“Sanctions alone could not stop Iran's nuclear program. But they did help bring Iran to the negotiating table.” HelpingRealitySciencePoliticsLeadershipJusticeTechnologyPolicyProgramTablesTradeStrategyHuman RightsNuclearIdeologyIranForeign PolicyDiplomacyCivilitySanctionsNegotiating Author:Barack Obama
“Ultimately, only diplomacy can bring about a durable solution to the challenge posed by Iran's nuclear program. As President and Commander in Chief, I will do what is necessary to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. However, I have a profound responsibility to try to resolve our differences peacefully, rather than rush towards conflict.” TryingBelieveRealWisdomRealityTodayOpportunityPoliticsI BelievePresidentCommunityChallengesLeadershipDifferencesJusticeResponsibilityHistoryTechnologyViolenceGenerationsAchievePolicyConflictWeaponsSpringSolutionsEthicsProgramTestsStrategyUnityProfoundHuman RightsNuclearPeacefulIdeologyChiefsIranResolveForeign PolicyNuclear WeaponsDiplomacyCivilityCommandersComprehensiveSettlementObtainingCommander In ChiefArab Spring Author:Barack Obama
“And, as a consequence of the pressure that we've applied over the last couple of weeks, we have Syria -- for the first time -- acknowledging that it has chemical weapons, agreeing to join the convention that prohibits the use of chemical weapons, and the Russians -- their primary sponsors -- saying that they will push Syria to get all of their chemical weapons out. The distance that we've traveled over these couple of weeks is remarkable.” FirstsUseLastsPoliticsJusticeViolenceWeekPolicyCoupleWeaponsConsequenceFirst TimePressureStrategyDistanceUnityHuman RightsTerrorismIdeologyPrimariesRemarkableChemicalsConventionsForeign PolicySyriaTraveledDiplomacyCivilitySponsorsChemical Weapons Author:Barack Obama
“No other advanced nation endures this kind of violence. None. Here in America, the murder rate is three times what it is in other developed nations. The murder rate with guns is ten times what it is in other developed nations. And there's nothing inevitable about it. It comes about because of decisions we make or fail to make. And it falls upon us to make it different.” KindDifferentAmericaFallThreePoliticsNationsCommunityJusticeDecisionViolenceFailingPolicyTenEthicsGunMurderEndureRateIdeologyInevitableForeign PolicyThree TimesDecisions We MakeDeveloped Nations Author:Barack Obama
“But the question is, do we care enough? Do we care enough to keep standing up for the country that we know is possible, even if it's hard, and even if it's politically uncomfortable? Do we care enough to sustain the passion and the pressure to make our communities safer and our country safer? Do we care enough to do everything we can to spare other families the pain that is felt here today?” IfsKnowsCountryHardEnoughRealityCareTodayPainPassionPoliticsFeltCommunityLeadershipJusticeDemocracyViolenceHuman NaturePolicyEthicsStandingPressureHuman RightsOur CountryIdeologyUncomfortableSparesCivilityDisobedienceOur CommunityCivil Disobedience Author:Barack Obama
“Our tears are not enough. Our words and our prayers are not enough. If we really want to honor these twelve men and women, if we really want to be a country where we can go to work and go to school and walk our streets free from senseless violence, without so many lives being stolen by a bullet from a gun, then we're gonna have to change. We're gonna have to change.” IfsMenWantCountryEnoughSchoolPoliticsCommunityJusticePrayerWalksViolenceStreetsPolicyTearsHonorGunMen And WomenHuman RightsIdeologyTwelveBulletsStolenOur PrayersCivilityOur WordsSenseless Violence Author:Barack Obama
“We cannot stop every act of senseless violence. We cannot know every evil that lurks in troubled minds. But if we can prevent even one tragedy like this, save even one life, spare other families what these families are going through, surely we've got an obligation to try.” IfsKnowsTryingMindEvilPoliticsCommunityJusticeViolenceEthicsTragedyHuman RightsObligationSparesSenseless Violence Author:Barack Obama
