You're thinking of Europe as Germany and France. I don't. I think that's old Europe.

I can't tell you if the use of force in Iraq today will last five days, five weeks or five months, but it won't last any longer than that.

Oh my goodness gracious, what you can buy off the Internet in terms of overhead photography. A trained ape can know an awful lot of what is going on in this world, just by punching on his mouse, for a relatively modest cost.

Prune - prune businesses, products, activities, people. Do it annually.

Death has a tendency to encourage a depressing view of war.

In the execution of Presidential decisions work to be true to his views, in fact and tone.

In our system leadership is by consent, not command. To lead a President must persuade. Personal contacts and experiences help shape his thinking. They can be critical to his persuasiveness and thus to his leadership.

Members of the U.S. House and the U.S. Senate are not there by accident. Each managed to get there for some reason. Learn what it was and you will know something important about them, about our country and about the American people.

Make decisions about the President's personal security. He can overrule you, but don't ask him to be the one to counsel caution.

When cutting staff at the Pentagon, don't eliminate the thin layer that assures civilian control.

If you foul up, tell the President and correct it fast. Delay only compounds mistakes.

You will launch many projects, but have time to finish only a few. So think, plan, develop, launch and tap good people to be responsible. Give them authority and hold them accountable. Trying to do too much yourself creates a bottleneck.

The Federal Government should be the last resort, not the first. Ask if a potential program is truly a federal responsibility or whether it can better be handled privately, by voluntary organizations, or by local or state governments.

When you raise issues with the President, try to come away with both that decision and also a precedent. Pose issues so as to evoke broader policy guidance. This can help to answer a range of similar issues likely to arise later.

Congress, the press, and the bureaucracy too often focus on how much money or effort is spent, rather than whether the money or effort actually achieves the announced goal.

With the press there is no 'off the record.'

Public servants are paid to serve the American people. Do it well.

Presidential leadership needn't always cost money. Look for low- and no-cost options. They can be surprisingly effective.

The way to do well is to do well.

Preserve the President's options. He may need them.

Imagine, a September 11 with weapons of mass destruction. It's not 3,000. It's tens of thousands of innocent men, women and children.

Your performance depends on your people. Select the best, train them and back them. When errors occur, give sharper guidance. If errors persist or if the fit feels wrong, help them move on. The country cannot afford amateur hour in the White House.

If you develop rules, never have more than ten.

Visit with your predecessors from previous Administrations. They know the ropes and can help you see around some corners. Try to make original mistakes, rather than needlessly repeating theirs.

Look for what's missing. Many advisors can tell a President how to improve what's proposed or what's gone amiss. Few are able to see what isn't there.

Learn to say 'I don't know.' If used when appropriate, it will be often.

Secretary Powell and I agree on every single issue that has ever been before this administration except for those instances where Colin's still learning.

Let your family, staff, and friends know that you're still the same person, despite all the publicity and notoriety that accompanies your position.

If a prospective Presidential approach can't be explained clearly enough to be understood well, it probably hasn't been thought through well enough. If not well understood by the American people, it probably won't 'sail' anyway. Send it back for further thought.

There are a lot of people who lie and get away with it, and that's just a fact.

It isn't making mistakes that's critical; it's correcting them and getting on with the principal task.

Simply because you do not have evidence that something exists does not mean that you have evidence that it doesn't exist.

Don't say 'the White House wants.' Buildings can't want.

Leave the President's family business to him. You will have plenty to do without trying to manage the First Family. They are likely to do fine without your help.

The price of being close to the President is delivering bad news. You fail him if you don't tell him the truth. Others won't do it.

Don't think of yourself as indispensable or infallible. As Charles De Gaulle said, the cemeteries of the world are full of indispensable men.

When asked for your views, by the press or others, remember that what they really want to know is the President's views.

Be able to resign. It will improve your value to the President and do wonders for your performance.

See that the President, the Cabinet and staff are informed. If cut out of the information flow, their decisions may be poor, not made, or not confidently or persuasively implemented.

One of your tasks is to separate the 'personal' from the 'substantive.' The two can become confused, especially if someone rubs the President wrong.

Test ideas in the marketplace. You learn from hearing a range of perspectives. Consultation helps engender the support decisions need to be successfully implemented.

Many people around the President have sizeable egos before entering government, some with good reason. Their new positions will do little to moderate their egos.

Work continuously to trim the White House staff from your first day to your last. All the pressures are to the contrary.

Don't do or say things you would not like to see on the front page of The Washington Post.

Don't automatically obey Presidential directives if you disagree or if you suspect he hasn't considered key aspects of the issue.

If in doubt, move decisions up to the President.

If you try to please everybody, somebody's not going to like it.

Creativity comes from a conflict of ideas.

Elegance is always in style for men. There are all different kinds of elegance. It can be silk, it can be a T-shirt.

It's no good being too easily swayed by people's opinions. You have to believe in yourself.