Top quotes by Calvin Coolidge

Knowledge comes, but wisdom lingers. It may not be difficult to store up in the mind a vast quantity of facts within a comparatively short time, but the ability to form judgments requires the severe discipline of hard work and the tempering heat of experience and maturity. Votes: 42

Christmas is not a time nor a season, but a state of mind. To cherish peace and goodwill, to be plenteous in mercy, is to have the real spirit of Christmas. Votes: 42

Perhaps one of the most important accomplishments of my administration has been minding my own business. Votes: 28

Patriotism is easy to understand in America. It means looking out for yourself by looking out for your country. Votes: 25

The slogan 'press on' has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race. Votes: 23

We need more of the Office Desk and less of the Show Window in politics. Let men in office substitute the midnight oil for the limelight. Votes: 20

It takes a great man to be a good listener. Votes: 18

The nation which forgets its defenders will be itself forgotten. Votes: 18

I have found it advisable not to give too much heed to what people say when I am trying to accomplish something of consequence. Invariably they proclaim it can't be done. I deem that the very best time to make the effort. Votes: 17

Little progress can be made by merely attempting to repress what is evil. Our great hope lies in developing what is good. Votes: 16

All growth depends upon activity. There is no development physically or intellectually without effort, and effort means work. Votes: 16

Men speak of natural rights, but I challenge any one to show where in nature any rights existed or were recognized until there was established for their declaration and protection a duly promulgated body of corresponding laws. Votes: 15

No enterprise can exist for itself alone. It ministers to some great need, it performs some great service, not for itself, but for others; or failing therein, it ceases to be profitable and ceases to exist. Votes: 15

Advertising ministers to the spiritual side of trade. It is great power that has been entrusted to your keeping which charges you with the high responsibility of inspiring and ennobling the commercial world. It is all part of the greater work of the regeneration and redemption of mankind. Votes: 14

Industry, thrift and self-control are not sought because they create wealth, but because they create character. Votes: 14

If the people fail to vote, a government will be developed which is not their government... The whole system of American Government rests on the ballot box. Unless citizens perform their duties there, such a system of government is doomed to failure. Votes: 13

The man who builds a factory builds a temple, that the man who works there worships there, and to each is due, not scorn and blame, but reverence and praise. Votes: 11

Civilization and profit go hand in hand. Votes: 11

No nation ever had an army large enough to guarantee it against attack in time of peace, or ensure it of victory in time of war. Votes: 10

The government of the United States is a device for maintaining in perpetuity the rights of the people, with the ultimate extinction of all privileged classes. Votes: 10

In the discharge of the duties of this office, there is one rule of action more important than all others. It consists in never doing anything that someone else can do for you. Votes: 9

Whether one traces his Americanism back three centuries to the Mayflower, or three years to the steerage, is not half so important as whether his Americanism of today is real and genuine. No matter by what various crafts we came here, we are all now in the same boat. Votes: 9

Your ability to face setbacks and disappointments without giving up will be the measure of your ability to succeed. Votes: 8

Economy is the method by which we prepare today to afford the improvements of tomorrow. Votes: 7

Advertising is the life of trade. Votes: 6

It is only when men begin to worship that they begin to grow. Votes: 6

Those who trust to chance must abide by the results of chance. Votes: 6

We draw our Presidents from the people. It is a wholesome thing for them to return to the people. I came from them. I wish to be one of them again. Votes: 5

The business of America is business. Votes: 5

You know, I have found out in the course of a long public life that the things I did not say never hurt me. Votes: 2

Restricted immigration is not an offensive but purely a defensive action. It is not adopted in criticism of others in the slightest degree, but solely for the purpose of protecting ourselves. We cast no aspersions on any race or creed, but we must remember that every object of our institutions of society and government will fail unless America be kept American. Votes: 0

It would be folly to argue that the people cannot make political mistakes. They can and do make grave mistakes. They know it, they pay the penalty, but compared with the mistakes which have been made by every kind of autocracy they are unimportant. Votes: 0

I have never been hurt by what I have not said. Votes: 0

July 4, 1776 was the historic day on which the representatives of three millions of people vocalized Concord, and Lexington, and Bunker Hill, which gave notice to the world that they proposed to establish an independent nation on the theory that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Votes: 0

