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MaddowBlog-The Trump administration faces a credibility crisis of its own making (presumption of regularity)
The Department of Homeland Security has effectively set its credibility on fire — but the larger problem goes well beyond DHS.
Link to tweet
https://www.ms.now/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/the-trump-administration-faces-a-credibility-crisis-of-its-own-making
In legal circles, there’s a principle known as “presumption of regularity.” At the risk of oversimplifying matters, the basic idea is that courts have long been deferential toward federal agencies and their leaders, working from the assumption that officials are executing their duties in good faith.
In 2026, that presumption has fallen on hard times. MS NOW reported late last week:
About a month ago, a federal immigration agent shot 24-year-old Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, and immediately after the incident, federal officials described Sosa-Celis as a “violent criminal illegal alien” who was part of a group that attacked an officer with a snow shovel and a broom handle during an attempted arrest....
The same day the administration’s case against Sosa-Celis unraveled, acting ICE Director Todd Lyons appeared before a Senate committee and testified under oath that local law enforcement personnel in Colorado leaked plans for a law enforcement raid, which in turn allowed gang members to escape.
Soon after, Lyons’ story also collapsed under scrutiny.
....Trump’s Justice Department is so dishonest, so frequently, that former Republican Gov. Chris Christie, a former federal prosecutor, said on ABC News’ “This Week” on Sunday, “What you’re seeing now is absolutely the destruction of the credibility of the Justice Department with our judicial system.”
The Department of Health and Human Services and its many agencies are no longer reliable. Government data is suspect in ways without modern precedent. The Environmental Protection Agency is led by a former GOP congressman who thinks the entirety of international climate science is “a con job,” while the Pentagon is led by a former Fox News host whom even other Republicans struggle to trust.
The idea that the public can trust the Office of the Director of National Intelligence is plainly laughable. The idea that the public can trust claims from the White House is almost certainly worse.
This is obviously just a small sampling, but it speaks to a larger truth: Donald Trump is leading a team facing a systemic credibility crisis, which the administration is choosing to ignore and making no effort to resolve. The result is a civics crisis in which Americans have no idea what, if anything, to believe from the federal government that ostensibly exists to serve their interests.
In 2026, that presumption has fallen on hard times. MS NOW reported late last week:
Federal prosecutors are investigating whether two Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers lied under oath about the shooting of a migrant in Minneapolis last month, an ICE spokesperson said Friday.
The about-face on the case, which Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem initially called an ‘attempted murder of federal law enforcement,’ marks the latest instance in which immigration authorities have had to walk back such claims in the face of evidence contradicting them.
About a month ago, a federal immigration agent shot 24-year-old Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, and immediately after the incident, federal officials described Sosa-Celis as a “violent criminal illegal alien” who was part of a group that attacked an officer with a snow shovel and a broom handle during an attempted arrest....
The same day the administration’s case against Sosa-Celis unraveled, acting ICE Director Todd Lyons appeared before a Senate committee and testified under oath that local law enforcement personnel in Colorado leaked plans for a law enforcement raid, which in turn allowed gang members to escape.
Soon after, Lyons’ story also collapsed under scrutiny.
The acting director of ICE told Congress, under oath, that local law enforcement in Colorado leaked raid plans, allowing gang members to escape.
— Kyle Clark (@kylec.bsky.social) 2026-02-15T16:58:15.296Z
After 9NEWS questioned ICE's claim and its timeline, ICE deleted the claim from its social media platforms.
....Trump’s Justice Department is so dishonest, so frequently, that former Republican Gov. Chris Christie, a former federal prosecutor, said on ABC News’ “This Week” on Sunday, “What you’re seeing now is absolutely the destruction of the credibility of the Justice Department with our judicial system.”
The Department of Health and Human Services and its many agencies are no longer reliable. Government data is suspect in ways without modern precedent. The Environmental Protection Agency is led by a former GOP congressman who thinks the entirety of international climate science is “a con job,” while the Pentagon is led by a former Fox News host whom even other Republicans struggle to trust.
The idea that the public can trust the Office of the Director of National Intelligence is plainly laughable. The idea that the public can trust claims from the White House is almost certainly worse.
This is obviously just a small sampling, but it speaks to a larger truth: Donald Trump is leading a team facing a systemic credibility crisis, which the administration is choosing to ignore and making no effort to resolve. The result is a civics crisis in which Americans have no idea what, if anything, to believe from the federal government that ostensibly exists to serve their interests.