To put it mildly, the world is a mess. — Madeleine Albright

We don’t understand enough about the Islam religion and Muslim world. — Madeleine Albright

There are an awful lot of things going on that need understanding and explanation, but–to put it mildly–the world is a mess. — Madeleine Albright

For somebody who loves foreign policy, being Secretary is the best job in the world–but it doesn’t happen twice. — Madeleine Albright

What distinguishes Americans from many people in the world is our kind of endemic optimism. — Madeleine Albright

I was not at all apprehensive about … disease … [it] had no terrors for me. The thing I most feared in the world was hunger. That was something of which I had personal knowledge. — Madeleine Albright

Today, I say that no nation in the world need be left out of the global system we are constructing. — Madeleine Albright

Democracy cannot be built on revenge and you will not have the support of the world if you are intolerant and take the law into your own hands. — Madeleine Albright

I was a little girl in World War II and I’m used to being freed by Americans. — Madeleine Albright

We will not be intimidated or pushed off the world stage by people who do not like what we stand for, and that is, freedom, democracy and the fight against disease, poverty and terrorism. — Madeleine Albright

I am by nature a worried optimist. — Madeleine Albright

The difference between humans and other mammals is that we know how to accessorize. — Madeleine Albright

Armageddon is not a foreign policy. — Madeleine Albright

Hate, emotionalism, and frustration are not policies. — Madeleine Albright

It’s one thing to be religious, but it’s another thing to make religion your policy. — Madeleine Albright

The purpose of foreign policy is to persuade oThers to do what we want or, better yet, to want what we want. — Madeleine Albright

People are finding it harder and harder to relate to foreign policy. — Madeleine Albright

Our predecessors understood that the ties that bind America are far stronger than disagreements over any particular policy and far more durable and profound than any party affiliation. — Madeleine Albright

I think the personal relationships I established mattered in terms of what I was able to get done. And I did bring women’s issues to the center of our foreign policy. — Madeleine Albright

We have the most generous immigration policy, but what is a concern is when illegal immigrants come and undermine a variety of the systems that work in order to make our society function. — Madeleine Albright

The greatest thrill in my life was to represent the United States of America. — Madeleine Albright

Our life comes in segments, and we have to understand that we can have it all if we’re not trying to do it all at once. — Madeleine Albright

Life is grim, and we don’t have to be grim all the time. — Madeleine Albright

I was taught to strive not because there were any guarantees of success but because the act of striving is in itself the only way to keep faith with life. — Madeleine Albright

If you look at my life, generally, I’ve been put in situations which were difficult and which I conquered. — Madeleine Albright

As you go along your own road in life, you will, if you aim high enough, also meet resistance… But no matter how tough the opposition may seem, have courage still and persevere. — Madeleine Albright

I spent my life studying communism and Soviet systems. — Madeleine Albright

I know that war is very cruel and that life is harder when you aren’t able to live in the place you called home. — Madeleine Albright

Freedon succeeds from the moment people stop looking to others to improve their lives and start taking responsibility. — Madeleine Albright

I do not believe that things happen accidentally; I believe you earn them. — Madeleine Albright

I believe that my parents did wonderful things for us. — Madeleine Albright

I don’t actually believe in a clash of civilizations. I believe in a clash of the civilized and the noncivilized. — Madeleine Albright

I think that the Middle East is the largest piece of unfinished business that we all have. I happen to believe in the democratization process. — Madeleine Albright

I really do think about the fact that every day counts. I believe that every individual counts, and so I believe that every day counts and I try not to waste it. — Madeleine Albright

For me, America is really, truly the indispensable nation. — Madeleine Albright

I’ve never seen America as an imperialist or colonialist or meddling country. — Madeleine Albright

If we have to use force, it is because we are America. — Madeleine Albright

If we have to use force, it is because we are America. We are the indispensable nation. We stand tall. We see further into the future. — Madeleine Albright

It’s important that we invest in America–literally. The terrorists wanted to destroy our economy, and we can’t let our system fall apart. We also have to invest in one another. — Madeleine Albright

The magic of America is that we’re a free and open society with a mixed population. Part of our security is our freedom. — Madeleine Albright

For me, being raised in a free America made all the difference. — Madeleine Albright

I saw what happened when a dictator was allowed to take over a piece of a country and the country went down the tubes. And I saw the opposite during the war when America joined the fight. — Madeleine Albright

I loved what I did. I could’ve been secretary of state for ever. — Madeleine Albright

I think the hardest part [is] the priorities. There are an awful lot of things to do [being Secretary of State]. — Madeleine Albright

I loved being Secretary of State, that’s probably evident to everyone who watched me. — Madeleine Albright

Only in America could a refugee girl from Central Europe become secretary of state. — Madeleine Albright

John Kerry knows more about more subjects than an awful lot of people. But I think it’s a very hard job [Secretary of State]. — Madeleine Albright

I consider it my patriotic duty as an ordinary citizen–not as Secretary of State–to ask questions. I think we have to ask ourselves the tough questions. — Madeleine Albright

I never dreamed about one day becoming Secretary of State. It’s not that I was modest; it’s just that I had never seen a Secretary of State in a skirt. — Madeleine Albright

John Kerry] actually stole my line because when I became Secretary of State, I said, ‘I hope my heels will fill Warren Christopher’s shoes.’ So he reversed that. — Madeleine Albright

Us is a very religious country. Separation of church and state is part of our credo, but that it is hard to understand since our money says ‘In God we trust’ and every President says ‘God bless America’. — Madeleine Albright

Every new president inherits headaches, but President Obama has inherited an entire emergency room. — Madeleine Albright

There’s nobody who’s had a resume like [Hillary Clinton] that’s run for president. — Madeleine Albright

Well we’re good friends so I’m a little prejudice, but I think [Hillary Clinton] is incredibly qualified, and better prepared to be president than almost anyone who’s ever run frankly. — Madeleine Albright

I think that a president needs to have a variety of views presented. But also, there has to be a team effort, because otherwise, I think it creates a dissonance and difficulty. — Madeleine Albright

I’m for democracy, but imposing democracy is an oxymoron. People have to choose democracy, and it has to come up from below. — Madeleine Albright

Because of my parents’ love of democracy, we came to America after being driven twice from our home in Czechoslovakia–first by Hitler and then by Stalin. — Madeleine Albright

While democracy in the long run is the most stable form of government, in the short run, it is among the most fragile. — Madeleine Albright

I can’t see democracy occurring by force–after an Iraqi war, because of the fallout from that. — Madeleine Albright

My parents were of the generation who thought they were the children of a free Czechoslovakia, the only democracy in central Europe. — Madeleine Albright

The system he (President Hosni Mubarak) is recommending would make it virtually impossible for truly independent parties to participate. Sham democracy should be exposed for what it truly is. — Madeleine Albright