The Contenders
[DT] “We need strong borders. We need a wall.…The king of building buildings, the king of building walls—none of them can build them like Donald Trump.”—Conservative Political Action Conference, February 27, 2015
[HRC] “Our commander in chief has to be able to defend our country, not embarrass it.…Engage our allies, not alienate them, defeat our adversaries—not embolden them. When we hear a candidate for president call for rounding up twelve million immigrants, banning all Muslims from entering [the] United States, when he embraces torture, that doesn’t make him strong—it makes him wrong.”—speech following electoral victories in Ohio and Florida, West Palm Beach, Florida, March 15, 2016
[DT] “I think we’ll win it because I think people will see I’m much more competent than she is. I think I’m much smarter than she is. I think I’m much more competent than she is, and I think she’s been very weak. I’ve said it before, I don’t think she has the strength or the stamina to be a good president.”—interview on Bloomberg’s With All Due Respect, March 23, 2016
[HRC] “I can take care of myself. What I’m concerned about is how he goes after everybody else. He goes after women. He goes after Muslims. He goes after immigrants. He goes after people with disabilities.”—interview on ABC’s This Week, April 17 2016
[DT] “She doesn’t have strength. She doesn’t have the stamina.…She talks about defeat our enemies. Well, where has she been for the last year? We can’t even beat ISIS. She’s not defeating our enemy. She wouldn’t know how to defeat the enemy.…I think she’s an embarrassment.”—interview on CNN, March 16, 2016
[HRC] “If I get a good balance—tree or whatever—I’m a happy camper. If I have a good warrior pose that I’m really holding and looking incredibly strong? [here she holds out her arms to the side, showing the top half of Warrior Two] I’m happy. I’m not good at it [yoga] and would never pretend that I was, but I find it really restorative and helpful to keep my energy and flexibility going.”—interview with New York magazine, May 30, 2016
[DT] “Let me tell you something about the rich. They have a very low threshold for pain.”—New York magazine, February 11, 1985
[DT] “I win, always. Better knock on wood.” [Knocks on his desk.]—interview with The New York Times, April 19, 2016
[HRC] “I choose my cards. I play them to the best of my ability. Move on to the next hand.”—The New York Times, November 10, 2012
[DT] “People want to believe that something is the biggest and the greatest and the most spectacular. I call it truthful hyperbole.”—The Art of the Deal, Random House, 1987
[HRC] “We cannot let him [Trump] roll the dice with America.”—speech on foreign policy, San Diego, California, June 2, 2016
[DT] “I sometimes use flash, which is a level below glitz.”—The New Yorker, May 19, 1997
[HRC] “I’m taking dominoes to the White House.”—campaign stop, East Harlem, New York, April 15, 2016
[DT] “The Oval Office would be an amazing place to negotiate. It would command immediate respect from the other side, immediate understanding about the nation’s priorities.”—interview with The New York Times, April 30, 2016
[HRC] “This is not someone who should ever have the nuclear codes, because it’s not hard to imagine Donald Trump leading us into a war just because somebody got under his very thin skin.”—speech on foreign policy, San Diego, California, June 2, 2016
[DT] “Well first of all, I don’t have thin skin. I have very strong, very thick skin. And when somebody’s right about me, I always—if you do a report and it’s not necessarily positive, but you’re right, I never do complain. I do complain when it’s a lie.”—interview on CNN, June 5, 2016
[DT] “I mean, people were writing, ‘How are Mr. Trump’s hands?’ My hands are fine. My hands are normal. Slightly large, actually. In fact, I buy a slightly smaller than large-size glove, okay? But I did this because everybody was saying to me, ‘Oh, your hands are very nice, they’re normal.’”—interview with The Washington Post, March 21, 2016
[HRC] “We need steady hands, not a president who says he’s neutral on Monday, pro-Israel on Tuesday, and who knows what on Wednesday, because everything’s negotiable.”—speech to American Israel Public Affairs Committee, Washington, DC, March 21, 2016
[DT] “I have the steadiest hands. Look at those hands, far steadier than hers.”—interview on CNN, March 21, 2016
[DT] “The reason my hair looks so neat all the time is because I don’t have to deal with the elements. I live in the building where I work. I take an elevator from my bedroom to my office. The rest of the time, I’m either in my stretch limousine, my private jet, my helicopter, or my private club in Palm Beach Florida.…If I happen to be outside, I’m probably on one of my golf courses, where I protect my hair from overexposure by wearing a golf hat.”—Trump: How to Get Rich, Random House, 2004
[HRC] “Certainly if [Trump] and I were to run against each other, I would be pleased on one ground, which is that I would not be the only person whose hairstyle was a topic of conversation.”—interview on Live with Kelly & Michael, November 19, 2015
[DT] “My hair is just fine, but I get attacked on my hair. But if I attack someone else on their hair, they’d say, ‘Oh, what a terrible thing to do.’”—interview with Maureen Dowd, The New York Times, April 3, 2016
