Authors From The United States

"Let me make a short, opening, blanket comment. There are no "good guns". There are no "bad guns". Any gun in the hands of a bad man is a bad thing. Any gun in the hands of a decent person is no threat to anybody — except bad people."

"Charlton Heston once told me that getting ahead in acting was more a matter of luck than talent and skill; but then he hastily amended that. "What I meant," he said, "was that there are a lot of skillful and talented people out there, far more than the industry can absorb, so that it takes luck, at least one good break, to rise above the crowd. However, if you haven't done your homework and developed your skills, one good break won't do you any good because you won't be able to exploit it.""

"It could be that today's conservative movement remains in thrall to the same narrative that has defined its attitude toward film and the arts for decades. Inspired by feelings of exclusion after Hollywood and the popular culture turned leftward in the '60s and '70s, this narrative has defined the film industry as an irredeemably liberal institution toward which conservatives can only act in opposition—never engagement. Ironically, this narrative ignores the actual history of Hollywood, in which conservatives had a strong presence from the industry's founding in the early 20th century up through the '40s, '50s and into the mid-'60s]. The conservative Hollywood community at that time included such leading directors as Howard Hawks, Frank Capra, and Cecil B. DeMille, and major stars like John Wayne, Clark Gable, and Charlton Heston. These talents often worked side by side with notable Hollywood liberals like directors Billy Wilder, William Wyler, and John Huston, and stars like Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, and Spencer Tracy. The richness of classic Hollywood cinema is widely regarded as a testament to the ability of these two communities to work together, regardless of political differences. As the younger, more left-leaning "New Hollywood" generation swept into the industry in the late '60s and '70s, this older group of Hollywood conservatives faded away, never to be replaced. Except for a brief period in the '80s when the Reagan Presidency led to a conservative reengagement with film—with popular stars like Clint Eastwood, Sylvester Stallone, and Arnold Schwarzenegger making macho, patriotic action films—conservatives appeared to abandon popular culture altogether. In the wake of this retreat, conservative failure to engage with Hollywood now appears to have been recast by today's East Coast conservative establishment into a generalized opposition toward film and popular culture itself. In the early '90s, conservative film critic Michael Medved codified this oppositional feeling toward Hollywood in his best-selling book Hollywood vs. America."

"I also want you to know I'm grateful beyond measure. My life has been blessed with good fortune. I'm grateful I was born in America, that cradle of freedom and opportunity where a kid from the Michigan North Woods can work hard and make something of his life. I'm grateful for the greatest words ever written, that let me share with you the infinite scope of the human experience. As an actor, I'm thankful I have lived not one life, but many."

"I'm neither giving up nor giving in. I believe I'm still the fighter that Dr. King and JFK and Ronald Reagan knew. But it's a fight I must someday call a draw. I must reconcile courage and surrender in equal measure."

"I have lived my whole life on the stage and screen before you. I found purpose and meaning in your response. For an actor that is no greater loss than the loss of his audience. I can part the Red Sea, but I can't part with you, which is why I won't exclude you from this stage in my life. For now, I'm not changing anything. I will insist on work when I can; the doctors will insist on rest when I must. If you see a little less spring in my step, if your name fails to leap to my lips, you will know why. And if I tell you a funny story for the second time, please laugh anyway."

"“You simply disobey. Peaceably, yes. Respectfully, of course. Nonviolently, absolutely. But when told how to think or what to say or how to behave, we don’t. We disobey the social protocol that stifles and stigmatizes personal freedom.” 16 February 1999"

"I have played some of the great men in history and I believe in the great man who does heroic deeds, even in these egalitarian times."

"To be an actor you need four things: energy, concentration, a lot of luck and, of course, good roles."

"I used to think if it wasn't possible to be a family man and a totally dedicated artist, I'd rather be the former. I'm an idealist and a romantic."

"Celebrity is a corrosive condition for the soul. I have tried to restrain its inroads on me, but there are odd corners of my character that have been harmed."

