Jodi Kantor Quotes

What's missing is leadership in the White House. And the story that Barack Obama does tell, forever shifting blame to the last administration, is getting old. The man assumed office almost four years ago - isn't it about time he assumed responsibility?

You know, everybody makes mistakes when they are president.

A President must always be given credit for all his administration's successes and the final blame for the failures.

The President has become increasingly the depository of all national ills, especially if things go wrong.

In a way I never did with George W. Bush or Barack Obama or Bill Clinton, I will write about the actions of the Trump presidency with the working assumption that our nation must be protected both by and from the president.

There was not a word of apology, not a word of explanation to the American people. The president's going to have to get a touch of reality.

Nixon officials foreshadowed both the historic distinction and seamy underside of the presidency.

But presidents matter. That's one of the biggest lessons I learned being in the White House.

I think President Obama is trying to deceive the public in pretending that he was not a part of Congress that has made some decisions in the past that got us to where we are today.

Can the president really blame Fox News for his problems?

The trouble with Nixon is that he's a serious politics junkie. He's totally hooked and like any other junkie, he's a bummer to have around, especially as President.

I think George W. Bush has a warm, engaging personality. But, you know, the presidency is more than just a popularity contest.

We all obviously need others to look up to, and be inspirational to us. Ford did a great job as far as putting the presidency back where it belonged, getting the trust back after Nixon. And President Reagan has been one of the most influential presidents.

This president has been reluctant to hold anybody accountable. No one was held accountable after September the 11th. Nobody's been held accountable after the clear flaws in intelligence leading up to the war in Iraq.

This issue, if not addressed, leaves any President, including George Bush, open to the criticism that they are essentially ignoring the destruction of the nation and I believe that with all my heart.

White House cultures inevitably reflect the president's character. Jimmy Carter is a thoroughly honest, good person. So was his White House.

Whether you are a Democrat or Republican, whether you are a liberal or a conservative, we know that neither this President nor prior Presidents of both parties did everything right or we would not have had a 9/11.

When the President of the United States breaks the law he must be held accountable. That is why I am introducing today a resolution to censure George W. Bush…. At the very heart of our constitution is the assumption that some members of the government will do wrong, and when they do, others in the government must do right…. The President has broken the law. Congress must act…. Our job is not to stand up and cheer when the President breaks the law.

The notion that it is desirable to have a President who can give his full attention to the "presidency" and not worry about reelection is quite a mistake.

Anytime this President [George W. Bush] says he didn’t know something, I believe him. He’s got the benefit of the doubt on that.

Every President has to have a scapegoat.

Control is not a luxury that most Presidents are allowed.

The Founding Fathers wisely concluded that it was not enough for the President to swear to obey the law. He had to "take care that the laws be faithfully executed," which means by his appointees and subordinates.

I have no more obligation to spin. When you’re in the White House, you spin.

… the implicit infallibility of presidents, which has been an accepted thing in America, is badly hurt by this, because it shows that people do things the President wants to do even though it's wrong, and the President can be wrong.