Joey Lucas quotes from The West Wing

There are people you haven't persuaded yet. These numbers mean dial it up. Otherwise, you're like the French radical watching the crowd run by and saying, "There go my people. I must find out where they're going so I can lead them."

Joey

Vox populi, vox dei.

Josh

The voice of the people is the voice of a dog.

Joey

The voice of God, Joshua.

Josh

Yes.

Josh

Numbers don't lie.

They lie all the time. They lie when 72 percent of Americans say they're tired of a sex scandal, while all the while, newspaper circulation goes through the roof for anyone featuring the story. If you polled a hundred Donnas and asked them if they think we should go out, you'd get a high positive response. But, the poll wouldn't tell you it's because she likes you. And she knows it's beginning to show and she needs to cover herself with misdirection.

Josh

Believe me when I tell you that's not true.

Bartlet

A President stood up. He said we will land a man on the moon before the end of the decade. You know what we knew when he said that? Nothing. We didn't know anything. We didn't know about the lunar surface. We didn't know how to land one of these things. All we'd ever done is crash it into the ocean. And God knows we could figure out how to land soft. We didn't know how to blast off again, but a President said we're gonna do it, and we did it. So I ask you, why shouldn't I stand up and say we are going to cure cancer in ten years?

Bartlet

I'm really asking.

Josh

Well, how close are we to really being able to do this?

Bartlet

Nobody knows.

Josh

Then...

Bartlet

Toby.

Toby

It'll be seen as a political ploy.

Bartlet

Why?

C.J.

It can be seen... [to Toby] Excuse me. [to Bartlet] It can be seen as self-serving.

Bartlet

How?

C.J.

Using cancer to deflect attention from MS.

Bartlet

You think people with cancer care what my motives are? You think their families do?

C.J.

I'm saying...

Bartlet

Joey?

Joey

I agree with everything that's been said, except, I don't think they'll see it as deflecting the MS. I think they'll see it as deflecting the censure.

Bartlet

Once again, why would somebody...?

Joey

Everybody cares about motive, Mr. President.

Bartlet

I didn't...

She said, "Everybody cares about motive," sir.

Bartlet

Sam.

Sam

Yes sir?

Bartlet

Why shouldn't I do it?

Sam

I think you should. I think ambition is good. I think overreaching is good. I think giving people a vision of government that's more than Social Security checks and debt reduction is good. I think government should be optimistic.