I am against market fundamentalism. I think this propaganda that government involvement is always bad has been very successful - but also very harmful to our society.
The United States should not, in principle, object to the implementation of Islamic law or involvement of Islamic activists in government. Islamically oriented political actors and groups should be evaluated by the same criteria that are applied to any other potential leaders or opposition party.
I never considered politics as an option, not ever.
Politics becomes a part of your life once you realize it has been all along.
The Tunisian blogger and activist Sami Ben Gharbia has written passionately about how U.S. government involvement in grassroots digital spaces can endanger those who are already vulnerable to accusations by nasty regimes of acting as foreign agents.
I started off tagging stuff - I'm not meant to be having tea and biscuits with the prime minister.
What we have to do is strike a balance between the idea that government shall do everything and the idea that government shall do nothing.
I received a telegram from Allen Dulles in which he stated in effect that the revolution could not have succeeded but for what I did.
The US organized a revolution
What do you think the appropriate role of government is in society? The way I look at this job is, you want me to do X? Well, is the private sector doing X with any kind of success? Because if they are, I'd rather have them do it than have us do it.
A man who is not interested in politics is not doing his patriotic duty toward maintaining the constitution of the United States.
It is impossible to objectively define how free a market is. This is a political definition. Government is always involved, and those free marketers are as politically motivated as anyone.
Education has not traditionally been a large concern in presidential elections, presumably because the president does not run schools.
No matter how deeply wedded one may be to the free enterprise system (and I, for one, am wedded for life), one has to accept the need for positive government; one has to consider government action on a sizable scale as desirable rather than as a necessary evil.
I'm not interested in politics, or being a part of them. I definitely do my homework and make sure that I know what's going on, and I'm responsible enough to be able to vote for people that I respect. But other than that, I've never been a part of the political world.
I think she [Hillary Clinton] would be far superior to President [Barack] Obama, who is basically remote, aloof and not involved with - he doesn't deal with members of Congress.
I think there are a lot of people who are involved in the Tea Party who have very real and sincere concerns about spending that's out of control or generally philosophically believe that the government should be less involved in certain aspects of American life rather than more involved. And they have every right and obligation as citizens to be involved and engaged in this process.
The involvement of the government in military adventures always results in the expansion, at least temporarily, of Presidential power.
Just as judges have enormous stake in the appointment of judicial officers in the higher judiciary, the government has an equal stake. Since both of us have stakes in the appointment of members of the higher judiciary, the consultation of both of them is absolutely necessary. The government must have a say.
[Barack Obama failed to sell a health care reform plan to American voters] because the utter implausibility of its central promise - expanded coverage at lower cost - led voters to conclude that it would lead ultimately to more government, more taxes and more debt.
We don't want the efficiency of the federal government and the compassion of the IRS to run our health care.
People say, 'The government couldn't carry out the September 11th attack, it's too big, they'd get caught!' They DID get caught! They're just counting on you to be dumb and to go along with it.
If health care is a $2.7 trillion industry, and a huge percentage is paid by the government, then you have to be involved in politics to make a difference.
Instead of going on a beach vacation to Hawaii, you could go to a Democratic convention, a state convention, a conference being held to discuss issues you care about, or even go hear a politician speak. Soon your life is all about government and politics and you delve into issues and public policy. When you do that, not only do you learn to be a good candidate for office, but you also learn to be a good elected official.
Politics should be the part-time profession of every citizen.
When I was first elected I was puzzled why they were holding events in my honor as a mere freshman. I asked myself, why is a federal entity so involved in political activity?
