--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'm pretty happy not to be an insider…" description: "\"I'm pretty happy not to be an insider anymore. There's just no common ground. I don't know if it's distrust or that the politics is substantially more ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/01a/austan-goolsbee-9855_common-ground_i-m-pretty-happy-not-to-be-an-insider-an_1277736.jpg" --- # I'm pretty happy not to be an insider anymore. There's… ![“I'm pretty happy not to be an insider anymore. There's just no common ground. I don't know if it's distrust or that the politics is substantially more partisan than the public. But there's no pressure to make a grand bargain on fiscal matters, on growth, on anything.” quote by Austan Goolsbee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/01a/austan-goolsbee-9855_common-ground_i-m-pretty-happy-not-to-be-an-insider-an_1277736.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/01a/austan-goolsbee-9855_common-ground_i-m-pretty-happy-not-to-be-an-insider-an_1277736.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/01a/austan-goolsbee-9855_common-ground_i-m-pretty-happy-not-to-be-an-insider-an_1277736.jpg) > “I'm pretty happy not to be an insider anymore. There's just no common ground. I don't know if it's distrust or that the politics is substantially more partisan than the public. But there's no pressure to make a grand bargain on fiscal matters, on growth, on anything.” [Austan Goolsbee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austan-goolsbee/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Insider status can create bias; stepping back reveals common ground and reduces partisan pressure. **In simple terms:** Leaving insider circles can reduce bias. Key Takeaway Seek diverse perspectives to avoid echo chambers. Themes politics bias partisanship communication Mood reflective critical Type analytical philosophical When to use this quote - government negotiations - media analysis - community dialogue - team meetings Key Concepts economics social dynamics public policy Questions to Reflect On - What benefits arise from disengaging from insider politics? - How can you foster common ground in polarized settings? A Different Perspective Changing viewpoints may be difficult without incentives. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bargain Fiscal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bargain-fiscal-4117177/) [Common ground](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/common-ground/) [Distrust Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/distrust-politics-4117176/) [Fiscal Matters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fiscal-matters-4117178/) [Growth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growth/) [Matters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/matters/) [Partisan Public](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/partisan-public-4117175/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Pressure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pressure/) [Substantially Partisan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/substantially-partisan-4117179/) ## Related quotes > [Birtherism surely increased Americans' distrust of politics, though in ways that are hard to pin down. By contrast, when anti-vaxxers persuade parents not to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/birtherism-surely-increased-americans-distrust-of-politics-though-in/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [Like Aristotle, conservatives generally accept the world as it is; they distrust the politics of abstract reason – that is, reason divorced from experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-wiker/like-aristotle-conservatives-generally-accept-the-world-as-it-is-they/) [Benjamin Wiker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-wiker/) > [The best way to promote and protect opportunity is through collaboration, consensus-building, and pragmatic problem-solving. Throughout nearly 30 years in public service, I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-perez/the-best-way-to-promote-and-protect-opportunity-is-through/) [Tom Perez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-perez/) > [“In the person of Quanah Parker, an extraordinary man in whom the blood of two strong peoples flowed, the Lone Star and the Comanche…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-w-knowles/in-the-person-of-quanah-parker-an-extraordinary-man-in-whom-the-blood/) [Thomas W. Knowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-w-knowles/) > [Good governance requires working toward common ground. It isn't easy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-hoekstra/good-governance-requires-working-toward-common-ground-it-isn-t-easy/) [Pete Hoekstra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-hoekstra/) > [“It can be difficult to find common ground when all some wish to discuss is our differences.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-a-a-savastano/it-can-be-difficult-to-find-common-ground-when-all-some-wish-to/) [C.A.A. Savastano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-a-a-savastano/) > [His Holiness Pope John Paul II was a determined and deeply spiritual minded person for whom I had great respect and admiration. His experience…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama/his-holiness-pope-john-paul-ii-was-a-determined-and-deeply-spiritual/) [Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama/) > [“Who knows what goes on in a marriage? Even my parents, who had a compatible marriage, had their points of contention. They had figured…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ranjani-rao/who-knows-what-goes-on-in-a-marriage-even-my-parents-who-had-a/) [Ranjani Rao](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ranjani-rao/) > [“The difference between the student radicals and the Hell's Angels is that the students are rebelling against the past, while the Angels are fighting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/the-difference-between-the-student-radicals-and-the-hell-s-angels-is/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [Dealing with Congress is a matter of give and take. The president doesn't get everything he wants, the Congress doesn't get everything they want.