There`s a reason people pause their lives to engage in political activism and pressure their local political leaders. Because as a whole, even if you can`t identify any one instance, as a whole pressure works and sometimes it starts with something as simple as pushing the button on the intercom.
Rachel MaddowI think Obama has been skilled and farsighted in a lot of the stuff that he's done. And in other things, unskilled and not farsighted. On balance I'd say that he is doing most of what he said he'd do.
Rachel MaddowI still think of myself as the new kid, even though I've been on the air for two and a half years. But my job is the same as it ever was, which is to make 9:00 P.M. as good as I can.
Rachel MaddowThe whole straight talk thing, which John McCain kind of turned into a slogan at one point in one of his presidential campaigns, what that is, is a symptom of somebody who has no time for messing around. Because he`s trying to get stuff done constantly.
Rachel MaddowIt matters that there's diversity on the court. I think it makes for better lawmaking, because you have people with more diverse range of judgment and who are going to make a better decision on the law.
Rachel MaddowThe idea of the Overton Window of using people on the political fringe to change the terms of acceptable debate, that`s an idea that`s been hugely influential in conservative politics since Joseph P. Overton thought it up, making radical ideas seem acceptable by advocating for the unthinkable.
Rachel Maddow