"It's fashionable for modern actors to talk about getting "inside" a character. But you can't get to the inside without getting the outside right first."

"Moses is the keystone to every man's ethical code. He was the first man of record in history to conceive of the law as separate from the will of a ruler, to choose whether a man should live by grace of law, or law by grace of man. In a literal sense Moses lives at every council table today."

"To me Moses is all men grown to gigantic proportions. He was a man of immense ability, immense emotions, immense humanness and immense dedication. There is something of Moses in each of us — the more there is, the better we are. It is interesting to note that once Moses climbs Mt. Sinai and talks to God there is never contentment for him again. That is the way it is with us. Once we talk to God, once we get his commission to us for our lives we cannot be again content. We are happier. We are busier. But we are not content because then we have a mission — a commission, rather."

"I always work on the theory that the audience will believe you best if you believe yourself. This meant that I had to come to understand Moses well enough to believe in my portrayal of him."

"Sam is the only person I've ever physically threatened on a set."

"I remember a decade ago at my first annual meeting in St. Louis. After my banquet remarks to a packed house, they presented me with a very special gift. It was a splendid hand-crafted musket. I admit I was overcome by the power of its simple symbolism. I looked at that musket and I thought of all of the lives given for that freedom. I thought of all of the lives saved with that freedom. It dawned on me that the doorway to all freedoms is framed by muskets. So I lifted that musket over my head for all to see. And as flashbulbs popped around the room, my heart and a few tears swelled up, and I uttered five unscripted words. When I did, that room exploded in sustained applause and hoots and shouts that seemed to last forever. ... So as we set out this year to defeat the divisive forces that would take freedom away, I want to say those words again for everyone within the sound of my voice to hear and to heed, and especially for you, Mr. Gore: From my cold dead hands!"

"He's clearly a man with a mission, but it's not one of vengeance. Bruce is not after personal revenge... He's much bigger than that; he's much more noble than that. He wants the world to be a better place, where a young Bruce Wayne would not be a victim... In a way, he's out to make himself unnecessary. Batman is a hero who wishes he didn't have to exist."

"In the world of comic books, "troublemaker" means someone who has some sense of dignity."

"If ever there was a theme song for the business end of the industry, it's: "We can't do that; we didn't do that yesterday.""

"I think it's quite enough to simply be sarcastic about something. I like to do that quite a lot, and it's one of my favorite things to look at. That's why I think there's a thin line between melodrama and satire, and I like to dance across that line sometimes. I like the story to take a very funny turn or have a character who is much more of a cartoon."

"American comics are so constipated."

"I don't think so. ... Well, let's put it this way. This month, I don't think so. It's been a long couple of months."

"I can tell you squat about Islamism. But I know a lot about Al Quaeda, and they need to burn in hell."

"It is, not to put too fine a point on it, a piece of propaganda ... Superman punched out Hitler. So did Captain America. That's one of the things they're there for."

"For some reason, nobody seems to be talking about who we’re up against, and the sixth century barbarism that they actually represent. These people saw people’s heads off. They enslave women, they genitally mutilate their daughters, they do not behave by any cultural norms that are sensible to us. I’m speaking into a microphone that never could have been a product of their culture, and I’m living in a city where three thousand of my neighbors were killed by thieves of airplanes they never could have built."

"My Sin City heroes are knights in dirty, blood-caked armor. They bring justice to a world that gives them no medals, no praise, no reward. That world, that city, often kills them for their brave service."

"It's not movies and it's not "fine art." The beauty of a comic is that it's clear, direct communication. My work is getting simpler and more cartoony because I'm much more interested in communication now than in any illustrative value."

"For decades, he has been my loyal and dedicated friend. Joe has the experience, character, and decency to bring us together and restore America’s greatness. We deserve a person with integrity and judgment, someone who is honest and fair, someone who is committed to what is best for the American people."

"Mr. Vice President, there's a saying in my community that you're dipping into the Kool-Aid and you don't even know the flavor."

