If you happened to be born on third base, you didn't rub it in the face of the guy who wasn't even born in the stadium. Self-interest was generally checked at the door with your coat and hat.

[Barack Obama] says at one point, "[Jimmy] Carter, [Bill] Clinton and I suffer from," what he called, "the policy wonk's disease."

The informed, unmanaged question. That's the most dangerous thing at a press conference anywhere.

Younger colleagues tended to draw untested self-confidence from their bonuses and prestigious degrees.

I think that there's a lot of anxiety out there in people wanting their children to be part of the mainstream, to achieve based on the well-worn yardsticks.

The fact is, most journalists I know are not particularly political. They move around a lot.

These were lobbyists—many of them compensated quite handsomely not to react as human beings.