“You know, we did a good job in containing the Soviet Union, but we made a lot of mistakes, we supported really nasty guys, we did some things that we are not particularly proud of, from Latin America to Southeast Asia, but we did have a kind of overarching framework about what we were trying to do that did lead to the defeat of the Soviet Union and the collapse of Communism. That was our objective. We achieved it.” KnowsTryingKindMadeRealityJobsAmericaGuyPoliticsLeadershipJusticeMistakeHistoryGenerationsPolicyProudEthicsStrategyUnionsDefeatHuman RightsObjectivesIdeologyCommunismLatinSovietForeign PolicyCollapseNastyAsiaSoviet UnionGood JobDiplomacyFrameworkCivilityLatin AmericaContainingSoutheast Asia Author:Hillary Clinton
“Recently in Washington, unfortunately, we have seen examples of the wrong kind of leadership -- when politicians choose scorched earth over common ground, when they operate in what I call the 'evidence-free zone,' with ideology trumping everything else.” KindRealityEarthPoliticalPoliticsJusticePartyCommonGenerationsPolicyExamplePoliticianEthicsEvidenceStrategyIdeologyZonePolitical PartiesCivilityCommon GroundPartisanshipScorched Earth Author:Hillary Clinton
“There is one lesson from the past, in particular, that we cannot afford to ignore: You cannot make progress on gender equality or broader human development, without safeguarding women's reproductive health and rights.” HumansWisdomRealityPastPoliticsCommunityLeadershipJusticeHistoryRightsProgressGenerationsPolicyParticularDevelopmentLessonsEqualEthicsStrategyUnityHuman RightsGenderIdeologyEqual RightsGender EqualityHuman DevelopmentReproductive HealthSafeguarding Author:Hillary Clinton
“My mother saved our home with a minimum wage job. But in the 1960s, a minimum wage job would support a family of three above the poverty line. Not today. Not even close. I understood right then that people can work hard, they can play by the rules, and they can still take a hard smack.” PeopleStillsHardPlayHomeRealityTodayJobsMotherThreePoliticsLinesWorkJusticeMoneyFamilyPovertyHistorySupportGenerationsPolicyHard WorkEthicsUnderstoodHuman RightsSavedIdeologyMinimum1960sCivilityMinimum WageSmackFood Stamps Author:Elizabeth Warren
“Three of the last four [elections], '06, '08, and '12, were disastrous for Republicans. And they were years in which we just we stayed quiet, we went along the get-along, we didn't stand on principle. The only year that was a good year for Republicans was 2010, when we painted in bold colors, not in pale pastels. We stood for principle. I think winning this fight right now is the most important thing we can do to see significant victories in 2014.” ThinkingYearsImportantLastsPoliticalFightingThreePoliticsWinningCan DoCommunityLeadershipJusticePartyPrinciplesFourPolicyColorVictoryRepublicanRight NowQuietElectionImportant ThingsStrategyUnitySignificantIdeologyVotingPalePolitical PartiesPartisanshipGood YearsPastel Author:Ted Cruz
“Congress needs to send a strong signal that direct communication with the leader of the free world is a privilege, particularly for a regime that has been as hostile as Iran has been towards America for more than three decades. President Rouhani needs to take these two simple steps to demonstrate good faith before any further discussions.” WorldNeedsHas BeensTwoRealityAmericaThreePoliticsStrongPresidentCommunityLeadershipJusticeSimpleLeaderStepsHistoryViolenceGenerationsPolicyCommunicationSpringDirectTradeStrategyCongressPrivilegeTerrorismDecadesIdeologyDiscussionIranRegimesForeign PolicySignalsHostileDiplomacyCivilityDisobedienceCivil DisobedienceFree WorldGood FaithArab SpringDirect Communication Author:Ted Cruz