"Everything was upside-down There was this lovely wife, who was just as much a part of the Senate win as he was, and she was gone. Joe went into himself for a time I spent a year with him. We traveled together, we skied in Vermont. His sense of frustration was intense"

"President Joe Biden and the Democratic Congress are facing a crisis as the popular domestic agenda they ran on in the 2020 elections is held hostage by two corporate Democratic senators: fossil-fuel consigliere Joe Manchin and payday-lender favorite Kyrsten Sinema."

"[During] a critical period early in the Obama administration, when the White House contemplated exerting real pressure on Benjamin Netanyahu to keep the possibility of a Palestinian state alive, Biden did more than any other cabinet-level official to shield Netanyahu from that pressure... When it came to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Michael Oren notes in his memoir, Biden sometimes employed an uncomfortable analogy: “Never crucify yourself on a small cross.” The message: The Palestinians aren’t pliable or important enough to be worth the trouble, given the political cost domestically."

"One of the things I like about the fact of the Biden-Harris plan is that they are, number one, not talking about taking people’s healthcare.... The Biden-Harris plan is talking about raising people’s living wages, $15 an hour. The Trump-Pence plan is talking about giving more money to the wealthy. In fact, the Trump-Pence-McConnell plan, they refuse to pass a stimulus because they want another $200 billion in tax cuts, they want money for a fighter jet, and they want to protect corporations from liability when those corporations didn’t protect their people from coronavirus. So, what we have is two different worlds operating.... So, on the one hand, while Pence and — while Biden and Harris may not be every, fully where the Poor People’s Campaign are, they are in the world of wanting to do more. They’re in the sphere of wanting to increase. They’re in the sphere of wanting to make sure that the people have what they need, as opposed to wanting to only secure the wealthy and the greedy."

"Dekel-Chen according to US hostage families urge Biden-Trump cooperation to reach deal before inauguration (Today)"

"If the sides wait until Trump enters office on January 20 to strike a deal, “there’s a very real possibility that none of the hostages will remain alive, and it will be nearly impossible to retrieve the remains of those who have been murdered,” Dekel-Chen warns."

"Listen to me, boss," Biden told Obama, according to Obama's recent memoir recounting their conversations. "Maybe I've been around this town for too long, but one thing I know is when these generals are trying to box in a new president." According to the former President's account, Biden brought his face a few inches from Obama's and stage-whispered: "Don't let them jam you."

"Let me close by stating my gratitude to so many people. To the members of my administration, as well as public service and first responders across the country and around the world, thank you for stepping up to serve. To our service members and your families, it's been the highest honor of my life to lead you as commander in chief. And, of course, to Kamala and her incredible partner — a historic vice president. She and Doug have become like family. And to me, family is everything. My deepest appreciation to our amazing first lady, who is with me in the Oval today, for our entire family. You are the love of my life and lifes of my love. And my eternal thanks to you, the American people. After 50 years of public service, I give you my word, I still believe in the idea for which this nation stands, a nation where the strengths of our institutions and the character of our people matter and must endure. Now it's your turn to stand guard. May you all be the keeper of the flame. May you keep the faith. I love America. You love it too. God bless you all. And may God protect our troops. Thank you for this great honor."

"We must reform the tax code — not by giving the biggest tax cuts to billionaires, but by making them begin to pay their fair share. We need to get dark money — that's that hidden funding behind too many campaigns' contributions — we need to get it out of our politics. We need to enact an 18-year time limit — term limit — time and term — for the strongest ethics ref- — and the strongest ethics reforms for our Supreme Court. We need to ban members of Congress … from trading stock while they're in the Congress. We need to amend the Constitution to make clear that no president — no president — is immune from crimes that he or she commits while in office. The president's power … it's not absolute, and it shouldn't be. And in a democracy, there's another danger to the concentration of power and wealth. It erodes a sense of unity and common purpose. It causes distrust and division. Participating in our democracy becomes exhausting and even disillusioning, and people don't feel like they have a fair shot. But we have to stay engaged in the process. I know it's frustrating. A fair shot is what makes America, America. Everyone is entitled to a fair shot — not a guarantee, but just a fair shot, an even playing field — going as far as your hard work and talent can take you. We can never lose that essential truth — remain who we are. I've always believed and I've told other world leaders America can be defined by one word: possibilities. Only in America do we believe anything possible, like a kid with a stutter from modest beginnings in Scranton, Pennsylvania, and Claymont, Delaware, sitting behind the — this desk in the Oval Office as president of the United States. That's the magic of America. It's all around us."

