Brian Smith

“Empathy, he finally assured me, “will be one of the strongest things about Trump. “When I’m in that position,” he continued, “when we have horrible hurricanes, all kinds of horrible things happen, you’ve got to have empathy.” Trump then returned to watching himself on the flat screen.”
― Mark Leibovich, Thank You For Your Servitude: Donald Trump's Washington and the Price of Submission

“We live in hope—that life will get better, and more importantly that it will go on, that love will survive even though we will not. And between now and then, we are here because we’re here because we’re here because we’re here. I give auld lang syne five stars.”
― John Green, The Anthropocene Reviewed: Essays on a Human-Centered Planet

“football: it might not be enough to just love your job. You had to want to live in the world the job created. Working with people you like, a tribe with a common goal, would make your professional life far happier than any accolade, salary, or a company’s prestige could. You need to do the work you love, at a place and with people you love. You have to feel—Brady repeatedly returned to this word—“appreciated.”
― Seth Wickersham, It's Better to Be Feared: The New England Patriots Dynasty and the Pursuit of Greatness

“Kelly was momentarily stunned. Trump had heard the phrase “Pearl Harbor” and appeared to understand that he was visiting the scene of a historic battle, but he did not seem to know much else. Kelly explained to him that the stealth Japanese attack here had devastated the U.S. Pacific Fleet and prompted the country’s entrance into World War II, eventually leading the United States to drop atom bombs on Japan. If Trump had learned about “a date which will live in infamy” in school, it hadn’t really pierced his consciousness or stuck with him.”
― Philip Rucker, A Very Stable Genius: Donald J. Trump's Testing of America