Over the years, I have seen too many politicians ruin their careers because they could not accept defeat graciously. - Jean Chrétien

A leader has to know how the system functions - not just the system of government but the whole social and economic system, including business, the unions, and the universities.

Everybody has the right to speak up in a democracy. We would be in trouble as a society if there wasn't a constant pressure to make reforms and to be just. Sometimes as prime minister, when I was caught up in a really loud demonstration, I used to say to myself that I deserved it because of all the demonstrations I myself had organized as a student against Duplessis.

There's no such thing as a genius in politics, or at least I have never met one. There are only human beings, some better than others, who rise or fall on the challenges they meet.