The Distraction Index

Weekly civic intelligence report · v2.2

DashboardUndercoveredSmokescreenTimelineTopicsSearchMethodCorrections
Aug 24 – Aug 30, 2025
Week 35🔒 FROZEN
WHAT ACTUALLY MATTERED

This week saw three significant constitutional challenges advance simultaneously: an anti-vaccine advocate assumed leadership of the CDC, Missouri's governor initiated gerrymandering to entrench Republican congressional power, and a federal appeals court ruled Trump's tariff authority unconstitutional. These developments represent direct threats to public health institutions, electoral integrity, and separation of powers. Meanwhile, the administration's directive to strip gender ideology from sex education, combined with high-profile culture war litigation and visa revocations targeting Palestinian officials, dominated media attention and political discourse. The pattern reflects a consistent strategy: while constitutional guardrails face substantive legal challenges, divisive social policy announcements and personnel controversies command the news cycle, potentially limiting sustained scrutiny of the structural damage occurring in parallel.

28
Events
3
List A
11
List B
14
Noise
10.9
Avg A
21.1
Avg B
200
Sources
0
Primary Docs
LOOK AT THIS
Jim O'Neill Named Acting CDC Director · Missouri Governor Calls Special Session to Redraw Congressional Maps to Boost GOP
THEY WANT YOU TO LOOK AT
Trump Administration Directs States to Remove 'Gender Ideology' from Sex Education · Trump and Kennedy Loom Over Congress Return
Real Damage
Constitutional Threats · 3 events
#1
Jim O'Neill Named Acting CDC Director
2025-08-30-15 MIXED
A
37.1
B
21.9
#2
Missouri Governor Calls Special Session to Redraw Congressional Maps to Boost GOPMIXED
2025-08-30-7 MIXED
A
33.8
B
27.2
#3
Appeals Court Rules Trump Global Tariffs Unconstitutional
2025-08-30-10 MIXED
A
28.4
B
18.3
Distractions
Manufactured Outrage · 11 events
#1
Trump Administration Directs States to Remove 'Gender Ideology' from Sex Education
2025-08-30+30 DISTRACTION
A
40.4
B
70.8
#2
Trump and Kennedy Loom Over Congress Return
2025-08-30+40 DISTRACTION
A
3.6
B
43.5
#3
Denver School District Addresses All-Gender Bathroom Policy
2025-08-30+42 DISTRACTION
A
0.1
B
42.4
#4
Border Patrol Arrests Firefighter During Washington Wildfire Response
2025-08-30+19 MIXED
A
12.3
B
31.5
#5
Legal Group Sues FDA Over Puberty Blocker Records
2025-08-30+22 MIXED
A
6.6
B
28.9
#6
John Bolton Investigation Raises Retribution Questions
2025-08-30+10 MIXED
A
17.8
B
27.9
#7
Trump Ends Secret Service Protection for Former Vice President Harris Early
2025-08-30+20 MIXED
A
7.4
B
27.5
#8
Massachusetts Governor Criticizes Trump for Canceling Salem Wind Project
2025-08-30+21 MIXED
A
4.0
B
25.4
#9
US Revokes Palestinian Official Visas Before UN Meeting
2025-08-30+19 MIXED
A
6.5
B
25.3
#10
ICE Detainee Data Shows 70% Lack Criminal Convictions
2025-08-30+4 MIXED
A
21.6
B
25.1
#11
Minneapolis School Shooting Prompts Safety Discussions
2025-08-30+20 MIXED
A
3.0
B
22.9
Noise Floor
Low Impact · 14 events
#1
DOE Approves LNG Exports from Cameron Parish Project
2025-08-30
1
#2
Western States Seek to End Rio Grande Water Dispute
2025-08-30
1
#3
Wisconsin Conservative Supreme Court Justice Announces Retirement
2025-08-30
1
#4
Trump Administration Removes Tariff Exemption for Parcels Under $800
2025-08-30
1
#5
Social Security Whistleblower Resigns
2025-08-30
1
#6
Marco Rubio Reduces Government Positions
2025-08-30
1
#7
Pentagon Mulls Speeding Process to Reinstate COVID Vaccine-Discharged Troops
2025-08-30
1
#8
California Lawmakers Reach Deal Allowing Uber/Lyft Drivers to Unionize
2025-08-30
0
#9
Governor Newsom Deploys State Police to Support Local Law Enforcement
2025-08-30
0
#10
Oregon and Hawaii Consider Pay-Per-Mile EV Fees
2025-08-30
0
#11
Rep. Luna Introduces Resolution to Advance End Congressional Stock Trading Act
2025-08-30
0
#12
Texas Governor Signs Congressional Redistricting Bill
2025-08-30
—
#13
Muscogee Nation Chief Blocks Tribal IDs for Freedman Descendants
2025-08-30
—
#14
Trump Administration Plans Removal of Nearly 700 Unaccompanied Migrant Children
2025-08-30
—