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/dealing-with-congress-is-a-matter-of-give-and-take-the-president/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [People wonder why a man and woman can't be friends after being in love. It is because it's very tough to look beyond the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dia-mirza/people-wonder-why-a-man-and-woman-can-t-be-friends-after-being-in/) [Dia Mirza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dia-mirza/) > [But when we're helping children understand how people from different walks of life can coexist, prioritizing common ground too often obscures or erases uncommon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meena-harris/but-when-we-re-helping-children-understand-how-people-from-different/) [Meena Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meena-harris/) > [I could fight with the living but I could not fight the dead. If there was some woman in London that Maxim loved, someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daphne-du-maurier/i-could-fight-with-the-living-but-i-could-not-fight-the-dead-if-there/) [Daphne du Maurier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daphne-du-maurier/) > [“Equality of condition and equality of opportunity must provide the foundation of an interdependent nation with building blocks found in dignity and respect given…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-banks-lewis/equality-of-condition-and-equality-of-opportunity-must-provide-the/) [Julie Banks Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-banks-lewis/) > [I have tried to treat people on the other side civilly and look for common ground.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-klobuchar/i-have-tried-to-treat-people-on-the-other-side-civilly-and-look-for/) [Amy Klobuchar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-klobuchar/) ## More by Austan Goolsbee > [It's clear that the medium and long-run fiscal challenges facing the country have to do with the rise of entitlement spending, they have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austan-goolsbee/it-s-clear-that-the-medium-and-long-run-fiscal-challenges-facing-the/) [Austan Goolsbee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austan-goolsbee/) > [The president is 100 percent for extending the tax cuts for 98.7 percent of small businesses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austan-goolsbee/the-president-is-100-percent-for-extending-the-tax-cuts-for-98-7/) [Austan Goolsbee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austan-goolsbee/) > [There's a certain kind of academic that comes to Washington and can't survive. They're the ones starting each sentence with 'The economic model says.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austan-goolsbee/there-s-a-certain-kind-of-academic-that-comes-to-washington-and-can-t/) [Austan Goolsbee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austan-goolsbee/) > [Only Barack Obama consistently opposed NAFTA.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austan-goolsbee/only-barack-obama-consistently-opposed-nafta/) [Austan Goolsbee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austan-goolsbee/) > [The U.S. fiscal union has worked, in no small part, by enabling subsidies to the Mississippis without requiring the approval of the Minnesotas. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austan-goolsbee/the-u-s-fiscal-union-has-worked-in-no-small-part-by-enabling/) [Austan Goolsbee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austan-goolsbee/) > [If a lobbyist sets up shop, or a lawyer, in which they're receiving income through what is something like a tax loophole so that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austan-goolsbee/if-a-lobbyist-sets-up-shop-or-a-lawyer-in-which-they-re-receiving/) [Austan Goolsbee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austan-goolsbee/) > [When I was at MIT, they had a beta test of Mosaic, the first popular browser. I remember looking at it, and there was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austan-goolsbee/when-i-was-at-mit-they-had-a-beta-test-of-mosaic-the-first-popular/) [Austan Goolsbee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austan-goolsbee/) > [I believe - I'm not a political expert, but I believe there is a broad consensus, a middle ground if you will, that Democrats…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austan-goolsbee/i-believe-i-m-not-a-political-expert-but-i-believe-there-is-a-broad/) [Austan Goolsbee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austan-goolsbee/) > [The data does not support that high-income tax cuts are the main drivers of growth, so I don't think that uncertainty over what the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austan-goolsbee/the-data-does-not-support-that-high-income-tax-cuts-are-the-main/) [Austan Goolsbee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austan-goolsbee/) > [The share of income that small business people are paying in taxes is the lowest it has been in 65 years - since Obama…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austan-goolsbee/the-share-of-income-that-small-business-people-are-paying-in-taxes-is/) [Austan Goolsbee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austan-goolsbee/) > [Trade has helped the economy grow. Simultaneously, a sizable number of Americans haven't shared in that bounty, and if we don't pay attention to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austan-goolsbee/trade-has-helped-the-economy-grow-simultaneously-a-sizable-number-of/) [Austan Goolsbee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austan-goolsbee/) > [We have to do everything we can to try to create jobs and get people back to work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austan-goolsbee/we-have-to-do-everything-we-can-to-try-to-create-jobs-and-get-people/) [Austan Goolsbee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austan-goolsbee/) > [A lot more people are willing to invest in bonds denominated in euros. And there was the fiscal discipline argument, which is that this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austan-goolsbee/a-lot-more-people-are-willing-to-invest-in-bonds-denominated-in-euros/) [Austan