Regarding the famous novelist Yukio Mishima: 'Japan is not the same since with him gone, but his politics were a joke.'

On the status of politicians in Japan: 'in Japan people avoid going into politics. I was really looked down on in literary circles [when I went into politics].'

About the United States: 'Fifty years of subservience to the interest of the United States has deprived the Japanese of a national purpose and engendered a par…

On political parties: 'A party is a political tool. If it's no longer useful, it should be crumpled up and thrown away.'