Rodham Quotes & Sayings

in December 2009, the Castros created new problems by arresting a USAID contractor named Alan Gross for bringing computer equipment to the small, aging Jewish community in Havana. Cuban authorities subjected him to a rump trial and then sentenced him to fifteen years in prison. One of my regrets as Secretary was our failure to bring Alan home. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Life is too short to dwell on what might have been. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

I feel so relieved to be at the stage I'm at in my life right now, Jill, because if I want to wear my glasses, I'm wearing my glasses. If I want to pull my hair back, I'm pulling my hair back. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Probably my worst quality is that I get very passionate about what I think is right. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

The basic fact of the drug war was that the cartels were fighting one another for the right to export narcotics to the United States. An estimated 90 percent of all the drugs used in America flowed through Mexico, and roughly 90 percent of the weapons used by the cartels came from the United States. (The ban on assault weapons that Bill signed in 1994 expired ten years later and was not renewed, opening the door to increased arms trafficking across the border.) It was hard to look at these facts and not conclude that America shared responsibility for helping Mexico stop the violence. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Football coaches meet midfield after a game, but they don't always hug — Hillary Rodham Clinton

A major goal of our strategy in Asia was to promote political reform as well as economic growth. We wanted to make the 21st century a time in which people across Asia become not only more prosperous but also more free. And more freedom would, I was confident, spur greater prosperity. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

This needs to work on that level, but it has the additional strain of it's going to be profoundly scrutinized by political junkies from the right and the left who will pick apart every little thing. We are inherently dramatizing Hillary Rodham, or Hillary Clinton, who's a very famous figure. There's a lot of biographies about her, but there's also elements that are private moments, that are dramatized with an arc, and we have to take creative license. Everything is sort of a cost-benefit. — James Ponsoldt

When you stumble, keep faith. And when you're knocked down, get right back up and never listen to anyone who says you can't or shouldn't go on. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Fail to plan, plan to fail. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

The more both sides follow the example of those intrepid early diplomats to bridge the gaps in understanding and interests, the better chance we will have of making progress. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

One thing we know for sure is that change is certain. Progress is not. Progress depends on the choices we make today for tomorrow and on whether we meet our challenges and protect our values. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

As Secretary of State I had the chance to make the world a little safer and life a little better for children in America and across the globe, including in China. I viewed it as the opportunity and the responsibility of a lifetime. That — Hillary Rodham Clinton

We should remember that just as a positive outlook on life can promote good health, so can everyday acts of kindness. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

[On Hillary Rodham Clinton:] She always looks so adorable, and she's intrepid; she's the biggest bargain America ever got, bigger than that Louisiana Purchase from my French friends. — Jackie Kennedy

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is the most influential woman in Washington - for what she has accomplished and for what she may yet do: win the presidency. — Ron Fournier

Came to deeply regret giving President Bush the benefit of the doubt on that vote. He later asserted that the resolution gave him the sole authority to decide when the clock had run out on weapons inspections. On March 20, 2003, he decided that it had, and he launched the war, with the UN weapons inspectors pleading for just a few more weeks to finish the job. Over the years that followed, many Senators came to wish they had voted against the resolution. I was one of them. As the war dragged on, with every letter I sent to a family in New York who had lost a son or daughter, a father or mother, my mistake became more painful. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

If we only stopped to listen to them for a few minutes, kids could tell us that we move too fast, for their good and ours. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

We both had wanted to see a Mark Rothko exhibit at the Yale Art Gallery but, because of a labor dispute, some of the university's buildings, including the museum, were closed. As Bill and I walked by, he decided he could get us in if we offered to pick up the litter that had accumulated in the gallery's courtyard. Watching him talk our way in was the first time I saw his persuasiveness in action. We had the entire museum to ourselves. We wandered through the galleries talking about Rothko and twentieth-century art. I admit to being surprised at his interest in and knowledge of subjects that seemed, at first, unusual for a Viking from Arkansas. We ended up in the museum's courtyard, where I sat in the large lap of Henry Moore's sculpture Drape Seated Woman while we talked until dark. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

We are, all of us, exploring a world none of us understands ... searching for a more immediate, ecstatic, and penetrating mode of living ... for the integrity, the courage to be whole, living in relation to one another in the full poetry of existence. The struggle for an integrated life existing in an atmosphere of communal trust and respect is one with desperately important political and social consequences ... Fear is always with us, but we just don't have time for it.
-Commencement Speech, Wellesley 1969 — Hillary Rodham Clinton