There's more, much more, to Christmas Than candlelight and cheer; It's the spirit of sweet friendship That brightens all year. It's thoughtfulness and kindness, It's hope reborn again, For peace, for understanding, And for goodwill to men! Votes: 0

We must have no carelessness in our dealings with public property or the expenditure of public money. Such a condition is characteristic either of an undeveloped people, or of a decadent civilization. America is neither. Votes: 0

No method of procedure has ever been devised by which liberty could be divorced from local self-government. No plan of centralization has ever been adopted which did not result in bureaucracy, tyranny, inflexibility, reaction, and decline. Votes: 0

The centralization of power in Washington, which nearly all members of Congress deplore in their speech and then support by their votes, steadily increases. Votes: 0

Not long ago I heard a Navy chaplain refer to the sage advice of the Apostle to put first things first...If we are to heed the admonition to put first things first...one of the main essentials which lies at the very beginning of civilization is that of security. Votes: 0

No person was ever honored for what he received. Honor has been the reward for what he gave. Votes: 0

It has become the custom in our country to expect all Chief Executives, from the President down, to conduct activities analogous to an entertainment bureau. No occasion is too trivial for its promoters to invite them to attend and deliver an address. Votes: 0

Collecting more taxes than is absolutely necessary is legalized robbery. Votes: 0

The most common commodity in this country is unrealized potential. Votes: 0

If all men are created equal, that is final. If they are endowed with inalienable rights, that is final. If governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed, that is final. No advance, no progress can be made beyond these propositions. Votes: 0

Don't expect to build up the weak by pulling down the strong. Votes: 0

To live under the American Constitution is the greatest political privilege that was ever accorded to the human race. Votes: 0

They criticize me for harping on the obvious; if all the folks in the United States would do the few simple things they know they ought to do, most of our big problems would take care of themselves. Votes: 0

Prosperity is only an instrument to be used, not a deity to be worshipped. Votes: 0

There is no force so democratic as the force of an ideal. Votes: 0

The right thing to do never requires any subterfuge, it is always simple and direct. Votes: 0

Four-fifths of all our troubles would disappear, if we would only sit down and keep still. Votes: 0

If I had permitted my failures, or what seemed to me at the time a lack of success, to discourage me I cannot see any way in which I would ever have made progress. Votes: 0

Wealth comes from industry and from the hard experience of human toil. To dissipate it in waste and extravagance is disloyalty to humanity. Votes: 0

Doubters do not achieve; skeptics do not contribute; cynics do not create. Votes: 0

Duty is not collective; it is personal. Votes: 0

Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not: nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not: the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. Votes: 0

Honorable Senators: My sincerest thanks I offer you. Conserve the firm foundations of our institutions. Do your work with the spirit of a soldier in the public service. Be loyal to the Commonwealth and to yourselves and be brief; above all be brief. Votes: 0

Eat it up, make it do, wear it out. Votes: 0

The welfare of the weakest and the welfare of the most powerful are inseparably bound together. ... The general welfare cannot be provided for in any one act, but it is well to remember that the benefit of one is the benefit of all, and the neglect of one is the neglect of all, Votes: 0

Changing a college curriculum is like moving a graveyard-you never know how many friends the dead have until you try to move them! Votes: 0

The country is not in good condition. Votes: 0

In other periods of depression, it has always been possible to see some things which were solid and upon which you could base hope, but as I look about, I now see nothing to give ground to hope-nothing of man. Votes: 0

I have noticed that nothing I never said ever did me any harm. Votes: 0

Our domestic problems are for the most part economic. We have our enormous debt to pay, and we are paying it. We have the high cost of government to diminish, and we are diminishing it. We have a heavy burden of taxation to reduce, and we are reducing it. But while remarkable progress has been made in these directions, the work is yet far from accomplished. Votes: 0

Heroism is not only in the man, but in the occasion. Votes: 0

I cannot think of anything characteristically American that was not produced by toil. I cannot think of any American man or woman preeminent in the history of our nation who did not reach their place through toil. I cannot think of anything that represents the American people as a whole so adequately as honest work. Votes: 0

