Most of the things that need to be said about the President are things he can't say himself.

Look at the declining television coverage. Look at the declining voting rate. Economics and economic news is what moves the country now, not politics.

People just automatically say 'If this guy is George and Barbara Bush's son, we don't have any question about those personal qualities that we were fooled on by Clinton.'

Every person has only so much attention to give, and politics and government takes up only a fraction of what it did 25 years ago.

Many citizens see all the leadership of these large institutions together in a conspiracy against them rather than in any adversary relationship with each other.

Research has shown that the perceived style of leadership is by far the most important thing to most voters in evaluating officeholders and candidates.

The President's political travel is going to get blamed (and probably rightly) for a share of this downturn.

It is my belief that it is not the fact that he traveled as much as he did during the past few months as much as what he said and how he said it that hurt him.

Also the fact that anything he does is seen and heard by the entire country, not just his actual audience or those who live in the region he happens to be in.

The President, the Administration and the campaign need a theme. I am concerned that the President is seen as a tactician without an overall strategy of his plan for the country.

As the society has gotten larger and more complex, individuals have lost their ability to influence any of the institutions that affect their lives.

How many rivers do we have to cross, Before we can talk to the boss?

I led the fight for the Clinton health care plan in 1994. We failed. I learned from that experience. What I learned is you can't pass a complicated government-run plan.

It is necessary to learn how to do a systems analysis of your life, to learn about the effects of places, people, jobs. There are millions of things that go into the study of meditation.

I was very impressed with the street food of Singapore. I was very impressed with the dishes that they did.

...one is reminded that [John Kerry, D-MA] really just a better-looking Ted Kennedy, a richer Michael Dukakis.

It's what I do that teaches me what I'm looking for.

The heathen spirit is wingless. It cannot lift itself to heights from which the totality of being is visible, and it therefore loses itself in details.

I bite the skin on the side of my fingernails.

Until America, door to door, takes every handgun, this is what you're gonna have. It's pathetic. It really is pathetic. It's sad. We're living in the Dark Ages over there.

The reason I haven't been writing in this book for so long is partly that I haven't had one decent coherent thought to put down.