How we cite our quotes: (Part.Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
"The Foundation is the source of power and might. All the greatness of Anacreon; all its ships and its cities and its people and its commerce depend on the dribbles and leavings of power that the Foundation have given us grudgingly." (III.3.43)
Even Wienis, who is all about the military, understands that the Foundation is super powerful. Unfortunately for him, he hasn't figured out where the Foundation's power comes from, so he thinks he can take it through military strength. Big mistake.
Quote #8
"The Actionist party is splitting wide open, and we can murder it right now on a straight question of equal rights for traders; or, rather, democracy, pro- and anti-." (V.3.9)
Sometimes, power comes from asking the right questions. With that information, the people have the power to turn against or for the Actionists. Based on this quote, we're going to assume the answer is against. (We're also going to assume that politicians were a lot more straightforward in Asimov's day, because a straight question is no guarantee of a straight answer, these days.)
Quote #9
"They don't know what I'm doing here and I don't know what they've got here. But I'm in the weaker position because I'm one and they're an entire world—maybe with atomic power. I can't afford to be the one to weaken." (V.4.17)
Notice how the lack of information makes Mallow weak? Yep, you guessed it, knowledge is power. Just thought we'd drive that one home a bit further.