Do scandals still pack the same punch they used to?
The Deep State vs. The Forgetting State
Vance didn’t pull punches. Today’s "deep state," he argued, tried the same tricks on Trump that they did on Nixon. And yet—
- Nixon’s own party turned. Republicans, once his loyalists, turned investigators. Articles of impeachment passed.
- Trump’s GOP? They moved on. Faster.
The difference isn’t in the scandals. It’s in the attention span.
A dodgy trade deal? A tweetstorm erupts. By sundown, it’s yesterday’s outrage.
A pardon? A flashy business deal? A viral project? The next scandal buries it all. The cycle never stops. The feed never sleeps.
Politicians today don’t just pivot—they erase. One scandal fades into the next before the ink dries.
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The Scandal That Doesn’t Stick
Back then, scandals had weight. They lingered. They shaped history.
Now? They’re just noise.
A questionable transaction. A rushed decision. A controversial pardon. It all gets the same treatment—
- Shock. A few hours of outrage.
- Distraction. Something shinier appears.
- Oblivion. By morning, it’s gone.
The public isn’t just distracted. It’s designed to forget.
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The Lesson of Watergate: Scandals Used to Matter
Nixon resigned. His party abandoned him. The system worked.
Today’s system? It doesn’t just forgive scandals—it consumes them.
And by the time we realize what’s happening, the next outrage is already here.
