Mack McLarty Quotes

It's foolish to call Chanakya an Indian Machiavelli. Rather, Machiavelli was possibly an Italian Chanakya.

The political tradition of ancient thought, filtered in Italy by Machiavelli, says one thing clearly: every prince needs allies, and the bigger the responsibility, the more allies he needs.

You can't be in politics unless you can walk in a room and know in a minute who's for you and who's against you.

The liquor of statecraft is distilled from the mash you got.

Creative betrayal is the essence of successful statesmanship.

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

I'm well aware of the pragmatism of politics.

Charlatanism of some degree is indispensable to effective leadership.

These books ain't window dressing. I think Machiavelli's the most sophisticated writer outside of Shakespeare. Way ahead of his time. Such a manipulative person. Everything he accomplished he did by kissin' ass.

Power politics existed before Machiavelli was ever heard of; it will exist long after his name is only a faint memory. What he did, like Harvey, was to recognize its existence and subject it to scientific study.

A prince... must learn from the fox and the lion... One must be a fox in order to recognize traps, and a lion to frighten off wolves. Those who act simply as lions are stupid. So it follows that a prudent ruler cannot, and must not, honour his word when it places him at a disadvantage and when the reasons for which he made his promise no longer exist.

Most governments lie to each other. That's the way business gets done.

American presidents always avoid shaking hands with brutal dictators, except when it's advantageous to do so.

A prince never lacks legitimate reasons to break his promise.

Cheney was among the best secretaries of defence the country has ever had. He was a very effective White House chief of staff. He did not make many enemies, and he had the ability to persuade people with that soft tone and very reasonable style of his. He's always been exceptionally good as the right-hand man.

You do the policy, I'll do the politics.

It would be great if politics were fact-based, but it is not, and it is surely not nuance-based. What works in a classroom or a think tank does not work on Capitol Hill or in the White House. Obama sometimes seems to be running the Brookings Institution, not the country.

I'm not clever enough to be in machinations and real politics.

I've been dealing with politicians all my life. All my life. And I've always gotten them to do what I need them to do.

There are no techniques in politics.

Divide and rule, the politician cries; unite and lead, is watchword of the wise.

In this game of politics, it's always kind of blame.

The art of government is the art of negotiating and compromise.

You have to be a demagogue on a lot of little things if you want to be around to have your way on the big things.

If you would know the depth of meanness of human nature, you have got to be a prime minister running for a general election.