---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The Best and the Brightest. (One of the"
description: "\"“The Best and the Brightest. (One of the”\" — Michael Wolff"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b3e/michael-wolff-423_best_the-best-and-the-brightest-one-of-the-84_842808.jpg"
---

#  The Best and the Brightest. (One of the

![“The Best and the Brightest. (One of the” quote by Michael Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b3e/michael-wolff-423_best_the-best-and-the-brightest-one-of-the-84_842808.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b3e/michael-wolff-423_best_the-best-and-the-brightest-one-of-the-84_842808.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b3e/michael-wolff-423_best_the-best-and-the-brightest-one-of-the-84_842808.jpg)

> ““The Best and the Brightest. (One of the””

[Michael Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wolff/)

## About This Quote

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

The book critiques the overconfidence and hubris of elite policymakers and intellectuals.

**In simple terms:** Elite experts often overestimate their impact.

Key Takeaway

Question expertise and seek diverse perspectives.

Themes

politics elitism hubris

Mood

critical analytical

Type

political historical

When to use this quote

- government decisionmaking
- media analysis
- public discourse
- leadership evaluation

Key Concepts

policy expertise overconfidence

Questions to Reflect On

- How does elite overconfidence shape policy outcomes?
- What checks can curb hubris in decision making?

A Different Perspective

The analysis may overlook systemic constraints beyond individual choices.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Best](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/best/) [Best Brightest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/best-brightest-661496/) [Brightest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brightest/)

## Related quotes

> [“David Halberstam’s The Best and the Brightest.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/david-halberstam-s-the-best-and-the-brightest/)

[Michael Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wolff/)

> [“The Best and the Brightest”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/the-best-and-the-brightest/)

[Michael Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wolff/)

> [We need the best and the brightest to go into public service.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-plame/we-need-the-best-and-the-brightest-to-go-into-public-service/)

[Valerie Plame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-plame/)

> [We need the breast and the brightest to- umm the best and the brightest...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-kennedy/we-need-the-breast-and-the-brightest-to-umm-the-best-and-the-brightest/)

[Edward Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-kennedy/)

> [The best and brightest are not exactly clamoring to jump aboard the Trump bandwagon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antony-blinken/the-best-and-brightest-are-not-exactly-clamoring-to-jump-aboard-the/)

[Antony Blinken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antony-blinken/)

> [On the Left, the best and brightest go into politics - Barack Obama is the epitome of the perfect leftist. On the Right, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-cruz/on-the-left-the-best-and-brightest-go-into-politics-barack-obama-is/)

[Ted Cruz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-cruz/)

> [The best and brightest don't go into politics. The best and brightest are at Goldman Sachs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/the-best-and-brightest-don-t-go-into-politics-the-best-and-brightest/)

[P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/)

> [ “he \[Robert Lovett\] knew that those whose names were always in print, who were always on the radio and television, were there precisely because… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-halberstam/he-robert-lovett-knew-that-those-whose-names-were-always-in-print-who/)

[David Halberstam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-halberstam/)

> [I'm not the best. I'm not the brightest, but we all have our problems.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-tomic/i-m-not-the-best-i-m-not-the-brightest-but-we-all-have-our-problems/)

[Bernard Tomic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-tomic/)

> [Stop teaching students that they are the best and the brightest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-maister/stop-teaching-students-that-they-are-the-best-and-the-brightest/)

[David Maister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-maister/)

> [I've always felt I perform best under the brightest lights and the biggest moments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caleb-plant/i-ve-always-felt-i-perform-best-under-the-brightest-lights-and-the/)

[Caleb Plant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caleb-plant/)

> [“The most beautiful part of the day isn´t always the brightest.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-s-alexander/the-most-beautiful-part-of-the-day-isn-t-always-the-brightest/)

[Jill S. Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-s-alexander/)

> [When I see your heart, I see this amazing thing that shines so brightly, I almost blinds me. ;) but really, You are just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/savannah-j/when-i-see-your-heart-i-see-this-amazing-thing-that-shines-so/)

