A recent exchange on CNN between host Jake Tapper and Oklahoma Senator Markwayne Mullin highlighted a troubling phenomenon in American political discourse: the inability of public figures to agree on basic facts, even regarding matters of significant public interest like the Epstein case files.
The Erosion of Shared Reality
What made this particular disagreement so concerning wasn’t the presence of political tension—that’s expected in contemporary media—but rather the fundamental disconnect over factual information itself. When political polarization becomes so intense that verifiable facts become matters of partisan interpretation, we’ve crossed a dangerous threshold in democratic discourse.
The Epstein case represents exactly the kind of issue where factual accuracy should transcend political allegiances. The documented evidence, court records, and established timeline of events exist independently of political affiliation. Yet even here, in a case with extensive documentation and legal proceedings, partisan perspectives appear to be shaping the interpretation of basic facts.
The Gradual Collapse Theory
This erosion of shared factual understanding calls to mind Ernest Hemingway’s observation about bankruptcy in “The Sun Also Rises”: it happens “gradually, then suddenly.” The gradual phase involves the slow degradation of institutions, norms, and shared assumptions that hold a democratic system together. The sudden phase is when these accumulated weaknesses lead to rapid institutional failure.
American democracy has historically demonstrated remarkable resilience, weathering civil war, economic depression, world wars, and numerous political crises. The nation’s ability to “muddle through” has become almost axiomatic—a testament to the flexibility of democratic institutions and the pragmatic nature of American political culture.
The Stakes of Epistemic Crisis
However, the current challenge may be qualitatively different from previous crises. When political opponents can no longer agree on observable reality, the foundation for democratic deliberation begins to crumble. Democracy requires not just tolerance for differing opinions, but acceptance of common standards for determining truth and falsehood.
The fragmentation of information sources, the rise of social media echo chambers, and the increasing sophistication of disinformation campaigns have created an environment where competing versions of reality can coexist indefinitely. This epistemic crisis—the breakdown of shared ways of knowing—poses unique challenges to democratic governance.
Historical Perspective and Hope
Yet American democracy has survived previous periods of extreme polarization and disputed facts. The Civil War era, the McCarthy period, and the Vietnam War years all featured intense disagreements about fundamental questions of truth and national identity. In each case, democratic institutions eventually found ways to restore some measure of consensus and continue functioning.
The question facing contemporary America is whether these historical precedents provide adequate guidance for navigating current challenges. The speed and scale of modern information technology may have created dynamics that earlier generations never confronted.
The Path Forward
The solution likely requires recommitment to shared standards of evidence and reasoning, even amid political disagreement. This doesn’t mean abandoning legitimate debate about policy or interpretation, but rather maintaining common ground about the basic facts that inform those debates.
Whether America can once again “muddle through” this crisis may depend on the willingness of political leaders, media figures, and citizens to prioritize democratic norms over partisan advantage. The alternative—a society where facts themselves become partisan weapons—threatens the very foundation of self-governance.
The Tapper-Mullin exchange serves as a microcosm of this larger challenge. In a healthy democracy, public figures should be able to disagree vehemently about policy while maintaining shared respect for factual accuracy. When that common ground disappears, everything else becomes much more fragile.
