• Join Puck

    Directly Supporting Authors

    A new economic model in which writers are also partners in the business.

    Personalized Subscriptions

    Customize your settings to receive the newsletters you want from the authors you follow.

    Stay in the Know

    Connect directly with Puck talent through email and exclusive events.

  • What is puck? Newsletters Authors Podcasts Events Gift Puck Careers

The Great Congressional Cutoff

The “most transparent administration in history” has choked off the information flow down Pennsylvania Avenue, doling out intel as a reward to allies while staying mostly mum about what’s happening at USAID, or even who’s running the C.D.C.

marco rubio trump
So far, Rubio is the only State Department official to have appeared for a hearing since Trump’s inauguration in January, which one Democratic staffer said is unprecedented. Photo: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
Leigh Ann Caldwell
June 8, 2025

The Trump administration, which the White House press secretary has repeatedly referred to as the most transparent in American history, appears to be cutting off information and data from lawmakers. Ahead of a recent international trip, or CODEL, House lawmakers were stonewalled by State Department officials when they inquired how they should discuss foreign aid cuts with overseas officials. The response wasn’t just a “no comment”—State officials said they’d been instructed to tell the lawmakers nothing about international aid.