There is a particular kind of cruelty that government can accomplish without ever calling it cruelty. It does not require police at the door or some dramatic announcement from a podium. Sometimes all it takes is an accounting rule—one that looks at a disabled person living with family, notices that somebody is helping keep a roof over their head, and concludes that perhaps the government should pay them less. The government shouldn’t treat a family keeping a disabled loved on

Transparency is one of those words politicians love because it sounds noble before anyone asks what it actually requires. It suggests openness, accountability, and clean hands. It conjures an image of a government flinging open the curtains and inviting the public to look around. Donald Trump and several senior members of his administration did not merely promise greater transparency. They repeatedly described their administration as the most transparent in American history.

Americans love the idea of meritocracy. Work hard. Study hard. Keep your nose clean. Show up early. Stay late. Do the job better than everybody else, and eventually the ladder will lower itself politely in your direction. It is one of our favorite national stories because it turns success into proof of virtue and failure into a personal defect. It is neat, flattering, and often wildly incomplete. The loudest people talking about merit don't always want to compare qualificatio