George H. W. Bush

I hope my own children never have to fight a war.

I’ll be glad to reply to or dodge your questions, depending on what I think will help our election most.

It’s much worse to read criticism about your son than yourself.

I’m a conservative, but I’m not a nut about it.

Gulf Lesson One is the value of airpower.

You have to understand that people that are hurting are going to criticize.

While Trump’s antics occupy the attention of the media, his associates in Congress have been working intensively to advance the interests of their actual constituency-extreme wealth and corporate power-while dismantling what is of value to the general population andfuture generations.

Distress is so severe that among white middle-aged Americans, mortality is actually increasing, something unheard of in functioning societies apart from war or pestilence. There are similar phenomena in Europe under the ‘business first’ (‘neoliberal’/’austerity’) assault.

The American Petroleum Institute, backed by the Chamber of Commerce and the other business lobbies, has intensified its efforts to persuade the public to dismiss concerns about anthropogenic global warming – with considerable success, as polls indicate.

I am Syrian, I was made in Syria, I have to live in Syria and die in Syria.

The American way is the way most law-abiding, tax-paying Americans live-in debt. Does this make a balanced budget un-American?

I think: the powers like to talk about ‘freedom’ in order to wash the population’s brains.

We’re no longer in the Cold War. Eavesdropping on friends is unacceptable.

The only way we could get what most of the population wants with regard to health care is either by a large-scale popular movement, which would mean moving towards democracy and nobody in power is going to want that, or else if the business community decides that it’s good for them.

This administration is extremely unpredictable. Trump probably has no idea what he’s going to do five minutes from now, so you can’t-literally-make predictions with much confidence.

All political theories assume…that most individuals are very ignorant. Those who plead for liberty differ…in that they include among the ignorant themselves as well as the wisest.

As soon as questions of will or decision or reason or choice of action arise human science is at a loss.

As far as we are concerned, we Syria have not changed.

There is freedom of speech, but I cannot guarantee freedom after speech.

[on Michelle Obama] She’s something of a force of nature – one of the rare few who are truly present with whomever she’s talking to. Whether it’s a veteran, a child, a working mother, or movie star, she treats everyone the same, with respect and full attention.

We have to fight. We have to fight against propaganda and crackpot conspiracy theories. We have to fight isolationism, protectionism, and nativism. We have to defeat those who would worsen our divisions. We have to remind our sons and daughters that we became the most powerful nation on Earth by tearing down walls, not building them.