Barack Obama Quotes

I pledge tonight to be Mayor for all of the people of this city - for one Chicago.

The true privilege of being Mayor is that I have the opportunity to be everyone's neighbor.

While Mayor Daley surprised me today with his decision to not run for reelection, I have never been surprised by his leadership, dedication and tireless work on behalf of the city and the people of Chicago.

Those who fill a public position must not be too thin-skinned in reference to comments made upon him.

Politicians who have been around for a while tend to have thick skins.

Before being elected to Congress, I was a mayor, and it's this perspective that makes me certain that Ed FitzGerald is the right kind of leader to get Ohio back on track.

I've been in politics a long time and the only way you survive is by getting the hide of a rhino.

I have extremely friendly feelings for German chancellor. I think Angela Merkel is very courageous, and that is one reason I have such great respect for her. But I also know that she has now survived French presidents for 12 years. I am constantly trying to imagine all the mistakes my predecessors made and to avoid repeating them.

When I had the job of police commissioner, 20 years ago, I was more sensitive, more cognizant of complaints and concerned about public opinion. I've learned to do what I think is the right thing. That lessens the impact of criticism. You get used to a pressurized environment and expect it every day.

We must control the politics and the politicians of our community. They must no longer take orders from outside forces. We will organize, and sweep out of office all Negro politicians who are puppets for the outside forces.

What I've found in working less is you start to get a bit more involved in the more real politics, which is local politics that affect what's going on in your own community.

Some people think that being in government for a long time is a bad thing. But the more you stay, the more you learn. I am now an expert in governance.

Jesse Jackson's living depends on the maintenance of an African-American victim culture

As an elected official who comes from the African-American community, there are some similarities. You are always trying to reconcile your own personal biography and affiliations with the demands of the broader democracy. And you need to make sure you are representing everybody.

I believe that Hillary Clinton is one of the best prepared people in our history to enter the Oval Office, with her vision, her knowledge, her experience, her strategic thinking, her connection to the American people.

Hillary Clinton's been around for 30 years. Why do these stories need to be told? It isn't all of this widely known?

I had already learned from more than a decade of political life that I was going to be criticized no matter what I did, so I might as well be criticized for something I wanted to do.

Never in my lifetime have I been called boring. But I think I was a boring candidate for president because I tried to be responsible. And one of the greatest problems I had is that I was governor.

That's what everyone thinks--they think being a cop is about punishing people for doing wrong. But that's not true. You know it isn't. It's about believing in people, believing in the good. In the will of people to do what's right despite their own instincts.

In particular in how [Barack Obama] has directed what you could describe as patronizing remarks to African-American communities.

I think if you come from where I came from and where I have always been, I've always been reaching out and whether it's talking with our neighbors or going shopping or standing, talking to people in these bookstores and hearing what's on their minds, or even the work I did for eight years as a senator to bring new jobs to New York and stand up for the people I represented.

I would flip this the other way and say over 90 percent of African-Americans voted against Donald Trump.

There's a stupid trend in American politics right now with people who have no experience with politics and no grasp of public service as a profession just deciding that they're going to jump into it. The obvious figurehead of this whole "I am an idiot, therefore I can be a politician" is Donald Trump. People think that ignorance of a profession is somehow qualifying for that profession. It's utterly baffling.

I think that I've developed very, very good relationships over the last little while with the African-American community. I think you can see that.

We keep hearing how “qualified” Hillary Clinton is to be president. I think it’s kind of like if somebody has to deny they’re a prostitute, then there must be some doubt about it.