One month in, the basic gambit of the second Trump administration seems to be that it thinks you’re stupid.

Donald Trump’s team seems convinced it can ignore the long-standing problems that have made normal life insecure or impossible for average people in the United States — even that it can make those problem worse and create whole new ones — and that you won’t notice it’s doing so if it carries out the political equivalent of jangling keys in front of a baby.

It thinks it can cut regulations that stop corporations from preying on Americans or endangering them by cutting corners; as long as it says it was “diversity, equity, and inclusion” (DEI) or “critical race theory” (CRT), you’ll nod along gamely. It thinks that as long as it shouts “wokeness,” it can take your health care away, put you out of a job, and turn a blind eye to predatory firms price gouging you, and you won’t realize you’re being screwed over — that you’ll be happy about it, in fact.