"Donald Trump understands this concept all too well. Over the past few months, he's repeatedly fired government officials just for releasing, in the routine course of their duties, information that's unflattering to his administration. The idea seems to be that these firings both cast doubt on the competence of those delivering the bad news, and instill fear in others who might uncover more in the future."
"Long before he was president, Trump put a high premium on keeping a team of Yes Men in tow. "I value loyalty above everything else," he wrote in his 2007 tome, Think BIG and Kick Ass in Business and Life. "More than brains, more than drive and more than energy." That mindset appears to have persisted into his second presidential term. Earlier this year, Trump screened White House job seekers and Department of Justice lawyers for loyalty, and stocked his staff with sycophants."
Spin can mask bad news, but preventing bad information from being disclosed is more effective at deflecting criticism. Trump has repeatedly fired or sidelined government officials for releasing unflattering data, intended to cast doubt on their competence and deter others. Several private-sector organizations used similar tactics and failed spectacularly. Trump long valued loyalty over ability, publicly stating loyalty above brains, drive, and energy. That loyalty-first approach has continued into the presidency, with staff screened for fealty and filled with sycophants. Cabinet meetings often reinforce a uniform narrative, while officials who present contradictory data are being removed from their roles.
Read at Fast Company
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]