The appointing power vested in the president imposes delicate and onerous duties. So far as it is possible to be informed, I shall make honesty, capacity, and fidelity indispensable prerequisites to the disposal of office, and the absence of either of these qualities shall be deemed sufficient cause for removal.
Interpretation
The president bears significant responsibility in appointing officials and should ensure they possess integrity and competence.
This quote by Zachary Taylor emphasizes the gravity of the president's role in appointing individuals to office. It highlights the importance of selecting honest, capable, and loyal candidates for governmental positions, asserting that failure in any of these areas is a valid reason for dismissal, thereby promoting accountability and integrity within leadership.
In practice
In a speech addressing the importance of ethical leadership, one might quote Taylor to stress the necessity of integrity in public office.
As to the Constitution and the Union, I have taken an oath to support the one, and I cannot do so without preserving the other, unless I commit perjury, which I certainly don't intend to do. We must cherish the Constitution to the last.
I am not a party candidate, and if elected cannot be President of a party, but the President of the whole people.
My life has been devoted to arms, yet I look upon war at all times, and under all circumstances, as a national calamity to be avoided if compatible with national honor.
Within the U.N. itself, I have appointed a record number of women to high-level positions. I did not fill jobs with women just for the sake of it - I looked for the best possible candidate, and I found that if you strip away discrimination, the best possible candidate is often a woman.
The team with the best players usually does win - this is why you need to invest the majority of your time and energy in developing your people.
I'm sad to report that in the past few years, ever since uncertainty became our insistent 21st century companion, leadership has taken a great leap backwards to the familiar territory of command and control.
It will be disastrous when a leader or manager shows up with one attitude one day and treats people with a different attitude the next day.
It is what we prevent, rather than what we do that counts most in Government.
History has shown that one cannot legislate a culture of integrity. And yet, one of the paramount responsibilities and challenges of corporate leadership is to ensure such a culture.
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