There is no dignity quite so impressive, and no one independence quite so important, as living within your means. Votes: 0

Liberty is not collective, it is personal. All liberty is individual liberty. Votes: 0

We do not need more intellectual power, we need more spiritual power. We do not need more of the things that are seen, we need more of the things that are unseen. Votes: 0

What we need in appointive positions is men of knowledge and experience who have sufficient character to resist temptations. Votes: 0

Industry cannot flourish if labor languish. Votes: 0

I sometimes wish that people would put a little more emphasis upon the observance of the law than they do upon its enforcement. Votes: 0

It is much more important to kill bad bills than to pass good ones. Votes: 0

Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Votes: 0

Don't hesitate to be as revolutionary as science. Don't hesitate to be as reactionary as the multiplication table. Votes: 0

If you see ten troubles coming down the road, you can be sure that nine will run into the ditch before they reach you. Votes: 0

America's present need is not heroics, but healing; not nostrums, but normalcy; not revolution, but restoration; not agitation, but adjustment; not surgery, but serenity; not the dramatic, but the dispassionate; not experiment, but equipoise; not submergence in internationality, but sustainment in triumphant nationality. Votes: 0

We have too much legislating by clamor, by tumult, by pressure. Representative government ceases when outside influence of any kind is substituted for the judgment of the representative. Votes: 0

Nothing is easier than spending public money. It does not appear to belong to anybody. The temptation is overwhelming to bestow it on somebody. Votes: 0

I think the Senate ought to realize that I have to have about me those in whom I have confidence; and unless they find a real blemish on a man, I do not think they ought to make partisan politics out of appointments to the Cabinet. Votes: 0

Ultimately property rights and personal rights are the same thing. Votes: 0

After all, the chief business of the American people is business. They are profoundly concerned with producing, buying, selling, investing and prospering in the world. Votes: 0

A government which lays taxes on the people not required by urgent public necessity and sound public policy is not a protector of liberty, but an instrument of tyranny. It condemns the citizen to servitude. Votes: 0

There is no right to strike against the public safety by anybody, anywhere, any time. Votes: 0

The collection of taxes which are not absolutely required, which do not beyond reasonable doubt contribute to public welfare, is only a species of legalized larceny. Under this Republic the rewards of industry belong to those who earn them. Votes: 0

Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not;nothing is more common than unsuccessful people with talent.Genius will not; un-rewarded genius is almost a proverb. Votes: 0

Good government cannot be found on the bargain-counter. We have seen samples of bargain-counter government in the past when low tax rates were secured by increasing the bonded debt for current expenses or refusing to keep our institutions up to the standard in repairs, extensions, equipment, and accommodations. I refuse, and the Republican Party refuses, to endorse that method of sham and shoddy economy. Votes: 0

I favor the policy of economy, not because I wish to save money, but because I wish to save people. Votes: 0

It is difficult for men in high office to avoid the malady of self-delusion. They are always surrounded by worshipers. They are constantly, and for the most part sincerely, assured of their greatness. Votes: 0

We demand entire freedom of action and then expect the government in some miraculous way to save us from the consequences of our own acts.... Self-government means self-reliance. Votes: 0

It is characteristic of the unlearned that they are forever proposing something which is old, and because it has recently come to their own attention, supposing it to be new. Votes: 0

Theodore Roosevelt was always getting himself in hot water by talking before he had to commit himself upon issues not well-defined. Votes: 0

Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not: nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Votes: 0

When more and more people are thrown out of work, unemployment results. Votes: 0

Our government rests upon religion. It is from that source that we derive our reverance for truth and justice, for equality and liberty, and for the rights of mankind. Unless the people believe in these principles they cannot believe in our government. Votes: 0

That man has offered me unsolicited advice for six years, most of it bad. Votes: 0

Advertising is the most potent influence in adapting and changing the habits and modes of life affecting what we eat, what we wear, and the work and play of a whole nation. Votes: 0

The world is full of educated derelicts. Votes: 0

Human nature provides sufficient distrust of all that is alien, so that there is no need of any artificial supply. Votes: 0

