Quote of the day by Bill Clinton: “If you live long enough, you'll make mistakes. But if you learn from them, you'll be a better person. It's how you handle adversity, not how it affects you. The main thing is never quit, never quit, never quit.”

In the spring of 1992, Bill Clinton's presidential campaign was fighting for its life. Allegations about his personal conduct had dominated headlines for weeks, and political commentators openly speculated that his run was finished before the first primary votes were even counted. It was against that backdrop that a New York Times reporter caught him testing out a new line on the campaign trail. "If you live long enough, you'll make mistakes," Clinton told a crowd. "But if you learn from them, you'll be a better person. It's how you handle adversity, not how it affects you. The main thing is never quit, never quit, never quit." He was not speaking in the abstract. He was describing, almost in real time, the exact test his campaign was currently failing or passing, depending on the news cycle that week.

Get breaking news anytime, anywhere. Download the TOI app now!