“The Court is making the preposterous assumption that the People of the United States somehow silently redefined marriage in 1868 when they ratified the 14th Amendment.” PeopleStatesFatherPoliticsJusticeUnitedHistoryUnited StatesDemocracyGenerationsPolicyEqualEthicsConstitutionCourtIdeologyAssumptionVotingAmendmentsEqual RightsPartisanship14th Amendment Author:Ted Cruz
“I'm so sick and tired of all this violence, this gun violence. And how could I speak on it - you know - being one who has advocated violence and gun violence? The only way I could do it was through a song that spoke from the heart.” KnowsWayHeartWisdomRealitySongPoliticsSpeakCommunityLeadershipJusticeHistoryViolenceGenerationsHuman NaturePolicyEthicsGunSickStrategyTiredUnityHuman RightsIndividualitySocial MediaIdeologySpokesFree SpeechCivilityDisobedienceCivil DisobedienceGun ViolenceSo Sick Author:Snoop Dogg
“Today, unfortunately, the right to vote seems to have become a partisan issue. Democrats seek to guarantee and expand voting rights. Republicans try to undermine and suppress voting rights.” TryingSeemsTodayPoliticalPoliticsJusticePartyDemocracyIssuesRightsPolicyRepublicanEqualEthicsVoteStrategyDemocratIdeologyGuaranteesVotingFree SpeechPolitical PartiesEqual RightsPartisansRight To VotePartisanship Author:Donna Brazile
“[Putin] is a bully. And bullies only understand when we punch them in the nose, but we need to do that economically.” NeedsRealityPoliticsCommunityLeadershipJusticeMoneyHistoryHuman NaturePolicyTradeStrategyPropertyIdeologyNosesForeign PolicyBullyDiplomacyPutinDisobedienceCivil Disobedience Author:Kelly Ayotte
“A lot of people criticized me for speaking out, not long ago, about gay marriage. I could not remain silent any longer. It's the civil rights of our day. It's the issue of our day.” PeopleLongPoliticsLeadershipJusticeIssuesRightsPolicyGayEqualEthicsSilentHuman RightsCivil RightsIdeologyFree SpeechLong AgoEqual RightsGay MarriageModernityCivil Rights MovementSpeaking Out Author:Joe Biden
“America is just so weird in what they think is right and wrong. Like, I was watching 'Breaking Bad' the other day, and they were cooking meth. I could literally cook meth because of that show. It's a how-to. And then they bleeped out the word 'f__k'. And I'm like, really? They killed a guy, and disintegrated his body in acid, but you're not allowed to say 'f__k'? It's like when they bleeped 'molly' at the VMAs. Look what I'm doing up here right now, and you're going to bleep out 'molly'?” ThinkingLooksShowsWisdomBodyRealityAmericaGuyPoliticsCommunityLeadershipJusticeDemocracyComedyGenerationsHuman NaturePolicyRight NowEthicsCookingStrategyHuman RightsIndividualitySocial MediaIdeologyCooksFree SpeechCivilityAcidPartisanship Author:Miley Cyrus
“Politics is noble; it is one of the highest forms of charity, as Paul VI used to say. We sully it when we mix it with business. The relationship between the Church and political power can also be corrupted if common good is not the only converging point.” IfsWisdomRealityFormPoliticalUsedPoliticsCommunityLeadershipChurchJusticeMoneyCommonPolicyHighestEthicsCapitalismStrategyCharityHuman RightsNobleSeparationIdeologyChurch And StateSeparation Of Church And StateCommon GoodPolitical Power Author:Pope Francis
“In the months ahead, I will leave the Department of Justice, but I will never -- I will never -- leave the work. I will continue to serve and try to find ways to make our nation even more true to its founding ideals.” WayTryingFatherPoliticsNationsLeadershipWorkJusticeHistoryDemocracyPolicyMonthsIdealsConstitutionStrategyIdeologyDepartmentFounding Author:Eric Holder
“The issue that a political campaign would make a human life into - you know - a political football, is unsettling.” KnowsHumansPoliticalPoliticsJusticeIssuesPolicyFootballEthicsStrategyHuman RightsCampaignsIdeologyHuman LifeDeath PenaltyCivilityPolitical Campaign Author:John Hickenlooper