When people are bewildered they tend to become credulous. Votes: 0

Never go out to meet trouble. If you just sit still, nine cases out of ten, someone will intercept it before it reaches you. Votes: 0

When large numbers of men are unable to find work, unemployment results. Votes: 0

There are always those who are willing to surrender local self-government and turn over their affairs to some national authority in exchange for a payment of money out of the Federal Treasury. Whenever they find some abuse needs correction in their neighborhood, instead of applying the remedy themselves they seek to have a tribunal sent on from Washington to discharge their duties for them, regardless of the fact that in accepting such supervision they are bartering away their freedom. Votes: 0

Unless the people, through unified action, arise and take charge of their government, they will find that their government has taken charge of them. Independence and liberty will be gone, and the general public will find itself in a condition of servitude to an aggregation of organized and selfish interest. Votes: 0

We are too solicitous for government intervention, on the theory, first, that the people themselves are helpless, and second, that the Government has superior capacity for action. Often times both of these conclusions are wrong. Votes: 0

One of the first lessons a president has to learn is that every word he says weighs a ton. Votes: 0

The best help that benevolence and philanthropy can give is that which induces everybody to help himself. Votes: 0

I want the people of America to be able to work less for the government, and more for themselves Votes: 0

The only way I know to drive out evil from the country is by the constructive method of filling it with good. Votes: 0

Money will not purchase character or good government. Votes: 0

I favor the policy of economy, not because I wish to save money, but because I wish to save people. The men and women of this country who toil are the ones who bear the cost of the Government. Every dollar that we carelessly waste means that their life will be so much the more meager. Every dollar that we save means that their life will be so much the more abundant. Economy is idealism in its most practical form. Votes: 0

We do not need more material development, we need more spiritual development. We do not need more intellectual power, we need more moral power. We do not need more knowledge, we need more character. We do not need more government, we need more culture. We do not need more law, we need more religion. We do not need more of the things that are seen, we need more of the things that are unseen. It is on that side of life that it is desirable to put the emphasis at the present time. If that side be strengthened, the other side will take care of itself. Votes: 0

Those who want their rights respected under the Constitution and the law ought to set the example themselves of observing the Constitution and the law. While there may be those of high intelligence who violate the law at times, the barbarian and the defective always violate it. Those who disregard the rules of society are not exhibiting a superior intelligence, are not promoting freedom and independence, are not following the path of civilization, but are displaying the traits of ignorance, of servitude, of savagery, and treading the way that leads back to the jungle. Votes: 0

The property of the people belongs to the people. To take it from them by taxation cannot be justified except by urgent public necessity. Unless this principle be recognized our country is no longer secure, our people no longer free. Votes: 0

Numbered among our population are some 12,000,000 colored people. Under our Constitution their rights are just as sacred as those of any other citizen. It is both a public and a private duty to protect those rights. The Congress ought to exercise all its powers of prevention and punishment against the hideous crime of lynching, of which the negroes are by no means the sole sufferers, but for which they furnish a majority of the victims. Votes: 0

Surprisingly few men are lacking in capacity, but they fail because... they are too indolent to apply themselves with the seriousness and the attention that is necessary to solve important problems. Votes: 0

Life is one darn thing after another. Votes: 0

This country would not be a land of opportunity, America could not be America, if the people were shackled with government monopolies. Votes: 0

Governments do not make ideals, but ideals make governments. Votes: 0

We identify the flag with almost everything we hold dear on earth, peace, security, liberty, our family, our friends, our home. . .But when we look at our flag and behold it emblazoned with all our rights we must remember that it is equally a symbol of our duties. Every glory that we associate with it is the result of duty done. Votes: 0

We want wealth, but there are many other things we want very much more. Among them are peace, honor, charity, and idealism. Votes: 0

I did not see the sense in chasing a little white ball around a field. Votes: 0

Anytime you don't want anything you get it. Votes: 0

The foundations of our society and our government rest so much on the teachings of the Bible that it would be difficult to support them if faith in these teachings would cease to be practically universal in our country. Votes: 0

