pocketbooks, not the president, not special interests, and build a better, more accountable system for all of us
With your support, we can turn public pressure into real accountability and make Congress step up instead of backing down.