When president Donald Trump pardoned former Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio back in 2017, many Americans were livid. Arpaio had violated a court order aimed to stop widespread racial profiling he had overseen. It was wrong. It was unjust. But the morality of the pardon itself is not what I want to focus on. Instead, I want to highlight how Trump pardoned Arpaio two hours before Hurricane Harvey hit the Texan coast at 10 p.m. that night.

How is that relevant? Well, Trump’s decision was, shockingly, not a coincidence. In fact, he himself admitted that the timing of the pardon was intentional. He purposefully announced the move at a time when the nation was looking elsewhere, and his recent demolition of the White House’s East Wing–to make room for a giant, golden ballroom–is no different.

Some might argue that this is a one-time err, a minor goof, if you will. Unfortunately, Trump’ s decision to announce a controversial move right before a major news event is part of a larger pattern.

A 2019 study on presidential executive orders found that they “[were] more likely to be signed on the eve of days when the news is dominated by other events.”

A similar study from 2020, this time focusing on U.S. media coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, found that Israeli attacks were more common on days right before newsworthy events.

These kinds of moves are meant to hide actions that otherwise would have gotten more widespread coverage. Sure, it may seem improbable that every action is meticulously timed. After all, we can’t tell the future. We can predict it, however, and politicians use that skill to their advantage. They know that the less attention they draw to themselves, the more they can get away with. The more destruction you can distract from.

Currently, the $300 million “much-needed and exquisite addition” is unpopular among U.S. adults– 56% of Americans oppose it. Despite this opposition, the project has gone forward, even without the federal approval that previous White House projects have had to acquire. The ballroom serves as an example of how Trump and other politicians have to strike a delicate balance of public opinion. Critical timing is used to offset backlash, such as when Trump commented that he expected ratings “would be far higher than they would be normally,” after pardoning Arpaio.

For the past few weeks, both sides of the aisle have been arguing over whether the construction of the new structure is justified or not. Articles citing historic preservation experts or complaints of lack of space from past presidents have been churned out on the daily, fueling the fire. The problem at its core, though, is not whether it’s right or wrong to build it, but that we’re arguing over something so stupid in the first place.

In reality, the White House State Ballroom, which will fit 999 patrons, will only benefit the wealthiest elite of the American population. For all the debate about the names on the list of corporate donors for the addition–which includes giants Amazon, Apple and Comcast–and if tax dollars are being used for it (they’re not), a whole lot of nothing has happened.

For a room that the overwhelming majority of Americans will never even step foot in, the construction has created a disproportionate amount of hubbub.

Based on data from the top visited online news sites in the US, the number of articles published on topics that affect millions of Americans, such as the No Kings protests and cuts to SNAP benefits, were short of those on the ballroom nearly all of October. Even articles on the war in Gaza didn’t beat the ballroom’s staggering attention vortex, which came in at 13,198 total articles written.

This level of overshadowing should be seriously frightening for anyone worried about the state of American democracy. Instead of focusing on issues that affect the vast majority of Americans and the less fortunate, our federal government and national news organizations are choosing to put a spotlight on the whims of a wannabe dictator.

Does the ballroom have its problems? Yes.

Is it a blatant show of power and wealth? Also yes.

But will it ever be more important than the deaths of thousands of civilians? Than millions of Americans going hungry?

Never.

As news of the ballroom–hopefully–dies down, we cannot solely rely on the same headlines to steer our world view.

Instead, we need to take charge.

Dwell on headlines before you scroll past them. Think: how important is this really? Does this impact me? Better yet, does this impact the American public? How?

True, most articles are going to be at least a little important, and it can be hard to sort out what’s what in the overwhelming media landscape we live in. But we still have an obligation to call out red herrings when we see them, or risk falling into the trap Trump has set for us.

As our country slips further and further away from democracy, it is our duty as citizens to make decisions that are informed and just. The only way we can do that is by recognizing the true intention of Trump’s circus show.

Don’t let the glittering gold distract you. For the people of the U.S., there are much bigger fish to fry.