We cannot do everything at once, but we can do something at once. Votes: 0

Governments do not make ideals, but ideals make governments. This is both historically and logically true. Of course the government can help to sustain ideals and can create institutions through which they can be the better observed, but their source by their very nature is in the people. The people have to bear their own responsibilities. There is no method by which that burden can be shifted to the government. It is not the enactment, but the observance of laws, that creates the character of a nation. Votes: 0

If American democracy is to remain the greatest hope of humanity, it must continue abundantly in the faith of the Bible Votes: 0

You can't increase prosperity by taxing success. Votes: 0

In life there is nothing more common than talent and intelligence. What is missing is passion, persistence, commitment, and dedication. Votes: 0

A display of reason rather than a threat of force should be the determining factor in the intercourse among nations. Votes: 0

You can't know too much, but you can say too much. Votes: 0

In a republic the first rule for the guidance of the citizen is obedience of the law. Votes: 0

What men owe to the love and help of good women can never be told. Votes: 0

The Constitution is the sole source and guaranty of national freedom. Votes: 0

If we judge ourselves only by our aspirations and everyone else only their conduct we shall soon reach a very false conclusion. Votes: 0

There is no justification for public interference with purely private concerns. Votes: 0

The fundamental precept of liberty is toleration. Votes: 0

After order and liberty, economy is one of the highest essentials of a free government. Votes: 0

Character is the only secure foundation of the state. Votes: 0

The danger to America is not in the direction of the failure to maintain its economic position, but in the direction of the failure to maintain its ideals. Votes: 0

School is not the end but only the beginning of an education. Votes: 0

One day the President and Mrs. Coolidge were visiting a government farm. Soon after their arrival they were taken off on separate tours. When Mrs. Coolidge passed the chicken pens she paused to ask the man in charge if the rooster copulates more than once each day. "Dozens of times, was the reply." "Please tell that to the President," Mrs. Coolidge requested. When the President passed the pens and was told about the roosters, he asked "Same hen every time?" "Oh no, Mr. President, a different one each time." The President nodded slowly, then said, "Tell that to Mrs. Coolidge." Votes: 0

Education should be the handmaid of citizenship. Votes: 0

There is no substitute for a militant freedom. Votes: 0

Freedom is not only bought with a great price; it is maintained by unremitting effort. Votes: 0

There is no surer road to destruction than prosperity without character. Votes: 0

Our country represents nothing but peaceful intentions toward all the earth, but it ought not to fail to maintain such a military force as comports with the dignity and security of a great people. Votes: 0

What we need is not more Federal government, but better local government. Votes: 0

We cannot permit any inquisition either within or without the law or apply any religious test to the holding of office. The mind of America must be forever free. Votes: 0

It is hard to see how a great man can be an atheist. Without the sustaining influence of faith in a divine power we could have little faith in ourselves. We need to feel that behind us is intelligence and love. Doubters do not achieve; skeptics do not contribute; cynics do not create. Faith is the great motive power, and no man realizes his full possibilities unless he has the deep conviction that life is eternally important, and that his work, well done, is a part of an unending plan. Votes: 0

The door of opportunity swings wide open in our country. Through it, in constant flow, go those who toil. America recognizes no aristocracy save those who work. The badge of service is the sole requirement for admission to the ranks of our nobility. Votes: 0

We insist on producing a farm surplus, but think the government should find a profitable market for it. We overindulge in speculation, but ask the government to prevent panics. Now the only way to hold the government entirely responsible for conditions is to give up our liberty for a dictatorship. If we continue the more reasonable practice of managing our own affairs we must bear the burdens of our own mistakes. A free people cannot shift their responsibility for them to the government. Self-government means self-reliance. Votes: 0

Inflation is repudiation. Votes: 0

Civilisation and profits go hand in hand. Votes: 0

If you don't say anything, you won't be called on to repeat it. Votes: 0

You don't have to explain something you never said. Votes: 0

History reveals no civilized people among whom there was not a highly educated class and large aggregations of wealth. Large profits mean large payrolls. Votes: 0

A wholesome regard for the memory of the great men of long ago is the best assurance to a people of a continuation of great men to come, who shall be able to instruct, to lead, and to inspire. A people who worship at the shrine of true greatness will themselves be truly great. Votes: 0

