The public think the politicians don't know or care about their lives; and the politicians feel misunderstood.
I may find Saddam Hussein's regime abhorrent - any normal person would - but the survival of it is in his hands.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The speaker acknowledges the abhorrence of a regime while recognizing that its fate ultimately lies with its leader.
In this quote, Tony Blair expresses a complex perspective on leadership and the political landscape, emphasizing that while he personally finds Saddam Hussein's regime unacceptable, the continuation or fall of such a regime is determined by Hussein himself. This highlights the notion that political authority and responsibility rest firmly with those in power, despite external perceptions of their governance.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion on political responsibility, one could reference Tony Blair's quote to highlight the role of leaders in maintaining their regimes.
More from Tony Blair
All quotes βThere is no meeting of minds, no point of understanding with such terror. Just a choice: Defeat it or be defeated by it. And defeat it we must.
Ask me my three main priorities for government, and I tell you: education, education and education.
However much I dislike the idea of abortion, you should not criminalize a woman who, in very difficult circumstances, makes that choice.
I want my son to grow up in a place where the people are more powerful than the government and not the other way around.
The blunt truth about the politics of climate change is that no country will want to sacrifice its economy in order to meet this challenge.
Similar quotes
Already long ago, from when we sold our vote to no man, the People have abdicated our duties; for the People who once upon a time handed out military command, high civil office, legions β everything, now restrains itself and anxiously hopes for just two things: bread and circuses.
No one talks about the real ethics disaster in Washington. It's that many members of Congress will listen to any argument against a bill except for two: that it's not moral or that it's not Constitutional.
Ours is a fully democratic government, which in our language we call a people's government.
Wherever despotism abounds, the sources of public information are the first to be brought under its control.
The Labour Party is a moral crusade or it is nothing.
Politics is not like an ocean voyage or a military campaign... something which leaves off as soon as reached. It is not a public chore to be gotten over with. It is a way of life.