One of the little-celebrated powers of Presidents (and other high government officials) is to listen to their critics with just enough sympathy to ensure their silence.
John Kenneth GalbraithRead
There are times in politics when you must be on the right side and lose.
Interpretation
In politics, sometimes doing the right thing can lead to loss rather than victory.
This quote highlights the moral dilemmas often faced in politics, where adhering to one's principles may not always align with achieving success. It underscores the idea that there are moments in political life when the ethical choice leads to defeat, signaling that integrity can sometimes come at a cost.
In practice
In a political rally emphasizing integrity, this quote can inspire supporters to value ethics over mere victories.
One of the little-celebrated powers of Presidents (and other high government officials) is to listen to their critics with just enough sympathy to ensure their silence.
If all else fails, immortality can always be assured by spectacular error.
The modern conservative is engaged in one of man's oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness.
All successful revolutions are the kicking in of a rotten door.
Money differs from an automobile or mistress in being equally important to those who have it and those who do not.
People of privilege will always risk their complete destruction rather than surrender any material part of their advantage.
Foreign policy is an explicitly amoral enterprise.
The government should not be guided by Temporary Excitement, but by Sober Second Thought.
I dont think that unless a greater effort is made by the Government to win popular support that the war can be won out there. In the final analysis, it is their war. They are the ones who have to win it or lose it. We can help them, we can give them equipment, we can send our men out there as advisers, but they have to win it, the people of Viet-Nam, against the Communists.
Our brand of democracy is hard. But I can promise that a year from now, when I no longer hold this office, I'll be right there with you as a citizen - inspired by those voices of fairness and vision, of grit and good humor and kindness that have helped America travel so far.
To safeguard democracy the people must have a keen sense of independence, self-respect, and their oneness.
Presidential ambition is a disease that can only be cured by embalming fluid.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.