Few people are lacking in capacity, but they fail because they are lacking in application. Votes: 0

I do not want to see any of the people cringing supplicants for the favor of the Government, when they should all be independent masters of their own destiny. Votes: 0

If a painting of a tree was only the exact representation of the original, so that it looked just like the tree, there would be no reason for making it; we might as well look at the tree itself. But the painting, if it is of the right sort, gives something that neither a photograph nor a view of the tree conveys. It emphasizes something of character, quality, individuality. We are not lost in looking at thorns and defects; we catch a vision of the grandeur and beauty of a king of the forest. Votes: 0

Man everywhere has an unconquerable desire to be the master of his own destiny. Votes: 0

A lost article invariably shows up after you replace it. Votes: 0

Business will be either better or worse. Votes: 0

The words of the President have an enormous weight and ought not to be used indiscriminately. Votes: 0

There have been great men with little of what we call education. There have been many small men with a great deal of learning. There has never been a great people who did not possess great learning. Votes: 0

Silence can never be misquoted. Votes: 0

Some of the offers that have come to me would never have come if I had not been President. That means these people are trying to hire not Calvin Coolidge, but a former President of the United States. I can't make that kind of use of the office.... I can't do anything that might take away from the Presidency any of its dignity, or any of the faith people have in it. Votes: 0

There is new life in the soil for every man. There is healing in the trees for tired minds and for our overburdened spirits, there is strength in the hills, if only we will lift up our eyes. Remember that nature is your great restorer. Votes: 0

Wherever despotism abounds, the sources of public information are the first to be brought under its control. Votes: 0

I want taxes to be less, that the people may have more. Votes: 0

The only difference between a mob and a trained army is organization. Votes: 0

One with the law is a majority. Votes: 0

No man ever listened himself out of a job. Votes: 0

Wherever we look, the work of the chemist has raised the level of our civilization and has increased the productive capacity of the nation. Votes: 0

Coincident with the right of individual property under the provisions of our Government is the right of individual property. . . . When once the right of the individual to liberty and equality is admitted, there is no escape from the conclusion that he alone is entitled to the rewards of his own industry. Any other conclusion would necessarily imply either privilege or servitude. Votes: 0

Mass demand has been created almost entirely through the development of advertising. Votes: 0

I love Vermont because of her hills and valleys, her scenery and invigorating climate, but most of all because of her indomitable people. They are a race of pioneers who have almost beggared themselves to serve others. If the spirit of liberty should vanish in other parts of the Union, and support of our institutions should languish, it could all be replenished from the generous store held by the people of this brave little state of Vermont. Votes: 0

When a great many people are unable to find work, unemployment results. Votes: 0

Any man who does not like dogs and want them about does not deserve to be in the White House. Votes: 0

The business of the country is business. Votes: 0

Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. Votes: 0

Because of what America is and what America has done, a firmer courage, a higher hope, inspires the heart of all humanity. Votes: 0

The chief business of the American people is business. Votes: 0

America has but one main problem -- the character of the men and women it shall produce. Votes: 0

It is difficult for men in high office to avoid the malady of self-delusion Votes: 0

The presidency does not yield to definition. Like the glory of a morning sunrise, it can be experienced. Votes: 0

It is not the enactment, but the observance of laws, that creates the character of a nation. Votes: 0

Teaching is one of the noblest of professions. It requires an adequate preparation and training, patience, devotion, and a deep sense of responsibility. Those who mold the human mind have wrought not for time, but for eternity. Votes: 0

One of the greatest perils to an extensive republic is the disregard of individual rights. Votes: 0

No one ever lost his job by listening too much. Votes: 0

As I went about with my father, when he collected taxes, I knew that when taxes were laid someone had to work hard to earn the money to pay them. Votes: 0

Well, farmers never have made money. I don't believe we can do much about it. But of course we will have to seem to be doing something; do the best we can and without much hope. The life of the farmer has its compensations but it has always been one of hardship. Votes: 0

