My Take - US political miasma

In 2025, my observations align with a shifting landscape of US political communication, characterized by increased friction between executive transparency and congressional oversight.

I have over the last several months been watching with horror the US senate congressional hearings where the Democrats have been sincerely attempting in trying to make sense of unilateral decisions being made by a number of top ranking Trump administration officials heading various agencies and their resultant fall outs. 

Through the medium of these hearings they (the officials) are rightfully being held to task for accountability, transparency and decisions taken in abject violation of what the present law permits. 

So are the pressers being given on a regular basis by the White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt the youngest White House Press Secretary in history, justifying all of the decisions taken by these people at the top throwing caution to wind? She through her adversarial briefings has significantly altered the discourse of the briefing room's tone. Her tenure is marked by a "separation from precedent" in treating traditional media, including moves to admit "new media voices" like social media influencers to challenge established press corps narratives.

Erosion of Procedural Civility - The "common denominator" of declining decorum has manifested in high-profile confrontations between administration officials and lawmakers. Regrettably I observe that there is one common denominator that is being shockingly practiced in both these forums and that is complete lack of and display of any semblance of civility and professional courtesy by the people facing the tough questions. It has now somehow become fashionable to indulge in the use of profanities, evasive tactics, literally make attempts to denigrate the congressman seeking answers and to simply skirt the issues raised by indulging in rhetoric, slandering previous administrations and to let it be known in a unashamed brazen manner that these individuals are untouchables and above the law and accountability is a bygone trait that has now become fossilized and irrelevant. This reflects a broader trend in 2025 where standard oversight mechanisms are increasingly bypassed or met with aggressive push back.

In most of 2025 senate hearings have frequently "erupted" and "descended into chaos" as lawmakers attempt to investigate unilateral agency decisions. For example, investigations into DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency) activities have seen officials accused of overreach while they, in turn, challenge the legitimacy of the oversight itself. The sense that officials act as if they are "above the law" has led to several landmark legal and legislative clashes in late 2025. The administration has faced nearly 50 lawsuits aimed at reversing unilateral actions, such as freezes on federal funding and changes to birthright citizenship.

Rhetoric from the White House often frames congressional questions as "attacks" or "weaponization," with Leavitt frequently accusing Democratic members of encouraging government "defiance" of presidential orders. 

House and Senate leaders have criticized the administration's lack of transparency regarding "spend plans" for federal agencies, which are legally required for congressional appropriations.

The administration has moved to control media access more strictly, such as blocking specific outlets from events over naming disputes (e.g., the "Gulf of America" controversy).

A conclusion. All this is happening because the behemoth elephant in the room, the President has become a role model to emulate by his minions for declaring himself an untouchable from any fact finding prisms one may want to pierce through. *Opaqueness is the new normal.* His boot lickers have gotten emboldened due to this. A sliver of a silver lining in all of this is, it will end because change is the only constant. I for one am an optimist on this score.✍🏽