I Read Sean Spicer’s Book, And This Passage About The Media Says It All.

I had a really emotional weekend this past weekend.

Don’t worry, I’m not going to leave you hanging with the Sean Spicer thing – I’m getting to that.  But first things first.

In case you aren’t aware, I have a 21 year old son with severe cerebral palsy, who requires round-the-clock care and assistance with all daily functions.  He’s non-verbal, in a wheelchair, and has no purposeful use of his arms or legs, and he is g-tube fed.  He’s also the happiest boy on the planet, and has won the hearts of pretty much everyone with whom he’s ever come into contact.

And this past weekend, we moved him out of our home and into a 24-hour care residence with two sweet ladies (also special needs) who are his new roommates.

We’ve known for a couple years now that this time would come, and I’ve been sort of mentally preparing for that. As anyone who’s made a similar decision can attest, it’s heart-wrenching. Logistically, it was a matter of finding the right agency to provide the staffing, the right roommates (our biggest concern was that his roommates would not be behaviorally challenged such that they could pose a danger to my son, who is completely defenseless), and of course, the right home.

A few months ago, all of those things fell into place, and this past weekend we moved him into his new home, about 20 minutes from us.  I was pretty much wrecked on Saturday, which was move-in day, but after visiting him on Sunday, I felt relief at how well he seemed to be adjusting, thanks in no small part to the fact that one of the caregivers who’s helped me with my son for the past several years in my home, is going to continue caring for him at the new house.  She’s our family’s own Mary Poppins, really, and she made up his new room beautifully, and has helped ease him into the new digs.  She’s irreplaceable.

Anyway.  I just wanted you all to know that.  It’s been kind of a big deal, and I’m a sharer, so there you go.  And there’s a reason it ties into Sean Spicer’s book.

Last Friday night, our last night with my son at home, I picked up Sean Spicer’s book after my son was tucked in, and started reading it to take my mind off of the move.

You guys – I finished it in a matter of a few hours.  It’s so good!  I got totally weepy as he described his father’s death, I totally loved getting the inside scoop on the campaign and ultimate transition to the White House, and I loved the stories he told about his time at the podium.

It’s a must-read – not like that garbage from Dramarosa.

Anyway, I wanted to share a part that really stuck out to me; specifically where Spicer wrote about media’s shoddy reporting (in this case, a Time reporter’s account of Trump’s first press pool event from the Oval Office, very shortly after he took office.)

What a start to his presidency, right?  And what fantastic insight into how the media operates, particularly with respect to Trump.  They are seeking the worst possible angle, the worst possible detail, the worst spin they can find in order to diminish him and his tangible, real accomplishments.

There was another great passage about the ever-present doubt that existed in 2016 about Trump’s chances to win the GOP’s nomination, let alone the presidency.  It’s a great way to describe Trump’s appeal:

He had a populist message that no Republican messaging laboratory could have ever devised.  He motivated conservative and working class voters, some who had sat out previous elections because they felt that neither party’s candidate truly represented their views or cared about them. He was taken seriously because he was willing to discard the cliched, boilerplate conservative message and replace it with something that resonated with blue collar workers’ experiences and observations.  He attacked Republican orthodoxy on free trade and the Iraq War.  He made fun of the party’s barons.  He was so politically incorrect that pundits assumed, over and over again, that his campaign was finished, that no candidate could survive such controversy and media condemnation.  But Trump stayed in the game because he spoke to the dreams and ambitions of millions of Americans of all races who felt they were the heart and soul of this county but were being ignored.  My father put it this way:  “Many candidates say something like, ‘I will fight for policies that will create a better economy,’ while Trump says, “I’m going to get your job back.”

I LOVED THAT.

Anyway, reading Spicer’s book made my son’s last night in my house more bearable, but that isn’t the reason I recommend you read it.

Read it because it’s an easy and quick read, and it’s terrific.

The Briefing: Politics, the Press, and the President, available on Amazon right here.