--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Donald Trump and Sean Spicer do one thing…" description: "\"Donald Trump and Sean Spicer do one thing after another to keep the media attention focused on them. And it works. These legislative achievements are b..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b25/noam-chomsky-42_achievement_donald-trump-and-sean-spicer-do-one-thin_3214121.jpg" --- # Donald Trump and Sean Spicer do one thing after another to… ![“Donald Trump and Sean Spicer do one thing after another to keep the media attention focused on them. And it works. These legislative achievements are being made which are chipping away at anything the government has that's of any use to anybody. Paul Ryan, I think, is the most dangerous guy in the…” quote by Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b25/noam-chomsky-42_achievement_donald-trump-and-sean-spicer-do-one-thin_3214121.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b25/noam-chomsky-42_achievement_donald-trump-and-sean-spicer-do-one-thin_3214121.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b25/noam-chomsky-42_achievement_donald-trump-and-sean-spicer-do-one-thin_3214121.jpg) > “Donald Trump and Sean Spicer do one thing after another to keep the media attention focused on them. And it works. These legislative achievements are being made which are chipping away at anything the government has that's of any use to anybody. Paul Ryan, I think, is the most dangerous guy in the government. He knows what he's doing. And it's very systematic. I presume he's behind the cabinet appointments, but it's pretty amazing that every single cabinet appointment is somebody devoted to destroying that part of government.” [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Political actors manipulate media and appointments to erode useful government functions, consolidating power systematically **In simple terms:** Politicians use media and appointments to weaken government usefulness Key Takeaway Stay vigilant of media manipulation and power consolidation Themes politics media power government Mood critical concerned Type political analytical When to use this quote - policy analysis - media literacy - civic activism - journalism - academic study Key Concepts propaganda institutional decay strategic appointments Questions to Reflect On - What safeguards can protect democratic institutions? - How does media focus shape public perception? A Different Perspective The view may ignore positive reforms or public support for changes ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Achievement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/achievement/) [Attention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) [Focused](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/focused/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [There are in fact many ways to combat the Trump project of creating a tiny America, isolated from the world, cowering in fear behind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-are-in-fact-many-ways-to-combat-the-trump-project-of-creating-a/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [“Sean Spicer, whose job was literally to explain what people did and why, often simply could not—because nobody really had a job, because nobody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/sean-spicer-whose-job-was-literally-to-explain-what-people-did-and-2/) [Michael Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wolff/) > [“Just doing things became a Bannon principle, the sweeping antidote to bureaucratic and establishment ennui and resistance. It was the chaos of just doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/just-doing-things-became-a-bannon-principle-the-sweeping-antidote-to-2/) [Michael Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wolff/) > [We're working very closely with the RNC, hand in glove. I talked to Reince Priebus several times a day. Sean Spicer is here today.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kellyanne-conway/we-re-working-very-closely-with-the-rnc-hand-in-glove-i-talked-to/) [Kellyanne Conway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kellyanne-conway/) > [I will let others evaluate whether they think Kellyanne Conway and Sean Spicer and others were qualified.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jen-psaki/i-will-let-others-evaluate-whether-they-think-kellyanne-conway-and/) [Jen Psaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jen-psaki/) > [I would love to interview Sean Spicer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-meyers/i-would-love-to-interview-sean-spicer/) [Seth Meyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-meyers/) > [“He sent his new press secretary, Sean Spicer—whose personal mantra would shortly become “You can’t make this shit up”—to argue his case in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/he-sent-his-new-press-secretary-sean-spicer-whose-personal-mantra/) [Michael Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wolff/) > [“Thirty minutes later, a tweet from the account of RNC chairman Reince Priebus, ghostwritten by his deputy, Sean Spicer, a notoriously poor speller, made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-green/thirty-minutes-later-a-tweet-from-the-account-of-rnc-chairman-reince/) [Joshua Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-green/) > [Sean Spicer gives press briefings like someone is going through his browser history while he watches.