MARTIN E. DEMPSEY

I wear the uniform I wear to provide options when asked.

I haven’t lived in a world where chemical weapons are routinely used, and I would not want to live in such a world.

Embassies are fixed assets and as such are always subject to terrorist attacks.

We have multiple challenges competing for finite resources—–and grotesque uncertainty with regard to the military budget.

The next president is going to be faced with the prospect of realigning our national security interests with our resources—–and for God's sake, getting some certainty into the budget process so we can actually plan.... Instead, we tend to look at things one year at a time.

One of the things that fascinated me about the Chinese is whenever I would have a conversation with them about international standards or international rules of behavior, they would inevitably point out that those rules were made when they were absent from the world stage, and so these rules need to be renegotiated with them.

We take our oath to the Constitution, which is to say the rule of law. And we are duty-bound not to follow any order that is illegal or immoral. If an order is illegal or immoral, we should and would resign, because we couldn't follow it.

I think the discussions have been superficial and emotional. What we need are conversations that have real depth to them. Talking about what's going to happen in the first 60 or 90 days of a presidency just doesn't get it done for me.

When we're told, "You have to find $750 billion to cut", and we say "OK, we can do that; ....the Congress shouldn't turn around and say, "Not in my district" or "Not my weapons system".

A military leader should always understand, of all human endeavors... the one that's the most unpredictable and the most costly is warfare.

Sometimes we wait for thunderclaps, drumrolls, and clarion calls to alert us to what's important when, actually, it's most often the subtle and persistent signals around us that make the most difference.

I worked hard at whatever task I was given and embraced leadership opportunities, whether as a crossing guard, an altar boy, or a general.

The American people should not wonder where their military leaders draw the line between military advice and political preference. And our nation's soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines should not wonder about the political leanings and motivations of their leaders.

My belief is that when the military is used as the sole instrument of power, that never has a good outcome. If there's no one to take ownership and develop that failed state, human suffering can be even worse than that created by the conflict itself.

If someone uses the uniform, whatever uniform, for partisan politics, I am disappointed because I think it does erode that bond of trust we have with the American people.

In my 39 years in the military, I have learned that you are not a profession just because you say you are. You have to earn it and re-earn it and re-evaluate it from time to time.

The more we can treat people equally, the more likely they are to treat each other equally.

Relieving the risk of a nuclear conflict with Iran diplomatically is superior than trying to do that militarily.

I graduated from West Point in 1974. It was an all-male institution. I went back to teach at West Point in 1984 and found the place far better than it was when I had been a cadet... I attributed a good amount of that to the fact that we opened up the academy to women.

ISIL is inspiring groups that already exist to rebrand themselves, but in rebranding themselves into a more radical ideology. That's what makes it dangerous.

I've been in the group that believes it's in our national interest to close Guantanamo. It does create a psychological scar on our national values. Whether it should or not, it does.

Strategy is, at some level, the ability to predict what's going to happen, but it's also about understanding the context in which it is being formulated. And then you have to be open-minded to the fact that you're not going to get it right at the very beginning.

History will find some of you but not all of you. Because you can't know which of you will make history, you must do your best to be ready.

America is the world's engine but also its conscience. We are the petri dish of diversity and inclusiveness.

The America I know is trusted, sometimes guardedly, but among those who aspire to improve the lives of their citizens, among those who feel vulnerable, and among those who want an equal voice in a partnership, we remain the partner of choice. The America I know leads, sometimes cautiously, but always ethically.