Government ... can't be trusted to control its own bureaucrats or collect taxes equitably or fill a pothole, much less decide which of its citizens to kill.
Helen PrejeanRead
Being in politics is like being a football coach. You have to be smart enough to understand the game, and dumb enough to think it's important.
Interpretation
Politics, like coaching, requires knowledge and a certain level of naive passion.
Eugene McCarthy uses the analogy of a football coach to highlight the dual nature of politics. A successful politician must possess the intellectual capability to grasp the complexities of political strategies and issues, yet they must also have the somewhat naive belief in the significance of their work, just as a coach must believe in the importance of the game to motivate their team and inspire passion in others.
In practice
Referencing this quote during a discussion on the role of enthusiasm in politics at a town hall meeting.
Government ... can't be trusted to control its own bureaucrats or collect taxes equitably or fill a pothole, much less decide which of its citizens to kill.
A Christian cannot fail of being a republican.
The congressional role in declaring war is especially important not when the United States is the victim of an attack, but when the United States is planning to wage war abroad.
No, Governor Romney, corporations are not people. People have hearts, they have kids, they get jobs, they get sick, they cry, they dance. They live, they love, and they die. And that matters. That matters because we don't run this country for corporations, we run it for people.
None of this is fair to you. And should it continue, it will make it more difficult to keep attracting the kind of driven, patriotic, idealist Americans to public service that our citizens deserved and that our system of self-government demands.
The hardest thing about any political campaign is how to win without proving that you are unworthy of winning.
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