This is as good a time as any to comment on what I think has grown into an abuse. Congress makes holidays and every time there isa holiday it is the practice for one department to telephone over to another department and say we are going to have an extra holiday in this department and what is your department going to do about it.... If it comes on Saturday, they want a holiday on Friday, and of course they couldn't come back and travel on Sunday and so they want another holiday on Monday to get back on. Votes: 0

The final solution for unemployment is work. Votes: 0

Any reward that is worth having only comes to the industrious. The success which is made in any walk of life is measured almost exactly by the amount of hard work that is put into it. Votes: 0

We cannot weaken or destroy political parties in ther United States without weakening or destroying the rule of the people.... Those who support party organization and submit to party discipline are supporting the only course yet discovered for orderly government by the people. Votes: 0

War is the rule of force, and peace is the reign of law. Votes: 0

Nobody will ever forget what I've accomplished. Votes: 0

One of the greatest favors that can be bestowed upon the American people is economy in government. Votes: 0

The government can supply no substitute for enterprise. Votes: 0

Works which endure come from the soul of the people. The mighty in their pride walk alone to destruction. The humble walk hand in hand with providence to immortality. Their works survive. Votes: 0

Work is not a curse; it is the prerogative of intelligence, the only means to manhood, and the measure of civilization. Votes: 0

Everyone has an influence on public affairs if he will take the trouble to exert it. Votes: 0

America... Cherishes no purpose save to merit the favor of Almighty God. Votes: 0

What the end of the carnage of World War II meant to those who remember it, can never be forgotten, but to all those who don't, its meaning can never be fully understood! Votes: 0

To place your name by gift or bequest in the keeping of an active educational institution is to...make a permanent contribution to the welfare of humanity. Votes: 0

The man who builds a factory, builds a temple. Votes: 0

There are racial considerations too grave to be brushed aside for any sentimental reasons. Biological laws tell us that certain divergent people will not mix or blend. The Nordics propagate themselves successfully. With other races, the outcome shows deterioration on both sides. Quality of mind and body suggests that observance of ethnic law is as great a necessity to a nation as immigration law. Votes: 0

We have got so many regulatory laws already that in general I feel that we would be just as well off if we didn't have any more. Votes: 0

Whenever I indulge my sense of humor, it gets me into trouble. Votes: 0

I guess I am not naturally energetic. I like to sit around and talk. Votes: 0

Under our institutions each individual is born to sovereignty. Whatever he may adopt as a means of livelihood, his real business is serving his country. He cannot hold himself above his fellow men. The greatest place of command is really the place of obedience, and the greatest place of honor is really the place of service. Votes: 0

A government which requires of the people the contribution of the bulk of their substance and rewards cannot be classed as a free government... Votes: 0

You can display no greater wisdom than by resisting proposals for needless legislation. It is much more important to kill bad bills than to pass good ones. Votes: 0

Governments are necessarily continuing concerns. They have to keep going in good times and in bad. They therefore need a wide margin of safety. If taxes and debt are made all the people can bear when times are good, there will be certain disaster when times are bad. Votes: 0

Prosperity cannot be divorced from humanity. Votes: 0

Nothing is more common than unsuccessful people with talent. Votes: 0

The doctrine of the Declaration of Independence predicated upon the glory of man and the corresponding duty to society that the rights of citizens ought to be protected with every power and resource of the state, and a government that does any less is false to the teachings of that great document false to the name American. Votes: 0

I think the American public wants a solemn ass as a president, and I think I'll go along with them. Votes: 0

I always enjoy animal acts. Votes: 0

The American Revolution represented the informed and mature convictions of a great mass of independent, liberty-loving, God-fearing people who knew their rights, and possessed the courage to dare to maintain them. Votes: 0

The government of a country never gets ahead of the religion of a country. There is no way by which we can substitute the authority of the law for the virtues of men Votes: 0

We have found that when men and women are left free to find the places for which they are best fitted, some few of them will indeed attain less exalted stations than under a regime of privilege; but the vast multitude will rise to a higher level, to wider horizons, to worthier attainments. Votes: 0