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hasan-minhaj/sean-spicer-gives-press-briefings-like-someone-is-going-through-his/) [Hasan Minhaj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hasan-minhaj/) > [“Hence, within twenty-four hours of the inauguration, the president had invented a million or so people who did not exist. He sent his new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/hence-within-twenty-four-hours-of-the-inauguration-the-president-had/) [Michael Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wolff/) > [Sean Spicer has somehow been doing PR since 1999, which is 18 years. Somehow, after 18 years, his go-to move was denying the Holocaust.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hasan-minhaj/sean-spicer-has-somehow-been-doing-pr-since-1999-which-is-18-years/) [Hasan Minhaj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hasan-minhaj/) > [“Sean Spicer, whose job was literally to explain what people did and why, often simply could not—because nobody really had a job, because nobody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/sean-spicer-whose-job-was-literally-to-explain-what-people-did-and/) [Michael Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wolff/) > [In ideal form of social control is an atomised collection of individuals focused on their own narrow concern, lacking the kinds of organisations in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/in-ideal-form-of-social-control-is-an-atomised-collection-of/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Do I think or myself as dangerous? Not at all! We're really harmless and innocent in a way. It's a shame that he flowers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brendon-urie/do-i-think-or-myself-as-dangerous-not-at-all-we-re-really-harmless/) [Brendon Urie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brendon-urie/) > [I'm scared of one man, one vote because it suggests that everybody has an equal ability at making decisions, and I think that's dangerous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-dalio/i-m-scared-of-one-man-one-vote-because-it-suggests-that-everybody-has/) [Ray Dalio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-dalio/) ## More by Noam Chomsky > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [If you believe in democracy, why shouldn't you know what the government is doing?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/if-you-believe-in-democracy-why-shouldn-t-you-know-what-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [It’s a shameful moment for U.S. media when it insists on being subservient to the grotesque propaganda agencies of a violent, aggressive state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/it-s-a-shameful-moment-for-u-s-media-when-it-insists-on-being/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [There are questions as to whether it should even exist. Who should corporations be responsive to, the management of a corporation? Theoretically they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-are-questions-as-to-whether-it-should-even-exist-who-should/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Governments regard their own citizens as their main enemy, and they have to be - protect themselves. That's why you have state secret laws.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/governments-regard-their-own-citizens-as-their-main-enemy-and-they/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [I don't join the New Atheists. So, for example, I wouldn't have the arrogance to lecture some mother who hopes to see her dying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/i-don-t-join-the-new-atheists-so-for-example-i-wouldn-t-have-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [The first thing you ought to do is verify what I present. Just because I say it doesn't make it true. So check it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-first-thing-you-ought-to-do-is-verify-what-i-present-just-because/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [ I wrote an article about the marine landing \[in Haiti\] right away, but barely mentioned the oil, because my article would come out two… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/i-wrote-an-article-about-the-marine-landing-in-haiti-right-away-but/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [American society is now remarkably atomized. Political organizations have collapsed. In fact, it seems like even bowling leagues are collapsing. The left has a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/american-society-is-now-remarkably-atomized-political-organizations/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Discovery is the ability to be puzzled by simple things. Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/discovery-is-the-ability-to-be-puzzled-by-simple-things-noam-chomsky/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [There's an interesting book about that called The Third Reich and the Ivory Tower, written by Stephen H. Norwood. It has a long discussion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-s-an-interesting-book-about-that-called-the-third-reich-and-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [This is class war on an international scale, and power is in the hands of those who control the international economic system.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/this-is-class-war-on-an-international-scale-and-power-is-in-the-hands/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [There are big, extremely irrational parts of the society, and they have now been mobilized politically by the Republican establishment, hoping that these people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-are-big-extremely-irrational-parts-of-the-society-and-they-have/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [There's plenty to criticize about the mass media, but they are the source of regular information about a wide range of topics. You can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-s-plenty-to-criticize-about-the-mass-media-but-they-are-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [The 50,000 Korean mercenaries we had in Vietnam were professional killers and just massacred people outright. And the American army did plenty of that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-50-000-korean-mercenaries-we-had-in-vietnam-were-professional/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) [Explore all 2,129 Noam Chomsky quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) ## More Achievement quotes > [You, of Canada, are building a magnificent record of achievement. My country rejoices in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/you-of-canada-are-building-a-magnificent-record-of-achievement-my/) [Dwight D. Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-d-eisenhower/) > [“If attempting to make the world a civilized one, makes you a bad woman in the eyes of the dumb patriarchal society, then, by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/if-attempting-to-make-the-world-a-civilized-one-makes-you-a-bad-woman/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [One achieves true human dignity only when one serves. Only he is great who subjects himself to taking part in the achievement of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-antonio-primo-de-rivera/one-achieves-true-human-dignity-only-when-one-serves-only-he-is-great/) Jose Antonio Primo de Rivera > [Needs cause motivation. Deep-rooted desires for esteem, affection, belonging, achievement, self-actualization, power, and control motivate us to push for what we want and need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorii-myers/needs-cause-motivation-deep-rooted-desires-for-esteem-affection/) [Lorii Myers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorii-myers/) > [Each man is capable of doing one thing well. If he attempts several, he will fail to achieve distinction in any.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/each-man-is-capable-of-doing-one-thing-well-if-he-attempts-several-he/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [It's tragic what America has become because there is a great segment of society that now resents luxury and success and achievement by others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-leach/it-s-tragic-what-america-has-become-because-there-is-a-great-segment/) [Robin Leach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-leach/) > [To preserve an unclouded capacity for the enjoyment of life is an unusual moral and psychological achievement. Contrary to popular belief, it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-branden/to-preserve-an-unclouded-capacity-for-the-enjoyment-of-life-is-an/) [Nathaniel Branden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-branden/) > [Joel Lane documents a life we don’t quite live, in a city we can’t quite find: half glimpsed and half imagined, we know it’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaz-brenchley/joel-lane-documents-a-life-we-don-t-quite-live-in-a-city-we-can-t/) Chaz Brenchley > [The main substantive achievement of neoliberalism has been to redistribute rather than to generate wealth and income.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-harvey/the-main-substantive-achievement-of-neoliberalism-has-been-to/) [David Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-harvey/) > [Every profession has an ideology and a drive for power that goes far beyond its achievements and it is the task of democracy to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-feyerabend/every-profession-has-an-ideology-and-a-drive-for-power-that-goes-far/) [Paul Feyerabend](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-feyerabend/) > [We have Internet now and people are not stupid. But it seems that some people are trying to push the same agenda of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bassem-youssef/we-have-internet-now-and-people-are-not-stupid-but-it-seems-that-some/) [Bassem Youssef](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bassem-youssef/) > [“If you find a way where there seems to be no way, that’s what we call miracle, not personal achievement.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nkwachukwu-ogbuagu/if-you-find-a-way-where-there-seems-to-be-no-way-that-s-what-we-call/) [Nkwachukwu Ogbuagu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nkwachukwu-ogbuagu/) > [The Baseball Hall of Fame is something every player dreams about, but being a member of God's Hall of Fame is the greatest achievement…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-carter/the-baseball-hall-of-fame-is-something-every-player-dreams-about-but/) [Gary Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-carter/) > [Cease speaking of enemies when an achievement can kindle a great light. Solitude will transmit the message better than the murmurs of crowds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-roerich/cease-speaking-of-enemies-when-an-achievement-can-kindle-a-great/) Nicholas Roerich > [Every scene is a challenge. There are technical challenges, but often it's the simplest challenge where you feel a sense of achievement when you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-deakins/every-scene-is-a-challenge-there-are-technical-challenges-but-often/) [Roger Deakins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-deakins/) [Browse all 3,867 Achievement quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/achievement/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Donald Trump and Sean Spicer do one thing after another to keep the media attention focused on them. And it works. These legislative achievements are being made which are chipping away at anything the government has that's of any use to anybody. Paul Ryan, I think, is the most dangerous guy in the government. He knows what he's doing. And it's very systematic. 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