“Now, here's a good question: should serious people focus on global political instability - terrorism, failing states, nuclear weapons - or should we focus on global climate instability - droughts, floods, extreme weather? Here's the correct answer: yes, both, because climate disruption will make every other national security problem worse.” PeopleShouldStatesProblemRealityPoliticalPoliticsNatureCommunityLeadershipJusticeAnswersDemocracyFocusFailingSecurityPolicySeriousWeaponsEthicsStrategyClimateHuman RightsExtremesTerrorismNuclearWeatherIdeologyForeign PolicyNuclear WeaponsFloodNational SecurityDiplomacyDisruptionDroughtInstabilityGood QuestionsExtreme WeatherPolitical Instability Author:Van Jones
“The ongoing war in Afghanistan is being imposed on us, and Afghans are being sacrificed in it for someone else's interests. We are not blocking the interests of the United States or other major powers. But we are demanding that if you consider Afghanistan the place from which to advance your interests, then you should also pay attention to Afghanistan's interests.” IfsShouldWarStatesRealityPoliticsInterestJusticeUnitedPayAttentionUnited StatesPolicyMajorsEthicsBlockIdeologyPay AttentionAfghanistanForeign PolicyDiplomacyOngoing Author:Hamid Karzai
“In the 2012 election, Obamacare, as it's called, and I'll be more polite - the ACA ...was a major issue in the campaign. I campaigned all over America for two months, everywhere I could. And in every single campaign rally I said, 'We have to repeal and replace Obamacare.' Well, the people spoke. They spoke, much to my dismay, but they spoke. And they reelected the President of the United States.” PeopleWellsSaidTwoStatesRealityAmericaPoliticalPoliticsPresidentCommunityLeadershipJusticeUnitedPartyHistoryUnited StatesDemocracyIssuesHuman NaturePolicyHealthMonthsMajorsEthicsConstitutionElectionStrategyUnityCampaignsIdeologyVotingSpokesPolitePolitical PartiesCivilityObamacareTwo MonthsDismay2012 ElectionAca Author:John McCain
“There is no news value to the content of those [Newtown 911] tapes. The actual audio is of no news value at all, unless you want the thrill of hearing the sound of the actual individual gunshot that might have killed a 7 year-old.” WantYearsRealityMightValuesPoliticsIndividualSoundCommunityJusticeViolencePolicyNewsEthicsHuman RightsHearingTerrorismIdeologyTapeFree SpeechThrillCivilityAudioGunshots Author:Rachel Maddow
“Did I ever tell my constituents that if they liked their plan they could keep it? I would have if I'd ever met anybody who liked his or her plan. But that was not my experience.” IfsWayChildrenRealityMotherPoliticsStrongJusticePoorCompanyFamilyFivePlansRiskGenerationsPolicyHealthMetsEqualEthicsResourcesHuman RightsIdeologyDisabilityEqual RightsConstituentsInsurance Companies Author:Nancy Pelosi
“It is clear that the American people are weary of war. However, Assad gassing his own people is an issue of our national security, regional stability and global security.” PeopleWarPoliticsJusticeDemocracyIssuesClearViolenceSecurityPolicyEthicsHuman RightsIdeologyStabilityForeign PolicyWearyNational SecurityAssad Author:Nancy Pelosi
“I don't think Edward Snowden deserves a death penalty or life in prison. I think that's inappropriate. I think that's why he fled, [because] that is what he faced.” ThinkingRealityPoliticsLeadershipJusticePartyTechnologyDemocracyHuman NaturePolicyEthicsDeserveStrategyPrisonHuman RightsIndividualitySocial MediaIdeologyTeaFree SpeechPenaltiesDeath PenaltyDisobedienceTea PartyInappropriateCivil DisobedienceThird PartiesSnowden Author:Rand Paul
