Chits knew no ideology.

Presidents are also always storytellers, purveyors of useful national mythologies.

Must, never, must avoid, must guard: the minatory commands came the eleven times (from the departing Eisenhower). In contrast, Kennedy's rhetoric on January 20 with a cascade of permissions: the word "let" rang out 14 times.

What does sincerity mean if it is chosen as deliberate strategy?

Governing is not a hero's profession. It is a profession of compromises.

One of the ladies asked about that awful Bobby Kennedy, and Goldwater responded by speaking about the attorney general with touching affection. (Mary) McGrory recalled how Jack Kennedy behaved at a similar stage in his campaign: spouting statistics, attacking carefully chosen enemies and puffing all the right friends, quoting dead Greeks, never cracking a joke lest he remind the voters how young he was.

Now even reformers needed political machines.

Politics is motion." John Sears

Almost alone among successful politicians, he took slights personally.