Political Quotes

“Of course, the United States, you know, we're for democracy. Obviously, the more democratic processes that are put into effect in whatever country, we rejoice in that. That's been the history of our country. We're not trying to dictate to some country how to do its internal affairs. But the more compatible the values, the better it is for the future. We urge as much democratic process as possible in the area and in all areas. So, we just stand as a beacon, we think, for democracy, and we will continue to try to do it. As you know, halfway around the world I was criticized for not standing stronger for democracy in China. I thought I stood very strongly for it. But there's a balance here between expressing your own convictions about your own values and having respect for problems that others have. So, on development, I think the resources are there. And if those resources can be turned to peaceful means, so not only a country that has valued peace--take Kuwait--but it has had to worry about whether it would be aggressed against or whether its neighbors were going to do something. But if we can get this new order out there, then I think the means are there for the development of the entire region. But it isn't going to be done with the barrel of the gun. And you can't say to Saudi Arabia, to Kuwait, ``Hey, trust me, all is well, throw down your arms,'' as long as you have a situation in the Gulf that's unstable.”