Goolsbee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austan-goolsbee/) > [All I'll say is if you look at countries where it is - where they are rapidly growing, they're investing in their infrastructure. They're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austan-goolsbee/all-i-ll-say-is-if-you-look-at-countries-where-it-is-where-they-are/) [Austan Goolsbee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austan-goolsbee/) > [If you're going to be an academic who's involved in the world of policy, you have to be involved in the world that exists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austan-goolsbee/if-you-re-going-to-be-an-academic-who-s-involved-in-the-world-of/) [Austan Goolsbee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austan-goolsbee/) [Explore all 69 Austan Goolsbee quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austan-goolsbee/) ## More Common ground quotes > [I have tried to treat people on the other side civilly and look for common ground.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-klobuchar/i-have-tried-to-treat-people-on-the-other-side-civilly-and-look-for/) [Amy Klobuchar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-klobuchar/) > [“Equality of condition and equality of opportunity must provide the foundation of an interdependent nation with building blocks found in dignity and respect given…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-banks-lewis/equality-of-condition-and-equality-of-opportunity-must-provide-the/) [Julie Banks Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-banks-lewis/) > [I could fight with the living but I could not fight the dead. If there was some woman in London that Maxim loved, someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daphne-du-maurier/i-could-fight-with-the-living-but-i-could-not-fight-the-dead-if-there/) [Daphne du Maurier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daphne-du-maurier/) > [But when we're helping children understand how people from different walks of life can coexist, prioritizing common ground too often obscures or erases uncommon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meena-harris/but-when-we-re-helping-children-understand-how-people-from-different/) [Meena Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meena-harris/) > [People wonder why a man and woman can't be friends after being in love. It is because it's very tough to look beyond the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dia-mirza/people-wonder-why-a-man-and-woman-can-t-be-friends-after-being-in/) [Dia Mirza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dia-mirza/) > [Dealing with Congress is a matter of give and take. The president doesn't get everything he wants, the Congress doesn't get everything they want.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/dealing-with-congress-is-a-matter-of-give-and-take-the-president/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [“The difference between the student radicals and the Hell's Angels is that the students are rebelling against the past, while the Angels are fighting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/the-difference-between-the-student-radicals-and-the-hell-s-angels-is/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [“Who knows what goes on in a marriage? Even my parents, who had a compatible marriage, had their points of contention. They had figured…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ranjani-rao/who-knows-what-goes-on-in-a-marriage-even-my-parents-who-had-a/) [Ranjani Rao](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ranjani-rao/) > [His Holiness Pope John Paul II was a determined and deeply spiritual minded person for whom I had great respect and admiration. His experience…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama/his-holiness-pope-john-paul-ii-was-a-determined-and-deeply-spiritual/) [Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama/) > [“It can be difficult to find common ground when all some wish to discuss is our differences.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-a-a-savastano/it-can-be-difficult-to-find-common-ground-when-all-some-wish-to/) [C.A.A. Savastano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-a-a-savastano/) > [Good governance requires working toward common ground. It isn't easy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-hoekstra/good-governance-requires-working-toward-common-ground-it-isn-t-easy/) [Pete Hoekstra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-hoekstra/) > [“In the person of Quanah Parker, an extraordinary man in whom the blood of two strong peoples flowed, the Lone Star and the Comanche…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-w-knowles/in-the-person-of-quanah-parker-an-extraordinary-man-in-whom-the-blood/) [Thomas W. Knowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-w-knowles/) > [The best way to promote and protect opportunity is through collaboration, consensus-building, and pragmatic problem-solving. Throughout nearly 30 years in public service, I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-perez/the-best-way-to-promote-and-protect-opportunity-is-through/) [Tom Perez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-perez/) > [We define family in many different ways: not just by blood but by people with whom we find a common ground and a common…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-c-moore/we-define-family-in-many-different-ways-not-just-by-blood-but-by/) [Adrienne C. Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-c-moore/) > [This was our common ground, the secret we shared but never spoke aloud. I should have been with him; she should have left him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/this-was-our-common-ground-the-secret-we-shared-but-never-spoke-aloud/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) [Browse all 390 Common ground quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/common-ground/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I'm pretty happy not to be an insider anymore. There's just no common ground. I don't know if it's distrust or that the politics is substantially more partisan than the public. 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