While democracy in the long run is the most stable form of government, in the short run, it is among the most fragile.

After the Cold War, to rally the American people to understand that we had to be a part of solutions. It's one thing to say that we have to run everything, it's another to say we don't want anything to do with it.

You can't just think that you will get a job for no good reason... And I think that the other part is you have to work your way up, you know I did a lot of Xeroxing and getting coffee...I always did what I was asked to do. I delivered. People knew that I would get things done and get them done well. And that is a big part of our resumes, are based on being responsible and being willing to do what needed to be done.

I think we all are people that are the product of our backgrounds. It's wrong to think that you're not.

I think the hardest part [is] the priorities. There are an awful lot of things to do [being Secretary of State].

If we have to use force, it is because we are America. We are the indispensable nation. We stand tall. We see further into the future.

When we're trying to solve difficult national issues its sometimes necessary to talk to adversaries as well as friends. Historians have a word for this: diplomacy.