Burwell Quotes & Sayings

In an age when stagecraft, gauzy themes, and sound-bites have too often been substituted for leadership, Bill Clinton as a candidate made it essential to campaigning to take the specifics of governance seriously. Practical solutions were 'in;' ideology was 'out.' — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

Learning how to improvise really awakened my interest in music. — Carter Burwell

'Putting People First' was progressivism revived and at its best. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

Banks can't recoup the costs of serving customers who save in small amounts and transact frequently. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

While we've made progress with our numbers, this will be a harder-to-reach group, and we have less money to do it ... Many people don't know or understand about the tax credit that they can receive. And so affordability is a barrier. We know that a disproportionate number of those who are still uninsured are young. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

I think being a little nuts is helpful. — Carter Burwell

Certainly there was the Affordable Care Act part, then unaccompanied children [there has been a surge of children entering the country illegally and without parents, particularly in Texas], and things like, we find smallpox in an NIH lab, after 50 years? Why didn't you find it, like, five weeks ago or three years ago? There was thing after thing. But the big ones were [dealing with] the Ebola [outbreak], the unaccompanied children. [It was] perhaps a bigger challenge than I had calculated on my yellow pad as I was thinking about this role. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

The flow of Guiness into the studio was inspirational as well as nutritive. — Carter Burwell

Savings is an important tool because it can help the poor deal with the ups and downs of irregular earnings and help them build reserves for a rainy day. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

Technologies, including cell phones, have the potential to help millions of poor people out of poverty by enabling access to a range of safe, affordable financial services - most importantly, savings accounts - that have long been out of reach. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

Big Sur is at the end of the continent. It attracts really crazy people. — Carter Burwell

Any film which views the darker side of life, which is death with a sense of humor, is very much to my taste. — Carter Burwell

Somewhere in Rwanda, a rural farmer is dreaming of providing an education for her children. Not just high school, but maybe even a university degree. Such a dream used to seem out of reach. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

Health care costs are an issue both for the government and for our larger economy. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

There are so many local nonprofits making a positive impact every day, and yet, oftentimes we don't hear enough about them or their needs. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

I almost never try to make the audience comfortable. I wouldn't want that if I were in the audience. — Carter Burwell

Paul [ Burwell] and I had also got interested in making books. We'd been working with Bob Cobbing, the sound poet, since the beginning of the 70s, and Bob had this press called Writers Forum. — David Toop

I write music to please myself. Hopefully the director's enjoying it too. — Carter Burwell

Certainly it is much easier to think about negotiating and having deals when there is a singular represented point of view. That pretty much is a given. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

Most films I work on, the people making the film are constantly second-guessing the executives of the studio, the producer, and the audience. It is very hard to accomplish anything in that situation. — Carter Burwell

I have been fortunate to work in places where people have a passion for their work. At HHS the passion sort of exceeds passion - it's a vocation ... I obviously knew that there were certainly some challenges that I would be taking on both with the work and the politics. [But] I probably did not have the right expectation level with regard to the number and volume of crises that would occur. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

I like the fact that New York looks a bit backwards, toward the Old World, rather than resolutely forwards. — Carter Burwell

I don't generally find myself listening to the music of a film unless there's something awfully wrong with it. — Carter Burwell

One in six people in the U.S. at some point each year don't know where their next meal will come from. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

On Being John Malkovich and the cinema of the absurd, I do enjoy it. I wish there were more like it. The very fact that there can't be more like it is one of the reasons it's admirable. — Carter Burwell

All my music is very simple in that melody is usually clearly stated. — Carter Burwell

In mainstream romantic comedies, I'm usually tearing my hair out. It's just a devastatingly difficult genre for me. — Carter Burwell

While natural disasters capture headlines and national attention short-term, the work of recovery and rebuilding is long-term. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

I think I've only done one horror movie, Psycho III. That was a walk in the park compared to a romantic comedy. — Carter Burwell

At that time, 73 and 74, I became aware that there were a number of us making instruments. Max Eastley was a good friend and he was making instruments, Paul Burwell and I were making instruments, Evan Parker was making instruments, and we knew Hugh Davies, who was a real pioneer of these amplified instruments. — David Toop

I would like to do a science fiction film some day. Star Wars seems really to have destroyed the genre, which at one time offered great musical opportunities. — Carter Burwell

Day after day, ordinary people become heroes through extraordinary and selfless actions to help their neighbors. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

I don't find myself lobbying for projects. Filmmakers almost always come to me. — Carter Burwell

Music is the subliminal connecting adhesive in film, or at least in narrative feature films. — Carter Burwell

Connection is what one is after in probably most media, but certainly in film, which is an immersive medium. — Carter Burwell

First of all, women inherently, I think, are quite capable of having lots of balls in the air. And so, like, it's all those skills you use; you analyze the problem, figure out your tools, and then go at it piece by piece ... It's like what you have to do in the morning to get your kids out the door [if you're a parent]. The skills are, I believe, the same. The patience issues are the same. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

Job training empowers people to realize their dreams and improve their lives. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

So we want to make it easier to shop and understand products because many people aren't educated about what's offered - do you know your premiums? Do you know your copays? Do you know your deductibles? And so figuring out ways that we help people understand what this is, how it works, and that they can shop to get what they need. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

Walmart is committed to fighting hunger in America every day. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

How does my music connect to an audience? That is just a complete mystery to me. — Carter Burwell

I had to sign the paper to shut down the government. It's terrible ... [But] what the shutdown showed many, many people is the importance of the role of government. And as frustrated [as people get with] Washington, there are so many things [the government does] that are so important to people's lives every day. The panda cam, paying small businesses their loans - these are all things that shut down. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