“In battle, combatants engaged in war against America get no due process and may lawfully be killed. But citizens not in a battlefield - however despicable - are guaranteed a trial by our Constitution. No one argues that Americans who commit treason shouldn't be punished. The maximum penalty for treason is death. But the Constitution specifies the process necessary to convict.” MayWarRealityAmericaFatherPoliticsProcessCommunityJusticeHistoryTechnologyDemocracyViolenceGenerationsPolicyCitizensBattleEqualEthicsConstitutionHuman RightsTerrorismDuesArguingTrialsCommitIdeologyEngagedFree SpeechPenaltiesMaximumEqual RightsDeath PenaltyBattlefieldsTreasonDespicableConvictsDue Process Author:Rand Paul
“Power tends to corrupt. But the power in Washington resides in Congress, if it wants to use it. It can do anything-it can stop the Vietnam War. It can make its will felt, if it can ever get its act together to do anything.” IfsWantWarUseRealityTogetherPoliticsFeltCan DoLeadershipJusticeHistoryDemocracyGenerationsHuman NaturePolicyEthicsStrategyUnityCongressHuman RightsIdeologyVietnamForeign PolicyVietnam War Author:Antonin Scalia
“Adults who enter into public life implicitly consent to having less privacy, but their families - especially their children - should not be treated callously or thoughtlessly.” ShouldChildrenWisdomPoliticsLeadershipJusticeFamilyClassGenerationsHuman NaturePolicyEthicsAdultsHuman RightsSocial MediaTreatedIdeologyPrivacyFree SpeechConsentCivilityPublic Life Author:Melissa Harris-Perry
“Putting women's traditional needs at the center of social planning is not reverse sexism. It's the best way to reverse the increasing economic vulnerability of men and women alike.” MenWayNeedsRealityPoliticsSocialCommunityWorkJusticeMoneyFamilyClassHistoryGenerationsEconomicHuman NaturePolicyEqualEthicsMen And WomenCapitalismStrategyPlanningBest WayTraditionalIdeologyVulnerabilitySexismReverseEqual Rights Author:Stephanie Coontz
“If [President Obama] does not go on the offensive against ISIS...they are coming here. This is just not about Baghdad, this is just not about Syria, this is about our homeland. And if we get attacked because he has no strategy to protect us, then he will have committed a blunder for the ages.” IfsDoeRealityAgePoliticsPresidentLeadershipJusticeHistoryViolencePolicyGoes OnProtectStrategyCommittedTerrorismIdeologyPresident ObamaForeign PolicyOffensiveSyriaIsisHomelandBlundersBaghdad Author:Lindsey Graham
“[Wendy] Davis [pursued] higher education, as her campaign website says, with 'the help of academic scholarships, student loans, and state and federal grants.' Now that she is in a high-profile and hotly partisan race, it has come out that she also benefited from the moral and financial support of her second - now ex - husband. In the process, though, behavior we would expect and hardly notice in a man is being portrayed as freakish and problematic in a woman.” MenStatesHelpingWisdomRealityPoliticsProcessCommunityLeadershipJusticeMoneyRaceEducationMoralFamilyHistorySupportGenerationsHuman NaturePolicyStudentsHigherHusbandEqualBehaviorEthicsStrategyFinancialIndividualitySocial MediaCampaignsIdeologyGrantsAcademicExesLoanEqual RightsPursuedWebsiteScholarshipProfilePartisansHigher EducationPartisanshipStudent LoanWendyHigh ProfileEx HusbandFinancial Support Author:Liza Mundy
“Standardized tests are an indicator of the kind of service taxpayers are receiving - and whether schools, educators and policymakers are doing their jobs. In the United States, taxpayers spend almost $600 billion annually on public education, so it's not unreasonable to ask what all that money is producing. In fact, it's irresponsible not to know.” KnowsKindStatesFactsRealitySchoolJobsAsksPoliticsLeadershipWorkJusticeUnitedMoneyEducationUnited StatesPolicyTaxesTestsStrategyBillionsIdeologyReceivingTaxpayersIrresponsibleEducatorUnreasonablePublic EducationIndicators Author:Michelle Rhee
“Look, we'll have to confront the pathologies of poverty at some point. We can deal with them cheaply at the front end, in infancy. Or we can wait and jail a troubled adolescent at the tail end. To some extent, we face a choice between investing in preschools or in prisons.” LooksEndsRealityFacesChoicesPoliticsWaitingCommunityJusticeMoneyDealsEducationPovertyHistoryGenerationsFrontsHuman NaturePolicyEqualEthicsStrategyPrisonInvestingIdeologyJailTailsEqual RightsInfancyPathologyFood Stamps Author:Nicholas D. Kristof