It seemed hard to believe that human beings could be capable of such cruelty, and in the name of God. Sickened — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Don't confuse having a career with having a life. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

I went on the road with Hillary Rodham Clinton when she was out campaigning. — Casey Wilson

Knowing what to expect next gives children a sense of security. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

While there are few problems in today's world that the United States can solve alone, there are even fewer that can be solved without the United States. Everything that I have done and seen has convinced me that America remains the indispensable nation. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

First, we parents have to back up school authority and quit making excuses for our kids when they misbehave. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

We just can't trust the American people to make those types of choices ... Government has to make those choices for people. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

On Jackie Kennedy's historic tour of India and Pakistan in 1962, she was photographed wearing sleeveless shifts and knee-length skirts - not to mention a midriff-baring sari that caused an international sensation. Public opinion seemed to have grown more conservative in South Asia since then. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

If I want to knock a story off the front page, I just change my hairstyle. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

For me, smart power meant choosing the right combination of tools - diplomatic, economic, military, political, legal, and cultural - for each situation. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

The nomination of Richard Nixon cemented the ascendance of a conservative over a moderate ideology within the Republican Party, a dominance that has only grown more pronounced over the years as the party has continued its move to the right and moderates have dwindled in numbers and influence. I sometimes think that I didn't leave the Republican Party as much as it left me. I — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Hillary Rodham Clinton was America's chief diplomat. So let's look around at the violence and danger in our world today in every region of the world that has been infected with her flawed judgment. — Chris Christie

When you are in a common boat, cross the river peacefully together. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Too many women
in too many countries
speak the same language,
of silence ... — Hillary Rodham Clinton

One reason I continue to oppose efforts to criminalize abortion is that I do not believe any government should have the power to dictate, through law or police action, a woman's most personal decisions."

"I consider that a slippery slope to state control of reproduction, and I'd witnessed the consequences of such control in China and Communist Romania. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

In this world and the world of tomorrow, we must go forward together or not at all. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

What did you do with the time and talents i gave you? God's question ... — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Learn to take criticism seriously but not personally. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

It was another example of a phenomenon I call "the talking dog syndrome." Some people are still amazed that any woman (this includes Governors' wives, corporate CEOs, sports stars and rock singers) can hold her own under pressure and be articulate and knowledgeable. The dog can talk! — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Same-sex couples should have equal rights to full benefits both state and federal level. I support repealing Don't Ask, Don't Tell because it hasn't worked and military should based on conduct not your sexual orientation — Hillary Rodham Clinton

He reminded me to focus on the "trendlines," not just the headlines, and to relish the experiences. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Remembered what Dai Bingguo had said to me when he pulled out the photograph of his granddaughter: "This is what we're in it for." It — Hillary Rodham Clinton

My grandmother from Iowa, she is dancing in Heaven at the prospect that the next president of the United States is going to be Hillary Rodham Clinton. — Cory Booker

Polls show that Americans significantly overestimate the percentage of the federal budget allocated to foreign aid. In November 2013, a Kaiser Family Foundation survey found that, on average, Americans believe that 28 percent of the federal budget is spent on foreign assistance, and more than 60 percent of people say that's too much. But in reality we spend less than 1 percent of the budget on foreign aid. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

The very richest Americans - the top one-tenth of 1 percent - now have nearly as much wealth as the bottom 90 percent. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

With the birth of the Internet, Clinton's critics began chronicling his
scandals - which were entirely ignored by the reliable mainstream press -
and even came up with a colorful term to describe the untidy truth that an
inordinate number of those connected to Bill or his wife, Hilary Rodham
Clinton, had met unnatural deaths - the Clinton Body Count. — Donald Jeffries

Afterward Joe Biden greeted me outside the green room, falling on bent knee to kiss my hand. (Who says chivalry is dead!) — Hillary Rodham Clinton

The best missile defence system of all would be a just and lasting peace. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

It takes women to bring men to their senses — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Way back in 1755 Benjamin Franklin wrote, "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety." With — Hillary Rodham Clinton

But diplomacy would be easy if we had to talk only to our friends. That's not how peace is made. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

In the bible it says you have to forgive seventy times seven. I want you all to know, I'm keeping a chart. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

