James Mattis Quotes
- All Quotes
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The most important 6 inches on the battlefield is between your ears.
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The example that America knows how to govern itself is one of the compelling aspects of our national security.
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It's a lot of fun to fight.
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In an interconnected age when opportunistic adversaries can work in tandem to destroy stability and prosperity, our country needs to regain its strategic footing. We need to bring the clarity to our efforts before we lose the confidence of the American people and the support of potential allies.
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No matter how bad any situation, cynicism has no positive impact. Watching the news, you might notice that cynicism and victimhood often seem to go hand-in-hand, but not for veterans.
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The Iranian regime, in my mind, is the single most enduring threat to stability and peace in the Middle East.
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It is not scientifically possible to accurately predict the outcome of an action. To suggest otherwise runs contrary to historical experience and the nature of war.
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In my line of work, the enemy gets a vote.
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I believe that many of my young guys lived because I didn't waste their lives because I didn't have the vision in my mind of how to destroy the enemy at least cost to our guys and to the innocents on the battlefields.
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I've always found, give me a pack of cigarettes and a couple of beers, and I do better with that than I do with torture.
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No one gives a damn what Iran thinks on any significant issue. The only reason Iran is at the big boys' table is because of their nuclear weapons program.
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For the mission's sake, for our country's sake, and the sake of the men who carried the Division's colors in past battles - carry out your mission and keep your honor clean.
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I've lived a very colorful life, and I've said some things, But not once have I taken them back, and I've never apologized for them - and I won't.
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I have never been bewildered for long in any fight with our enemies - I was Armed with Insight.
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What is the one country in the Middle East that has not been attacked by ISIS? One. That is Iran. That is more than happenstance, I'm sure.
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So long as our Corps fields such Marines, America has nothing to fear from tyrants, be they Fascists, Communists or Tyrants with Medieval Ideology. For we serve in a Corps with no institutional confusion about our purpose: To fight! To fight well!
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What we achieved was a nuclear pause, not a nuclear halt.
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By reading, you learn through others' experiences, generally, a better way to do business, especially in our line of work where the consequences of incompetence are so final for young men.
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Ultimately, a real understanding of history means that we face nothing new under the sun.
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We know that in tough times, cynicism is just another way to give up, and in the military, we consider cynicism or giving up simply as forms of cowardice.
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Some people feel affronted when something they thought to be true doesn't happen. If that's the case, then your sense of risk is much higher, and that leads to risk aversion. You need to be able to be comfortable in uncertainty.
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There is only one 'retirement plan' for terrorists.
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Don't create more enemies than you take out by some immoral act.
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The Corps is in good hands, and it's been a privilege to serve with the Leathernecks. Now it's time to go.