I think Republicans so mistrust Barack Obama, that if Barack Obama says Putin is terrible, they will be some Republicans who just take the other side.

Luck is the residue of good planning.

Retrospective analysis is not a useful guide to current problems.

When the big guys in Washington dream of transforming the world, it’s the little guys who come home in body bags.

U.S. has been trying to encourage Iraq to pass a law that would provide money and training and weapons for a Sunni national guard that could be effective in places like Ramadi, like Mosul

Well, I think the U.S. has been careful not to go too far in attacking Iran's allies, in particular in attacking Hezbollah forces in Syria, which have been propping up the regime of Bashar al-Assad.

I believe, that there is at least de facto cooperation between United States and Iran, at least in Iraq.

Misdirection. False signals. Spreading confusion. This is the Tao of deception.

The ISI is above all a paramilitary organization. It doesn't do all that much collection of intelligence. It's not a very good spy agency, but it's good at running covert action.

Journalists couldn't do their jobs overseas without taking risks, and the same is true for diplomats and intelligence officers.

Sometimes James Bond movies drive me crazy. They're fun to watch, but they don't have anything to do at all with what intelligence officers really do.

Life's journey is peppered with many bumps and pitfalls. If we make mountains out of each one, we will get nowhere.

Count your blessings. You are one of a kind. There's no one in the world like you. You are amazing.

I have been committed to carrying out my duties... in accordance with both the letter and spirit of all applicable rules of ethics and canons of conduct.

The fact is, we are leaky vessels, and we have to keep right under the fountain all the time to keep full of Christ, and so have fresh supply.

youth is quick in feeling but weak in judgement.

Impotence is one of the major hazards of cigarette smoking.

People want more real artistes. They want girls who can actually sing and play an instrument and write their own songs - that's not fake and manufactured anymore".

If you don't know your full-throttle history, the whole story of how you came to where you are, it's kind of hard to put things together.

New parents always sound like hucksters in a pyramid scheme. Anyone who has kids and then gets you to go and have kids gets a check from Huckster Headquarters.

Be not affronted at a joke. If one throw salt at thee, thou wilt receive no harm, unless thou art raw.