For everyone here in Ohio and across America who's been ever been counted out but refused to be knocked out, for everyone who has stumbled but stood right back up, and for everyone who works hard and never gives up
this one is for you. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

One thing that has never been a hard choice for me is serving our country. It has been the greatest honor of my life. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

I have met thousands and thousands of pro-choice men and women. I have never met anyone who is pro-abortion. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Women have always been the primary victims of war. Women lose their husbands, their fathers, their sons in combat. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Hillary Rodham Clinton will bring a permanent darkness of deceit and despair forced upon the American people to endure. — Wayne LaPierre

Of all the thousands of gifts I received in my eight years in the White House, few were more welcome and needed than these twelve intangible gifts of discernment, peace, compassion, faith, fellowship, vision, forgiveness, grace, wisdom, love, joy and courage. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

As Secretary of State I thought of our choices and challenges in three categories: The problems we inherited, including two wars and a global financial crisis; the new, often unexpected events and emerging threats, from the shifting sands of the Middle East to the turbulent waters of the Pacific to the uncharted terrain of cyberspace; and the opportunities presented by an increasingly networked world that could help lay the foundation for — Hillary Rodham Clinton

We need to understand that there is no formula for how women should lead their lives. that is why we must respect the choices that each woman makes for herself and her family. Every woman deserves the chance to realize her God-given potential. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton is now facing a kind of personal dilemma. She can't decide whether to drop the name Clinton from her name, or drop the name Rodham. They can't figure out which one is more embarrassing. — Jay Leno

Fear is always with us, but we just don't have time for it. Not now. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Nothing will motivate conservative evangelical Christians to vote Republican in the 2008 presidential election more than a Democratic nominee named Hillary Rodham Clinton - not even a run by the devil himself ... I certainly hope that Hillary is the candidate. She has $300 million so far. But I hope she's the candidate. Because nothing will energize my [constituency] like Hillary Clinton. If Lucifer ran, he wouldn't. — Jerry Falwell

You Can't Keep Wild Animal In Your Back Yard And Expect It To Go only After Your Neighbor. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

I have a lifetime of experience that I will bring to the White House. I know Senator McCain has a lifetime of experience that he will bring to the White House. And Senator Obama has a speech he gave in 2002. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Although we weren't able to shatter that highest, hardest glass ceiling this time, thanks to you, it's got about 18 million cracks in it. And the light is shining through like never before, filling us all with the hope and the sure knowledge that the path will be a little easier next time. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Because TPP negotiations are still ongoing, it makes sense to reserve judgment until we can evaluate the final proposed agreement. It — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Like it or not, women are always subject to criticism if they show too much feeling in public. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Our politics have become paralyzed and sometimes poisonous. Instead of protecting Americans' fundamental right to vote, the Supreme Court has protected corporations' right to buy elections. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Income and wealth inequality in America today has reached levels not seen since the 1920s. Corporate — Hillary Rodham Clinton

When Putin was preparing to take back the presidency in Moscow, he published an essay in the fall of 2011 in a Russian newspaper announcing plans to regain lost influence among former Soviet republics and create "a powerful supra-national union capable of becoming a pole in the modern world." Putin said that this new Eurasian Union would "change the geopolitical and geo-economic configuration of the entire continent." Some dismissed these words as campaign bluster, but I thought they revealed Putin's true agenda, which was effectively to "re-Sovietize" Russia's periphery. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

As much as I might have wanted to, I could never change my vote on Iraq. But I could try to help us learn the right lessons from that war and apply them to Afghanistan and other challenges where we had fundamental security interests. I was determined to do exactly that when facing future hard choices, with more experience, wisdom, skepticism, and humility. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Forward-thinking teachers and school administrators across the country are creating a whole range of alternatives to cookie-cutter teaching and evaluation methods, such as the use of student portfolios and exhibitions in addition to conventional exams to assess students' progress. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Let there be learning, even under the shade of trees. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Gay people are born into, and belong to, every society in the world. They are all ages, all races, all faiths. They are doctors and teachers, farmers and bankers, soldiers and athletes. And whether we know it or whether we acknowledge it, they are our family, our friends, and our neighbors. Being gay is not a Western invention. It is a human reality. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

The contradictions within Pakistan became still more apparent at my next event, a luncheon hosted in my honor by Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto and attended by several dozen accomplished women in Pakistan. It was like being rocketed forward several centuries in time. Among these women were academics and activists, as well as a pilot, a singer, a banker and a police deputy superintendent. They had their own ambitions and careers, and, of course, we were all guests of Pakistan's elected female leader. Benazir — Hillary Rodham Clinton

