Samantha Power

“Being an occupier is not good for anybody's global standing. It is a catalyst for terrorist recruitment.”

“The U.N. brings everybody together. And without it, we can't deal with Ebola or terrorism or climate change. But it's 70 years old. It's tired. It's acquired a lot of bad habits. And often it feels like only new bad habits get added and old bad habits don't get taken away.”

“Whatever its flaws, the United Nations is still the only institution that brings together all the countries of the world. And it is the best forum for the United States to spur countries to act - and to hold them accountable when they don't.”

“Half of Syria's refugees are children, and we know what can happen to children who grow to adulthood without hope or opportunity in refugee camps. The camps become fertile recruiting grounds for violent extremists.”

“In the absence of full-fledged Congressional investigations, American policymakers rarely look back. They are bound by continuity and fealty across administrations and generations.”

“I believe the United States is the greatest country on Earth. I really do.”

“Throughout history, when societies face tough economic times, we have seen democratic reforms deferred, decreased trust in government, persecution of minority groups, and a general shrinking of the democratic space.”

“Some anti-Americanism derives simply from our being a colossus that bestrides the earth. But much anti-Americanism derives from the role U.S. political, economic and military power has played in denying such freedoms to others.”

“Democracies are expense-averse and they think in terms of short-term, political interests rather than a long-term interest in stability.”

“Citizens victimized by genocide or abandoned by the international community do not make good neighbors, as their thirst for vengeance, their irredentism and their acceptance of violence as a means of generating change can turn them into future threats.”

“Since 9/11, there has been a huge leap in people wanting to get personally involved in public service and international affairs.”

“If there are no consequences now for breaking the prohibition on chemical weapons, it will be harder to muster an international consensus to ensure that Hezbollah and other terrorist groups are prevented from acquiring or using these weapons themselves.”

“Americans have long trusted the views of Democrats on the environment, the economy, education, and health care, but national security is the one matter about which Republicans have maintained what political scientists call 'issue ownership.'”

“Don't take for granted that the worthiness of your cause will win you allies; bring it down to a scale that people can relate to.”

“Countries that intervene militarily rarely do so out of pure altruism.”

“There are young idealists all around the world falling in love with the Yankees now and realists who are gravitating to the Red Sox. I think the universe is on its head.”

“India is at the vanguard of figuring out how to exploit technology and innovation on behalf of democratic accountability.”

“Zimbabweans are severely malnourished, and deaths from starvation occur even in the cities. The country has not yet suffered nationwide famine only because international donors have stepped in.”

“My style in diplomacy is my style as a human being - I'm very direct and very honest.”

“Foreign policy is an explicitly amoral enterprise.”