There has been abroad many times some criticism of our Government, of our people, and our ways, but that has demonstrated, I think, that when they are in real trouble and real difficulty over there, they turn to us as a nation that will be fair with them--one in whose judgment and in whose character they can rely; and that not withstanding differences that have seemed to exist, they are willing to abide by the faith that they have in us, and I think that is a very substantial accomplishment. Votes: 0

The prohibition amendment to the Constitution requires the Congress. and the President to provide adequate laws to prevent its violation. It is my duty to enforce such laws.To prevent smuggling, the Coast Card should be greatly strengthened, and a supply of swift power boats should be provided. The major sources of production should be rigidly regulated, and every effort should be made to suppress interstate traffic... It is the duty of a citizen not only to observe the law but to let it be known that he is opposed to its violation. Votes: 0

I do not choose to run for President in 1928. Votes: 0

We need not concern ourselves much about rights of property if we faithfully observe the rights of persons. Votes: 0

The duties which a police officer owes to the state are of a most exacting nature. No one is compelled to choose the profession ofa police officer, but having chosen it, everyone is obliged to live up to the standard of its requirements. To join in that high enterprise means the surrender of much individual freedom. Votes: 0

The higher state to which [America] seeks the allegiance of all mankind is not of human, but of divine origin. She cherishes no purpose save to merit the favor of Almighty God. Votes: 0

Can those entrusted with the gravest authority set any example save that of the sternest obedience to the law? Votes: 0

Nordics deteriorate when mixed with other races. Votes: 0

At first I intended to become a student of the Senate rules and I did learn much about them, but I soon found that the Senate hadbut one fixed rule, subject to exceptions of course, which was to the effect that the Senate would do anything it wanted to do whenever it wanted to do it. Votes: 0

We do not need more knowledge, we need more character! Votes: 0

Look well to the hearthstone; therein all hope for America lies. Votes: 0

The measure discriminates definitely against products which make up what has been universally considered a program of safe farming. The bill upholds as ideals of American farming the men who grow cotton, corn, rice, swine, tobacco, or wheat and nothing else. These are to be given special favors at the expense of the farmer who has toiled for years to build up a constructive farming enterprise to include a variety of crops and livestock. Votes: 0

[The reason a man has] so much trouble with the Senate is that there isn't a man in the Senate who doesn't think he is better suited to be President than the President, and thinks he might have been President except for luck. Votes: 0

It is accordance with our determination to refrain from aggression and build up a sentiment and practice among nations more favorable to peacethat we have incurred the consent of fourteen important nations to the negotiation of a treaty condemning recourse to war, renouncing it as an instrument of national policy. Votes: 0

The suggestion of denying any measure of their full political rights to such a great group of our population as the colored peopleis one which, however it might be received in some other quarters, could not possibly be permitted by one who feels a responsibility for living up to the traditions and maintaining the principles of the Republican Party. Our Constitution guarantees equal rights to all of our citizens, without discrimination on account of race or color. I have taken my oath to support that Constitution. Votes: 0

They [the Founding Fathers] were intent upon establishing a Christian commonwealth in accordance with the principle of self-government. They were an inspired body of men. It has been said that God sifted the nations that He might send choice grain into the wilderness ... Who can fail to see it in the hand of Destiny? Who can doubt that it has been guided by a Divine Providence? Votes: 0

The president stands between the twin mirrors of the past and future, causing his being to become reflected an infinite amount of times. At first, this can be very disorienting. But it induces the president to move quickly. He may, for example, mimic a wave with his arms in order to see how his actions extend across this mirroring of time, observing if the figure at the end acts at the same instant as the figure before him, and so on and so forth. Votes: 0

[The political mind] is a strange mixture of vanity and timidity, of an obsequious attitude at one time and a delusion of grandeurat another time. The political mind is the product of men in public life who have been twice spoiled. They have been spoiled with praise and they have been spoiled with abuse. Votes: 0

I should think that an ordinary copy of the King James version would have been good enough for those Congressmen. Votes: 0

While I do not think it was so intended I have always been of the opinion that this turned out to be much the best for me. I had no national experience. What I have ever been able to do has been the result of first learning how to do it. I am not gifted with intuition. I need not only hard work but experience to be ready to solve problems. The Presidents who have gone to Washington without first having held some national office have been at great disadvantage. