--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think the big problem is you have a…" description: "\"I think the big problem is you have a vicious cycle of wealth and power in America that's just gotten completely out of control and you've seen it in p..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/add/robert-reich-1333_america_i-think-the-big-problem-is-you-have-a-vi_541040.png" --- # I think the big problem is you have a vicious cycle of… ![“I think the big problem is you have a vicious cycle of wealth and power in America that's just gotten completely out of control and you've seen it in politics.” quote by Robert Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/add/robert-reich-1333_america_i-think-the-big-problem-is-you-have-a-vi_541040.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/add/robert-reich-1333_america_i-think-the-big-problem-is-you-have-a-vi_541040.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/add/robert-reich-1333_america_i-think-the-big-problem-is-you-have-a-vi_541040.png) > “I think the big problem is you have a vicious cycle of wealth and power in America that's just gotten completely out of control and you've seen it in politics.” [Robert Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reich/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker warns that wealth and power have become self‑reinforcing, destabilizing American politics. **In simple terms:** Richness and influence feed each other, harming democracy. Key Takeaway Address inequality and limit power concentration. Themes economics politics inequality Mood concerned urgent Type prescriptive critical When to use this quote - policy reform - grassroots activism - campaign finance reform - public education on civic duties Key Concepts systemic bias elite capture Questions to Reflect On - What policies could break the wealth‑power cycle? - How can citizens effectively demand change? A Different Perspective Complex systems resist simple fixes; reforms may be co‑opted. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [Cycles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cycles/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Problem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/problem/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Vicious cycles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vicious-cycles/) [Wealth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wealth/) ## Related quotes > [ I was there in Washington in the '90s. It was pretty bad then. It's much worse now \[in 2015\]. And that vicious cycle is… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reich/i-was-there-in-washington-in-the-90s-it-was-pretty-bad-then-it-s-much/) [Robert Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reich/) > [The more I lived with Jan, the more I loved her, the more I made her miserable. It was a vicious cycle (page 209)……The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-gaye/the-more-i-lived-with-jan-the-more-i-loved-her-the-more-i-made-her/) [Marvin Gaye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-gaye/) > [We are in the grip of a scientific materialism, caught in a vicious cycle where our security today seems to depend on regimentation and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lindbergh/we-are-in-the-grip-of-a-scientific-materialism-caught-in-a-vicious/) [Charles Lindbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lindbergh/) > [It's a vicious cycle. It's like a washing machine with the lid jammed down. -Christina Kratovac (pg 53)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaclyn-moriarty/it-s-a-vicious-cycle-it-s-like-a-washing-machine-with-the-lid-jammed/) [Jaclyn Moriarty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaclyn-moriarty/) > [We need to exert ourselves that much more, and break out of the vicious cycle of dependence imposed on us by the financially powerful:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/we-need-to-exert-ourselves-that-much-more-and-break-out-of-the/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [I'm actually tougher on myself as I get older. It's a vicious cycle. The things that are important in life are the things that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/criss-angel/i-m-actually-tougher-on-myself-as-i-get-older-it-s-a-vicious-cycle/) [Criss Angel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/criss-angel/) > [The science only perpetuates the vicious cycle of cronyism, power-mongering, influence peddling, corruption, bureaucracy, all of that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/the-science-only-perpetuates-the-vicious-cycle-of-cronyism-power/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [It was a vicious cycle, though. 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This is the big problem - just because you're getting an MFA doesn't mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/don-t-be-pretentious-is-my-first-advice-to-young-writers-this-is-the/) [Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/) > [Nerves are always a big problem for me, which is why I loved doing American sitcoms. Because you know when you do the take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cleese/nerves-are-always-a-big-problem-for-me-which-is-why-i-loved-doing/) [John Cleese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cleese/) ## More by Robert Reich > [The Democratic Party is DEAD.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reich/the-democratic-party-is-dead/) [Robert Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reich/) > [During three decades from 1947 to 1977, the nation implemented what might be called a basic bargain with American workers. 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They avoid the fancy amenities four-year liberal arts colleges need in order to lure the children of the middle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reich/community-colleges-are-great-bargains-they-avoid-the-fancy-amenities/) [Robert Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reich/) > [Any bank that is too big to fail is too big. Period.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reich/any-bank-that-is-too-big-to-fail-is-too-big-period/) [Robert Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reich/) > [Today, for good or ill, people are thinking about many social problems from the standpoint of their own kitchen tables. I think the way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reich/today-for-good-or-ill-people-are-thinking-about-many-social-problems/) [Robert Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reich/) > [There's sort of a chilling effect on non-profits and the media and a lot of other places because the establishment is so powerful. 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Why not a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reich/we-already-have-an-annual-wealth-tax-on-homes-the-major-asset-of-the/) [Robert Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reich/) [Explore all 255 Robert Reich quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reich/) ## More America quotes > [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/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... 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The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [ I'll smoke, I'll cough, I'll get the tumors, I'll die, deal? Thank you America. \[salutes\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-ll-smoke-i-ll-cough-i-ll-get-the-tumors-i-ll-die-deal-thank-you/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I'm gonna bring America together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-m-gonna-bring-america-together/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [We need a system that serves our needs, not the needs of others. 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