Jon Keyser Quotes

I enjoyed the administrative work because it involved working with Congress, city council, and the mayor. I had never been a politician so it was fun - learning political maneuvering.

Confidence is as essential in permanent relations between Governments as it is between great commercial houses.

In statesmanship get the formalities right, never mind about the moralities.

It became extremely important that we go and see the four heads of the governments, and the message was delivered, with the tea packets, to all these heads.

Politics is human beings; it's addition rather than subtraction.

I'm not going into personal details of meetings I have with anybody, be it John Howard or President Bush or President Putin or President Yeltsin, in years gone by, whoever it may be, I'm not going into that.

I majored in political communications, so I intended to be a diplomat.

I'm an ambassador 24 hours a day.

I met senators, diplomats and the President of the United States, Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

I'm used to politics at an international level: people put together an argument and, even if you vehemently disagree with them, well, you can recognise it's an argument and respond.

Governments and nations should sit together and resolve issues. Reforms must be reached through understanding. But others should not interfere.

You can't have someone with a pinkie out there at the U.N. or any other place.

I'm a lobbyist and had a career lobbying. The guy who gets elected or the lady who gets elected president of the United States will immediately be lobbying. They would be advocating to the Congress, they'll be lobbying our allies and our adversaries overseas. They'll be asking the business community and labor unions.

There is no reason to have problems between country and country, between government and government, when there is a separation of powers.

I might be an ambassador.

Foreign policy is effectively the assertion of many individual countries intersecting on the global marketplace. And you have to figure out how to get your interest served in a way that meets the interests and needs of these other folks.

Two things are desired in order that intercourse may be had: First, that a minister or agent be allowed to reside at the capital. Second, that commerce between different countries be freely allowed.

A lot of business can be accomplished in the state dinners.

The President is of opinion that if Japan makes a treaty with the United States, all other foreign countries will make the same kind of a treaty, and Japan will be safe thereafter.

The idea of being in the State Department was exciting. On the other hand, I always had in the back of my mind going into politics. If I stayed in Washington, I might end up a government hack.

The theoretical postulate of all diplomatic discussion between nations is the assumed willingness of every nation to do justice.

And so there has been a lot of diplomatic movement.

I shall have to depend upon you for taking care of these matters of foreign affairs, of which I know so little, and with which I reckon you are familiar.

Condelesa Rice waves. She gets off airplanes and waves. She gets the 45 degree angle shot with a foreign dignatory and waves, but she doesn’t make deals. The whole world wants to make deals but she doesn’t make deals. She waves.

Let him (the king) also appoint an ambassador who is versed in all sciences, who understands hints, expressions of the face and gestures, who is honest, skilful, and of noble family. Such an ambassador is commended to a king who is loyal, honest, skilful, possessing a good memory, who knows the proper place and time for action, who is handsome, fearless, and eloquent. For the ambassador alone makes kings' allies and separates allies; the ambassador transacts that business by which kings are disunited or not.