"Americans are being buried under an avalanche of misinformation and disinformation enabling the abuse of power. The free press is crumbling. Editors are disappearing. Social media is giving up on fact-checking. The truth is smothered by lies told for power and for profit. We must hold the social platforms accountable to protect our children, our families, and our very democracy from the abuse of power. Meanwhile, artificial intelligence is the most consequential technology of our time — perhaps of all time. Nothing offers more profound possibilities and risks for our economy and our security, our society, our very — for humanity. Artificial intelligence even has the potential to help us answer my call to end cancer as we know it. But unless safeguards are in place, AI could spawn new threats to our rights, our way of life, to our privacy, how we work, and how we protect our nation. We must make sure AI is safe and trustworthy and good for all humankind. In the age of AI, it's more important than ever that the people must govern. And as the land of liberty, America — not China — must lead the world on the development of AI. You know, in the years ahead, it will help to be — it's going to be up to the president, the presidency, the Congress, the courts, the free press, and the American people to confront these powerful forces."

"You know, we've proven we don't have to choose between protecting the environment and growing the economy. We're doing both. But powerful forces want to wield their unchecked influence to eliminate the steps we've taken to tackle the climate crisis to serve their own interest for power and profit. We must not be bullied into sacrificing the future, the future of our children and our grandchildren. We must keep pushing forward and push faster. There is no time to waste."

"I'm so proud of how much we've accomplished together for the American people. And I wish the incoming administration success, because I want America to succeed. That's why I've upheld my duty to ensure a peaceful and orderly transition of power to ensure we lead by the power of our example. I have no doubt that America is in a position to continue to succeed. That's why, in my farewell address tonight, I want to warn the country of some things that give me great concern. … and that's the dangerous concentration of power in the hands of very few ultra-wealthy people, and the dangerous consequences if their abuse of power is left unchecked. Today, an oligarchy is taking shape in America of extreme wealth, power, and influence that literally threatens our entire democracy, our basic rights and freedoms, and a fair shot for everyone to get ahead. We see the consequences all across America. And we've seen it before, more than a century ago. But the American people stood up to the robber barons back then and busted the trusts. They didn't punish the wealthy. They just made the wealthy … play by the rules everybody else had to. Workers won rights to earn their fair share. You know, they were dealt into the deal, and it helped put us on the path to building the largest middle class and the most prosperous century any nation the world has ever seen, and we've got to do that again. In the last four years, that is exactly what we've done. People should be able to make as much as they can, but … play by the same rules, pay their fair share in taxes."

"It's been the honor of my life to see the resilience of essential workers getting us through a once-in-a-century pandemic, the heroism of service members and first responders keeping us safe, the determination of advocates standing up for our rights and our freedoms. Instead of losing their jobs to an economic crisis that we inherited, millions of Americans now have the dignity of work; millions of entrepreneurs and companies creating new businesses and industries, hiring American workers, using American products. And together, we've launched a new era of American possibilities — one of the greatest modernizations of infrastructure in our entire history, from new roads, bridges, clean water, affordable high-speed Internet for every American. We invented the semiconductor — smaller than the tip of my little finger. And now it's bringing those chip factories and those jobs back to America where they belong, creating thousands of jobs. Finally giving Medicare the power to negotiate lower prescription drug prices for millions of seniors. And finally doing something to protect our children and our families by passing the most significant gun safety law in 30 years and bringing violent crime to a 50-year low. Meeting our sacred obligation to over 1 million veterans so far who were exposed to toxic materials, and to their families — providing medical care and education benefits and more for their families. You know, it will take time to feel the full impact of all we've done together. But the seeds are planted, and they'll grow and they'll bloom for decades to come. At home, we've created nearly 17 million new jobs — more than any other single administration in a …single term. More people have health care than ever before. And overseas, we've strengthened NATO. Ukraine is still free. And we've pulled ahead of our competition with China. And so much more."

