Skip to content

Hillary Clinton was an outstanding secretary of state. She…

“Hillary Clinton was an outstanding secretary of state. She would never intentionally put America in any kind of jeopardy. And what I also know, because I handle a lot of classified information, is that there's classified and then there's classified. There's stuff that is really top secret top…” quote by Barack Obama
Download Open image
“Hillary Clinton was an outstanding secretary of state. She would never intentionally put America in any kind of jeopardy. And what I also know, because I handle a lot of classified information, is that there's classified and then there's classified. There's stuff that is really top secret top secret, and there's stuff that is being presented to the president or the secretary of state that you might not want on the transom or, you know, going out over the wire, but is basically stuff that you could get in open source.”

Barack Obama

About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

He suggests that classified information varies in sensitivity and that some “top secret” material may be less restricted than expected.

In simple terms: Classified data has different levels of secrecy.

Key Takeaway

Recognize nuances in information handling.

Themes

politics security transparency

Mood

cautious analytical

Type

political reflective

When to use this quote

  • policy making
  • media reporting
  • public discourse
  • legal compliance

Key Concepts

classification information hierarchy governmental trust

Questions to Reflect On

  • How do we balance transparency with security?
  • What risks arise from misclassifying information?
A Different Perspective

The statement may oversimplify complex security protocols.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet

More by Barack Obama

Explore all 3,624 Barack Obama quotes

More America quotes

Browse all 20,382 America quotes