The Distraction Index

This week saw significant constitutional damage advance across multiple fronts: the Trump administration initiated layoffs of 20,000 IRS workers while shutting down the civil rights office, the Energy Department moved to classify over 40 percent of its workforce as nonessential ahead of mass layoffs, federal judges ordered the return of individuals mistakenly deported to El Salvador and other countries due to systemic errors, and the Supreme Court sided with the administration in limiting Education Department grant authority. These actions represent material reductions in federal enforcement capacity, judicial oversight of executive deportation procedures, and institutional checks on executive power. Meanwhile, distraction patterns centered on the TikTok sale deadline extension, a Nazi propaganda quote at a congressional hearing, stock market volatility tied to tariff concerns, and a suspicious package addressed to Trump, which collectively fragmented public attention from the structural damage occurring within federal agencies and the judiciary.