We’ve gotten used to stories where all is required to stop a corrupt ruler is exposing the truth. Both Zootopia movies revolve around Judy and Nick ending a conspiracy by the rich and powerful merely by exposing it, and then the rich and powerful are arrested and face consequences. In the new Superman movie, they stop Lex Luthor’s evil plan by exposing to the public and destroying his reputation. A lot of fictional stories operate under the assumption that all we have to do is show the public that somebody is corrupt and they immediately lose their power.

Now we keep pointing out that the administration are being hypocrites and not following their own rules, like we think some cosmic rule arbiter will suddenly remove their power for breaking the rules. We are powerless when faced with the reality that exposing the corruption does absolutely nothing. It isn’t going to get the corrupt people arrested. It isn’t going to make them lose an election. It isn’t even going to hurt their reputation much.