[HRC] “I will be the youngest woman president in the history of the United States.…You won’t see my hair turn white in the White House. I’ve been coloring my hair for years.”—campaign rally, June 13, 2015
[DT] “I will never change this hairstyle, I like it. It fits my head. Those who criticize me are only losers and envy [sic] people. And it is not a wig, it’s my hair. Do you want to touch it?”—Forbes, February 18, 2014
[DT] “Sia, I love this hair.”—Saturday Night Live, November 7, 2015
[HRC] “Really, I feel like we are watching an id—an id with hair.”—campaign fundraiser, New York City, March 30, 2016
[DT] “Yeah, what is that [id with hair remark] all about? Huh?”—interview with Maureen Dowd, The New York Times, April 3, 2016
[DT] “It’s [Big Macs and Quarter Pounders with Cheese] great stuff. I like cleanliness, and I think you’re better off going there [McDonald’s] than maybe some place that you have no idea where the food is coming from.…The other night I had Kentucky Fried Chicken. [Applause.] Not the worst thing in the world.”—CNN Republican town hall, Columbia, South Carolina, February 18, 2016
[HRC] “I’ve been eating a lot of hot sauce. Raw peppers and hot sauce. I think it keeps my immune system strong. Hot sauce is good for you.”—radio interview on The Breakfast Club, Power 105.1 FM New York, April 18, 2016
[DT] “It’s the same thing she always does. She carries hot sauce like I carry hot sauce. It’s just so phony, and so pandering, and so terrible.”—interview on Fox & Friends, April 19, 2016
[HRC] “I’m a lousy cook, but I make pretty good soft scrambled eggs.”—Slate.com, “How Hungry Is Hillary Clinton?”, undated quote
[DT] “The best taco bowls are made in Trump Tower Grill. I love Hispanics!”—Twitter, May 5, 2016
[HRC] “The truth is, through all these years of public service, the ‘service’ part has always come easier to me than the ‘public’ part. I get it that some people just don’t know what to make of me.”—speech accepting the Democratic presidential nomination, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, July 28, 2016
[DT] “I’m a really nice guy, believe me.”—preface to Crippled America, Simon & Schuster, 2016
[HRC] “I criticize his positions, but I try not to get into the personal stuff.”—Jimmy Kimmel Live!, November 6, 2015
[DT] “As far as temperament, I think I have a great temperament. I built a phenomenal business with incredible, iconic assets. And I may be an entertainer, because I’ve had tremendous success with #1 bestsellers all over the place. But I will tell you this: What I am far and away greater than an entertainer is a businessman, and that’s the kind of mindset this country needs to bring it back, because we owe $19 trillion right now, $19 trillion, and you need this kind of thinking to bring our country back.—Republican two-tiered primary debate on CNN, September 16, 2015
[HRC] “No, I really don’t. I don’t want to respond to his constant stream of insults. I find it really, at this point absurd. Let me talk about what I will do, what I have done, and what kind of commander-in-chief I will be. Because I think that’s what is at stake in this election. We need steady, strong, smart minds and hands in the White House and the situation room to deal with the problems that we face around the world. On the first day, January 20th, 2017, a new president will be in the Oval Office. We can’t sit here today and predict all of the challenges and threats that will face that new president, but we know we have to be both vigilant and effective in fighting terrorism. I believe I have the track record, the experience, and the temperament to do just that.”—interview on CNN, March 22, 2016
[DT] “I have a strong temperament and it’s a very good temperament and it’s a very in-control temperament. I wouldn’t have built this unbelievable company, I wouldn’t have built all of the things that I’ve been able to do in life.”—interview on CNN, June 5, 2016
[DT] “It makes me feel so good to hit ‘sleazebags’ back—much better than seeing a psychiatrist (which I never have!)”—Twitter, November 19, 2012
[HRC] “I’ll leave it to the psychiatrists to explain his affection for tyrants.”—speech on foreign policy, San Diego, California, June 2, 2016
[DT] “Sorry losers and haters, but my I.Q. is one of the highest—and you all know it! Please don’t feel so stupid or insecure. It’s not your fault.”—Twitter, May 8, 2013
[HRC] “A lot of people tell pollsters they don’t trust me.…I personally know I have work to do on this front.…You can’t just talk someone into trusting you. You have got to earn it.”—Rainbow PUSH Coalition luncheon, Chicago, Illinois, June 27, 2016
[DT] “The thing about Hillary in terms of religion is that she’s been in the public eye for years and years, and yet there’s nothing out there.”—private meeting with faith leaders, New York City, June 21, 2016
[HRC] “Think about it. He’s going after me personally because he has no answers on the substance. So all he can try to do is try to distract us. That’s why he’s attacking my faith. Sigh.”—campaign event, North Carolina state fairgrounds, Raleigh, North Carolina, June 22, 2016
