That's a very real feeling - that I don't have a story to tell. I'm not a pure storyteller. I have a tough time with story.

A friend is somebody who says the same things to your face that they would say if you're not in the room.

You can only write, 'Somebody wants something, something else is in their way of getting it.'

A hero would die for his country, but he'd much rather live for it.

We live in a world that has walls, and those walls have to be guarded by men with guns.

Larry David called me and said, "You can never watch The West Wing again. Either the show is going to be great without you and you're going to be miserable, or the show is going to be less than great without you and you're going to be miserable." So I had them send a tape of the first episode that I didn't do. I put it in the VCR and I don't think I got 15 seconds in before I leapt up and slammed it off! It felt like I was watching somebody make out with my girlfriend. I've never seen a West Wing episode in seasons five, six or seven.

When I write something, I want the best director to direct it. And that's not going to be me.