“You can't treat Russia like a guilty schoolboy who has to put a cross on a piece of paper to show he has done his homework. That kind of language is unacceptable.” KindDoneShowsPoliticsLanguageLeadershipJusticeEducationPiecesPolicyPaperEthicsCrossesTreatsTradeStrategyRussiaGuiltyIdeologyForeign PolicyDiplomacyCivilityHomework Author:Dmitry Peskov
“[Michael] Brown's mom, Lesley McSpadden, is the latest African American mother whose tear-streaked face forces the nation to remember the name of yet another unarmed black teenager gunned down under questionable circumstances.” RealityRememberFacesMotherPoliticsNamesForceNationsBlackCommunityJusticeFamilyHistoryViolenceGenerationsTearsMomCircumstancesEqualEthicsHuman RightsIdeologyAfrican AmericanTeenagerBrownFree SpeechEqual RightsQuestionableUnarmed Author:Jonathan Capehart
“We are not seeking revolution. We just want democracy.” WantPoliticsCommunityLeadershipJusticeDemocracyViolenceGenerationsPolicyRevolutionEqualStrategyUnityHuman RightsIndividualitySeekingIdeologyForeign PolicyFree SpeechEqual RightsDisobedienceCivil Disobedience Author:Joshua Wong
“I confess to feeling continued ambivalence about political life, aware of its shortcomings and disappointments, but drawn back to it again and again because of its infinite promise. Justice can triumph, wrongs can be righted, and pain can be alleviated, if the right fix is found. The optimistic illusion that one can change the world is difficult to resist, especially when from time to time that illusion is sustained by even a hint of reality. Change does happen in the political process.” IfsWorldDoeFeelingsRealityHappensPainPoliticalFoundPoliticsProcessDifficultJusticePromiseIllusionInfiniteDisappointmentOptimisticTriumphChanging The WorldAgain And AgainHintsShortcomingsPolitical LifeAmbivalence Author:Madeleine M. Kunin
“As long as judges tinker with the Constitution to 'do what the people want,' instead of what the document actually commands, politicians who pick and confirm new federal judges will naturally want only those who agree with them politically.” PeopleWantLongLawPoliticsJusticeJudgingPoliticianPicksConstitutionAgreeLawyerCommandDocumentsMeltingTinkeringFederal Judges Author:Antonin Scalia
“As the House is designed to provide a reflection of the mood of the moment, the Senate is meant to reflect the continuity of the past--to preserve the delicate balance of justice between the majority's whims and the minority's rights.” MomentsGovernmentPastHousePoliticsJusticeRightsBalanceReflectionMajorityEqualityMoodPreservesMinoritiesSenateDelicateContinuityWhim Author:Lyndon B. Johnson
“We live in a country that talks about being the home of the brave and the land of the free, and we have the highest incarceration rate in the world.” WorldCountryHomeRealityFatherPoliticsJusticeDemocracyLandPolicyHighestEthicsConstitutionBraveRateFree SpeechIncarcerationLand Of The Free Author:Bryan Stevenson
“As far as the earth is from the stars, and fire from the sea, so is the useful from the right. Power over men perishes completely if justice begins to be observed, and respect for individual rights overcomes strongholds.” IfsMenWisdomEarthPoliticsIndividualStarsJusticeEconomyFireRightsSeaOvercomingLiberalismIndividual RightsStrongholds Author:Lucan
“Until justice is blind to color, until education is unaware of race, until opportunity is unconcerned with the color of men's skins, emancipation will be a proclamation but not a fact.” MenFactsPoliticalOpportunityPoliticsJusticeRaceColorSkinsBlindEmancipationProclamationUnawarenessUnconcernedEmancipation ProclamationRace And Color Author:Lyndon B. Johnson