[Savannah J](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/savannah-j/)

> [Everyone has blind spots, and even the brightest people are no exceptions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/li-lu/everyone-has-blind-spots-and-even-the-brightest-people-are-no/)

[Li Lu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/li-lu/)

> [Will you ever? I dont think you will ever fully understand how you've touched my life and made me who I am.I don't think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/will-you-ever-i-dont-think-you-will-ever-fully-understand-how-you-ve/)

[Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/)

## More by Michael Wolff

> [Donald Trump doesn't necessarily stay mad for very long. He's a transactional guy. If you can offer him something, he will take it. Or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/donald-trump-doesn-t-necessarily-stay-mad-for-very-long-he-s-a/)

[Michael Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wolff/)

> [“he could yet make a case for a straight line from Nixon to Trump.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/he-could-yet-make-a-case-for-a-straight-line-from-nixon-to-trump/)

[Michael Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wolff/)

> [“it confirmed Bannon’s worst fear: Trump, in his true heart, was a marshmallow.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/it-confirmed-bannon-s-worst-fear-trump-in-his-true-heart-was-a/)

[Michael Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wolff/)

> [“An important aspect of Kaplan’s New York Observer and its self-conscious inside media baseball was that the paper became the prime school for a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/an-important-aspect-of-kaplan-s-new-york-observer-and-its-self/)

[Michael Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wolff/)

> [“The candidate who billed himself as a billionaire—ten times over—refused even to invest his own money in it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/the-candidate-who-billed-himself-as-a-billionaire-ten-times-over/)

[Michael Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wolff/)

> [If institutions don't grow, they... well, I don't know what happens to them, because they always grow. I suppose the point is that we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/if-institutions-don-t-grow-they-well-i-don-t-know-what-happens-to/)

[Michael Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wolff/)

> [“Even though Trump liked to portray his business as an empire, it was actually a discrete holding company and boutique enterprise,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/even-though-trump-liked-to-portray-his-business-as-an-empire-it-was/)

[Michael Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wolff/)

> [“the organizational premise of the Trump White House: the family would always prevail.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/the-organizational-premise-of-the-trump-white-house-the-family-would/)

[Michael Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wolff/)

> [“Trump, who referred to the Chinese leader as “Mr. X-i”; the president was told to think of him as a woman and call him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/trump-who-referred-to-the-chinese-leader-as-mr-x-i-the-president-was/)

[Michael Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wolff/)

> [“Donald Trump, even more than his father, was perceived as a vulgarian—after all, he put his name on his buildings, quite a déclassé thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/donald-trump-even-more-than-his-father-was-perceived-as-a-vulgarian/)

[Michael Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wolff/)

> [“The index that appeared in the print version of this title does not match the pages in your e-book. Please use the search function…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/the-index-that-appeared-in-the-print-version-of-this-title-does-not/)

[Michael Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wolff/)

> [“Trump liked to say that one of the things that made life worth living was getting your friends’ wives into bed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/trump-liked-to-say-that-one-of-the-things-that-made-life-worth-living/)

[Michael Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wolff/)

> [“The kids”—Jared and Ivanka—exhibited an increasingly panicked sense that the FBI and DOJ were moving beyond Russian election interference and into family finances. “Ivanka…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/the-kids-jared-and-ivanka-exhibited-an-increasingly-panicked-sense/)

[Michael Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wolff/)

> [I am old enough to think the word 'journalist' is not all that noble a designation. Journalist - that record keeper, quote taker and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/i-am-old-enough-to-think-the-word-journalist-is-not-all-that-noble-a/)

[Michael Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wolff/)

> [“Politics had seemed to become, even well before the age of Trump, a mortal affair. It was now zero-sum: When one side profited, another…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/politics-had-seemed-to-become-even-well-before-the-age-of-trump-a/)

[Michael Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wolff/)

[Explore all 570 Michael Wolff quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wolff/)

## More Best quotes

> [Failures happen. You can't cry over them. You just take it in your stride because you know that you have done your best... Sometimes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/divya-dutta/failures-happen-you-can-t-cry-over-them-you-just-take-it-in-your/)