Medical attention and emotional support can be difficult to obtain for those in need, yet both are essential to nurturing healthy futures year round and especially during the holiday season. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

Los Angeles is an industry town, and it has great facilities and personnel. The disadvantage is that everyone there seems to talk about the same subject matter. — Carter Burwell

Across the globe, regardless of nationality or financial status, there is a common dream every mother has for her children - for them to live full, healthy and productive lives. As a mother, I share that dream for my children. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

Performing written music, even when I've written it, is not very interesting to me. — Carter Burwell

My mother at the age of 65 decided she was going to run for mayor. She had never run for public office, and she decided she wanted to try and do some things for the community. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

We owe an enormous debt of gratitude to those who serve or have served in our country's military, as well as to the families of those individuals. Whether protecting our freedoms in foreign fields or making contributions here at home, the value these men and women bring to the American workforce and our way of life is beyond measure. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

Empowering small farmers to increase productivity, improve crop quality and access reliable markets is critical to addressing global hunger and poverty. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

When nonprofits, companies and consumers work together, we believe we can make long term, positive change for the millions of people in America who struggle with hunger. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

John Barry was my hero when I was about 13. His scores to the James Bond movies were the scores of my life back then. — Carter Burwell

No innovation in the past 200 years has done more to save lives and improve health than the sanitation revolution triggered by invention of the toilet. But it did not go far enough. It only reached one-third of the world. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

I kind of have never thought about a career path, which is an unusual approach. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

To get the most from agricultural resources, poor farmers' needs must come first, guiding investment strategies and forming the yardstick for gauging results. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

The jarring change going from an urban environment to an extremely remote natural environment is extremely inspiring. It's constantly stimulating, it's like a slap in the face. — Carter Burwell

New Yorkers may think they're on some cutting edge, but that's not especially true. It is, however, the most exciting heterogeneous mess of a town I've ever seen. — Carter Burwell

Legislation is about three fundamental things - affordability, access, and quality. That's what the American people want. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

There is not much irony when people are being happy on screen. — Carter Burwell

I just love the sheer mess of New York. — Carter Burwell

A carefree quality is a whole aspect of life that I will never understand. I don't think I have ever been carefree and can't see the pleasure of it. — Carter Burwell

Where the federal government and the taxpayer has had funds misused, we need to use the full extent of the law to get those funds back for the taxpayer. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

My mom didn't run for mayor until she was 65 years old - it was like a second and third career ... The way I've always thought about it is that I don't believe you run for office because you want a job. I believe if you run for office, it's because you have a vision for change. And if I ever came to that point, that's what would lead [me to run]. And right now I'm happily in a position where I believe I can work to deliver impact and work for change. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

I have always loved Scottish music - all sorts of Celtic, Gaelic music. — Carter Burwell

John Barry was the first film composer I was aware of. As a teenager I owned several of his Bond soundtracks. — Carter Burwell

Big meetings and big talk are not enough in a world that is hungry for change. Big action - world leaders keeping their promises, and developing countries committing resources while listening ardently to the voice of the small farmer - is needed to bring big results and prosperity to the world's poor. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

Walmart's Global Women's Economic Empowerment Initiative is working to create opportunity and empower women and girls in markets around the world. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

Can we have a conversation about the substance? That's what I welcome. We're happy to have those conversations if there are places where people think there can be improvements. We want competition in the system, so let's talk about that. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

In Mexico, a network of government-operated rural convenience stores is offering banking services to rural communities. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

Even if I went off to some other career, I hope I would still be doing Coen films. — Carter Burwell

When the systems we expect to help us actually hurt us, we have tragedy. — Carter Burwell

At Walmart, we recognize the need to support the development of our nation's youth. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

If not bliss, ignorance can at least be fun. — Carter Burwell

I don't personally see my work as being dark. What interests me is a balance between light and dark. — Carter Burwell

I prefer a life in which we don't take ourselves too seriously. — Carter Burwell

I had piano lessons when I was a kid, like most people. And hated them, like most people. And quit, like most people. — Carter Burwell

In one month, the Small Business Administration does $1 billion of loans and guarantees for businesses; many of those are women-owned businesses. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

I'm one of those people who is actually inspired by a deadline. I might not sleep for many days on end, it may not be good for my health, but it definitely helps. — Carter Burwell

If someone suddenly lost their director the day before shooting and wanted me to step in, I'd be willing to. But I'd do brain surgery the same way. I'm always up for something new. — Carter Burwell

Death is always around the corner, but often our society gives it inordinate help. — Carter Burwell

When you give the American people the tools to make the right choices for themselves, they're going to do that. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

I like business and personal life to be distinct. — Carter Burwell

We know there are states, like Alaska, where there are not a lot of providers. How do we work on issues like that? How do we work on making sure that the small-business part of this works better? ... And if people have [alternate] plans, let's compare them and see. Access, affordability, and quality - that's what this is about. [But] "repeal" is a symbol of something that I don't think is connected to the substance of what's happening. Do you want to take away care from people who have preexisting conditions? [Repeal] takes you backward. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell

Hopefully each film can be given a musical voice of its own, which is not to say that the instrumentation is always unique, but that the relationship between the sound and the image is unique. — Carter Burwell

Conducting, I tried it once off the cuff, and quickly realized there were subtle aspects that I was missing. There is a lot more to it that I was able to grasp simply by watching conductors. — Carter Burwell

Carefully execute every instruction given to you by the director, producer, and studio. But that would be a life not worth living. — Carter Burwell

As a global community, we must ensure that legitimate concerns about liability do not hold back the possibility of developing an Ebola vaccine, an essential strategy in our global response to the Ebola epidemic in West Africa. — Sylvia Mathews Burwell