. . .standards are for: They establish what children should know, not how they are taught or measured. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

The picture of Chelsea and me that flashed around the world showed a happy mother-daughter team perched on our pachyderm and watching a rare Asian rhino. Later, when we got back to Washington, James Carville remarked: "Don't you just love it? You spent two years trying to get people better health care and they tried to kill you. You and Chelsea rode an elephant, and they loved you! — Hillary Rodham Clinton

All of us face hard choices in our lives. Some face more than their share. We have to decide how to balance the demands of work and family. Caring for a sick child or an aging parent. Figuring out how to pay for college. Finding a good job, and what to do if you lose it. Whether to get married - or stay married. How to give our kids the opportunities they dream about and deserve. Life is about making such choices. Our choices and how we handle them shape the people we become. For leaders and nations, they can mean the difference between war and peace, poverty and prosperity. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

I'm not going to have some reporters pawing through our papers. We are the president. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

When your President asks you to serve, you should say yes. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Parenthood has the power to redefine every aspect of life - marriage, work, relationships with family and friends. Those helpless bundles of power and promise that come into our world show us our true selves- who we are, who we are not, who we wish we could be. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Every child needs a champion. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

This, I thought, is why Bill and I had worked so hard for so many years to help build a better world - so Chelsea could grow up safe and happy and one day have a family of her own, and so every other child would have the same chance. I — Hillary Rodham Clinton

The coldest peace is better than the warmest war. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

It was concern for the welfare of children that got me into public service in the first place. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

I'm often asked how I take the criticism directed my way. I have three answers: First, if you choose to be in public life, remember Eleanor Roosevelt's advice and grow skin as thick as a rhinoceros. Second, learn to take criticism seriously but not personally. Your critics can actually teach you lessons your friends can't or won't. I try to sort out the motivation for criticism, whether partisan, ideological, commercial, or sexist, analyze it to see what I might learn from it, and discard the rest. Third, there is a persistent double standard applied to women in politics - regarding clothes, body types, and of course hairstyles - that you can't let derail you. Smile and keep going. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

You can't keep snakes in your backyard and expect them only to bite your neighbors. You know, eventually those snakes are going to turn on whoever has them in the backyard. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Faith is like stepping off a cliff and expecting one of two outcomes- you will either land on solid ground or you will be taught to fly. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

It took a Clinton to clean up after the first Bush, it may take another Clinton to clean up after the second one — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Our defense of universal human rights is one of America's greatest sources of strength. The image of Chen, blind and injured, seeking through that dangerous night for the one place he knew stood for freedom and opportunity - the embassy of the United States - reminds us of our responsibility to make sure our country remains the beacon for dissidents and dreamers all over the world. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

I had known Mubarak and his wife, Suzanne, for nearly twenty years. He was a career Air Force officer who had risen through the ranks to become Vice President under Anwar Sadat, the Egyptian ruler who fought the Yom Kippur War with Israel in 1973 and later signed the Camp David Accords. Mubarak was injured in the extremist attack that assassinated Sadat in 1981, but he survived, became President, and cracked down hard on Islamists and other dissidents. He ruled Egypt like a pharaoh with nearly absolute power for the next three decades. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Take criticism seriously, but not personally. If there is truth or merit in the criticism, try to learn from it. Otherwise, let it roll right off you. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

I suspect unconscious bias has been far more of a factor for President Obama than overt racism and will also be a challenge for Hillary Rodham Clinton if she runs for president again. — Nicholas Kristof

I'm sick and tired of people who say that if you debate and disagree with this administration, somehow you're not patriotic. We need to stand up and say we're Americans, and we have the right to debate and disagree with any administration. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

What difference does it really make? — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Since the Justice Department refuses to allow you to render a verdict, I'm going to present the case now, on the facts, against Hillary Rodham Clinton. — Chris Christie

As a former federal prosecutor, I welcome the opportunity to hold Hillary Rodham Clinton accountable for her performance and her character. — Chris Christie

Another argument I wanted to rebut was that democracy is a privilege belonging to wealthy countries and that developing economies need to put growth first and worry about democracy later. — Hillary Rodham Clinton

My husband is not the secretary of state, I am. — Hillary Rodham Clinton