Rolling Stone Magazine Wrote:Mullen and the silver-haired Clayton- who has a gentlemanly air, as if he's permanently carrying a nice cup of tea- have pushed for a larger role in the band's songwriting and often end up on the same side of disagreements within the group. But the harder-edged Mullen is the one most likely to say, "No." "I don't give it up easy on any level, " Mullen says. "People think we've all got beepers on, and it's like, 'Bono's had a thought! Oh, fuck! Get out your beeper!" Mullen laughs. "I think if Bono had his way, we'd probably be recording and playing for Africa, and that's how he thinks. Just take everything and give it all . It doesn't work like that. We spend a lot of time trying to hold Bono back from doing the maddest things possible, I just don't understand where he gets the energy."
After this discussion, I develop a new theory about Bono's activism: He does it because convincing George W. Bush to give $15 billion to Africa is easier than getting Larry Mullen Jr. to do anything. Presented with this ides, Bono explodes with laughter. "I love him so, but that's an understatement," he says.