“I guess it just happens. How many really happy couples do you know?” Arens blew smoke skyward. “Not many. Seems like everybody settles for less than… - Michael P. Kube-McDowell

“I see you’re not quite the moralist, after all.”
“A pragmatist will grow fat while a moralist starves,” Wilkins said.

Peace," Robinson repeated. His head lolled back against the chair until he was looking up into the cabin's rafters. "There's been more fighting about that than almost anything you can name. Do you know, Gregory, there's a very simple reason why peace on earth is a pipe dream. Peace has the disadvantage of freezing the status quo, and there'll always be individuals, groups, nations who find the status quo unacceptable.

Cleaner hands next time, he vowed silently. I’ll let others do the killing the next time. That’s what separates Presidents from mobsters, after all.