Public officers are the servants and agents of the people, to execute the laws which the people have made.
Grover ClevelandRead
The lessons of paternalism ought to be unlearned and the better lesson taught that while the people should patriotically and cheerfully support their government, its functions do not include the support of the people.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Governments should not be seen as primary supporters of their citizens; instead, people must recognize their own responsibility.
Grover Cleveland's quote emphasizes the importance of self-reliance and individual responsibility over paternalism in governance. He suggests that while citizens should support their government, the government's role should not extend to providing for its people, encouraging a mindset where individuals take charge of their own lives and well-being.
Themes
PaternalismGovernmentResponsibilitySupportCitizens
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a political debate to emphasize individual responsibility.
More from Grover Cleveland
All quotes →Unswerving loyalty to duty, constant devotion to truth, and a clear conscience will overcome every discouragement and surely lead the way to usefulness and high achievement.
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Though the people support the government; the government should not support the people.
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Your every voter, as surely as your chief magistrate, exercises a public trust.
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It is the responsibility of the citizens to support their government. It is not the responsibility of the government to support its citizens.
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Once the coffers of the federal government are opened to the public, there will be no shutting them again.
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