[Divya Dutta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/divya-dutta/)

> [Scepticism and cynicism about politics is so great that one of the best counters to it is what you can do at a local…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-miliband/scepticism-and-cynicism-about-politics-is-so-great-that-one-of-the/)

[Ed Miliband](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-miliband/)

> [Amongst the financial Twitterati, the term 'muppets' has come to describe any client used and abused by some financial predator. I've adopted the term…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-ritholtz/amongst-the-financial-twitterati-the-term-muppets-has-come-to/)

[Barry Ritholtz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-ritholtz/)

> [It's no wonder Pep is one of the best coaches in the world. When I knew I could work with him I was very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ederson/it-s-no-wonder-pep-is-one-of-the-best-coaches-in-the-world-when-i/)

[Ederson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ederson/)

> [“Before you were my enemy, you were my best friend.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kresley-cole/before-you-were-my-enemy-you-were-my-best-friend/)

[Kresley Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kresley-cole/)

> [If we accept being talked to any kind of a way, then we are telling ourselves we are not quite worth the best. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/if-we-accept-being-talked-to-any-kind-of-a-way-then-we-are-telling/)

[Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/)

> [I want to be perceived as a guy who played his best in all facets, not just scoring. A guy who loved challenges.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-jordan/i-want-to-be-perceived-as-a-guy-who-played-his-best-in-all-facets-not/)

[Michael Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-jordan/)

> [I feel like I'm the best, but you're not going to get me to say that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-rice/i-feel-like-i-m-the-best-but-you-re-not-going-to-get-me-to-say-that/)

[Jerry Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-rice/)

> [Life is where you love people and use things not use people and love things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/babloo/life-is-where-you-love-people-and-use-things-not-use-people-and-love/)

[Babloo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/babloo/)

> [With every product, the delta between the brand and the reality determines its power over the minds of consumers, and with Trump, that delta…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-wilson/with-every-product-the-delta-between-the-brand-and-the-reality/)

[Rick Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-wilson/)

> [The human element should be the two players on the court, not the officials. The best officials are the ones you never notice. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-scott/the-human-element-should-be-the-two-players-on-the-court-not-the/)

[Gene Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-scott/)

> [I'm looking to fight the best guys in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yair-rodriguez/i-m-looking-to-fight-the-best-guys-in-the-world/)

[Yair Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yair-rodriguez/)

> [Batley and Spen has a high proportion of people working in manufacturing, and we can boast the full range of industries, including high-skilled, precision…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jo-cox/batley-and-spen-has-a-high-proportion-of-people-working-in/)

[Jo Cox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jo-cox/)

> [It is no secret that I have read 'The Da Vinci Code' several times. I genuinely believe that 'The Da Vinci Code' and 'Angels…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashwin-sanghi/it-is-no-secret-that-i-have-read-the-da-vinci-code-several-times-i/)

[Ashwin Sanghi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashwin-sanghi/)

> [Any position I was going to be in, I was going to make the best of it. I always do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-bledsoe/any-position-i-was-going-to-be-in-i-was-going-to-make-the-best-of-it/)

[Eric Bledsoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-bledsoe/)

[Browse all 21,674 Best quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/best/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“The Best and the Brightest. (One of the”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Michael Wolff"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/the-best-and-the-brightest-one-of-the/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Best"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/the-best-and-the-brightest-one-of-the/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b3e/michael-wolff-423_best_the-best-and-the-brightest-one-of-the-84_842808.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b3e/michael-wolff-423_best_the-best-and-the-brightest-one-of-the-84_842808.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b3e/michael-wolff-423_best_the-best-and-the-brightest-one-of-the-84_842808.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“The Best and the Brightest. (One of the” — Michael Wolff",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Michael Wolff",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-wolff/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“The Best and the Brightest. (One...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/the-best-and-the-brightest-one-of-the/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-wolff/the-best-and-the-brightest-one-of-the/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