"After 50 years at the center of all of this, I know that believing in the idea of America means respecting the institutions that govern a free society: the presidency, the Congress, the courts, a free and independent press. Institutions that are rooted not — they just — not to reflect the timeless words, but they re- — they — they echo the words of the Declaration of Independence: "We hold these truths to be self-evident." Rooted in the timeless words of the Constitution, "We the People." Our system of separation of powers, checks and balances, it may not be perfect, but it's maintained our democracy for nearly 250 years — longer than any other nation in history that's ever tried such a bold experiment. In the past four years, our democracy has held strong. And every day, I've kept my commitment to be president for all Americans through one of the toughest periods in our nation's history."

"The very idea of America was so big, we felt the entire world needed to see — the Statue of Liberty, a gift from France after our Civil War. Like the very idea of America, it was built not by one person but by many people, from every background and from around the world. Like America, the Statue of Liberty is not standing still. Her foot literally steps forward atop a broken chain of human bondage. She's on the march, and she literally moves. She was built to sway back and forth to withstand the fury of stormy weather, to stand the test of time, because storms are always coming. She sways a few inches, but she never falls into the current below — an engineering marvel. The Statue of Liberty is also an enduring symbol of the soul of our nation, a soul shaped by forces that bring us together and by forces that pull us apart. And yet, through good times and tough times, we've withstood it all."

"My fellow Americans, I am speaking to you tonight from the Oval Office. Before I begin, let me speak to important news from earlier today. After eight months of nonstop negotiation, my administration — by my administration, a ceasefire and a hostage deal has been reached by Israel and Hamas, the elements of which I laid out in great detail in May of this year. This plan was developed and negotiated by my team and will be largely implemented by the incoming administration. That's why I told my team to keep the incoming administration fully informed, because that's how it should be: working together as Americans. This will be my final address to you from — the American people from the Oval Office, from this desk as president. And I've been thinking a lot about who we are and, maybe more importantly, who we should be."

"These past few days have been historic, and, you know, it’s in the days ahead that will determine the future of a — this country, and we intend to approach them with strength, wisdom, and resolve."

"As I’ve said, this is a moment of considerable risk and uncertainty, but I also believe this is the best opportunity in generations for Syrians to forge their own future free of opposition. It’s also an opportunity, through far from certain — though it’s far from certain, for a more secure and prosperous Middle East, where our friends are safe, where our enemies are contained. And it would be a waste of this historic opportunity if one tyrant were toppled and only a — only to see a new one rise up in its place. So, it’s now incumbent upon all the opposition groups who seek a role in governing Syria to demonstrate their commitment to the rights of all Syrians, the rule of law, and the protection of religious and ethnic minorities."

"Make no mistake, some of the rebel groups that took down Assad have their own grim record of terrorism and humanit- — human right abuses. We’ve taken note of statements by the leaders of these rebel groups in recent days. And we’re — they’re saying the right things now, but as they take on greater responsibility, we will assess not just their words, but their actions."

"Looking ahead, the United States will do the following: First, we’ll support Syria’s neighbors — including Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq, and Israel — should any threat arise from Syria during this period of transition. I will speak with leaders of the region in the coming days. I had long discussions with all of our people earlier this morning. And I’ll send senior officials from my administration to the region as well. Second, we will help stability — ensure stability in eastern Syria, protecting any personnel — our personnel against any threats. And it will remain — our mission against ISIS will be maintained, including the security of detention facilities where ISIS fighters are being held as prisoners. We’re clear-eyed about the fact that ISIS will try to take advantage of any vacuum to reestablish its capability and to create a safe haven. We will not let that happen."