[DT] “I’m a protestant, I’m a Presbyterian. And you know I’ve had a good relationship with the church over the years.…I do get sent a lot of bibles and I like that.…I’m a Sunday church person. I’ll go when I can.”—rebroadcast of April 11, 2011, interview on CBN News, July 9, 2015
[HRC] “I am a person of faith. I am a Christian. I am a Methodist.…I am by no means a perfect person. I will confess that to one and all. But I feel the continuing urge to try to be better, to try to be more loving even with people who are quite harsh.”—campaign event, Knoxville, Iowa, January 25, 2016
[DT] “2 Corinthians, 3:17 [Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom], that’s the whole ballgame.”—campaign speech, Liberty University, Lynchburg, Virginia, January 18, 2016
[HRC] “First Corinthians, 13, which happens to be one of my favorite passages.…‘Love never fails, it tells us; love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things’…These are words to live by, not only for ourselves but also for our country.”—victory speech, South Carolina Democratic primary, February 27, 2016
[DT] “An eye for an eye…that’s not a particularly nice thing. But you know, if you look at what’s happening to our country, I mean, when you see what’s going on with our country, how people are taking advantage of us, and how they scoff at us and laugh at us. And they laugh at our face, and they’re taking our jobs, they’re taking our money, they’re taking the health of our country. And we have to be firm and have to be very strong. And we can learn a lot from the Bible, that I can tell you.”—radio interview on WHAM 1180AM, Rochester, New York, April 14, 2016
[HRC] “The Golden Rule: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. I think it’s a good rule for politics, too.”—MSNBC Democratic presidential debate, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire, September 26, 2007
[DT] “I do apologize—I believe in apologizing.”—interview on WTMJ Radio Wisconsin, March 27, 2016
[HRC] “‘Don’t worry about stuff you can’t control,’ because it’s been my observation that so many people worry about things that they are either ruminating over the past…which doesn’t help you get the focus and energy you need to get up every day and go forward, or they’re worrying about stuff that they have absolutely no control over. So I have developed that kind of philosophy in my life over years.”—interview with Politico, April 6, 2016
[DT] “Whenever I’m making a creative choice, I try to step back and remember my first shallow reaction. The day I realized it could be smart to be shallow was, for me, a deep experience.”—Think Like a Billionaire, Random House, 2004
[DT] “I don’t read much. Mostly I read contracts, but usually my lawyers do most of the work. There are too many pages. Do you know what book I enjoy reading? The Art of the Deal, by Donald Trump.”—February 18, 2014
[HRC] “I’ve read so much over the course of my life that now I’m much more into easier things to read. I like a lot of women authors, novels about women, mysteries where a woman is the protagonist…It’s relaxing.”—interview with New York magazine, May 30, 2016
[DT]
The Amateur: Barack Obama in the White House by Edward Klein
The Art of War by Sun Tzu
Rich Dad’s Cash Flow Quadrant: Rich Dad’s Guide to Financial Freedom by Robert T. Kiyosaki
Iacocca: An Autobiography by Lee Iacocca and William Novak
Rich Woman: A Book on Investing for Women: Because I Hate Being Told What to Do! by Kim Kiyosaki
Talent Is Overrated: What Really Separates World-Class Performers from Everybody Else by Geoff Colvin
The Prince by Niccolò Machiavelli
The Watchman’s Rattle: Thinking Our Way out of Extinction by Rebecca Costa
[HRC]
The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
Mom & Me & Mom by Maya Angelou
Missing You by Harlan Coben
The Hare With Amber Eyes by Edmund de Waal
The Signature of All Things by Elizabeth Gilbert
Citizens of London by Lynne Olson
A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth
Decision Points by George W. Bush
Faith of My Fathers by John McCain
[DT] “I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody and I wouldn’t lose any voters.”—campaign stop, Sioux Center, Iowa, January 23, 2016
[HRC] “New Yorkers, you’ve always—you’ve always had my back. And I’ve always tried to have yours.…The motto of this state is ‘Excelsior, ever upward.’ So let’s go out and win this election.”—victory speech, New York primary, April 19, 2016
[DT] “I have no friends, as far as I’m concerned.”—ABC News GOP presidential debate, Manchester, New Hampshire, February 6, 2016
[HRC] “There are very few people who go through life without needing anyone, without having to make any sacrifice for anyone else. In fact, it’s kind of an impoverished life, if that’s the attitude.”—The New Yorker, October 13, 2003
[DT] “Generally speaking, I’m not big on endorsements. This [from Chris Christie] was an endorsement that really meant a lot.”—press conference, Fort Worth, Texas, February 26, 2016
[HRC] “Not interested in endorsements from people who deny climate science and try to make it harder for people to vote.”—Twitter, April 24, 2016
[DT] “But Mike said: ‘I love Trump. I endorse Trump’…I love it…Iron Mike. You know all the tough guys endorse me. I like that, okay?”—comments to supporters in Indiana, April 27, 2016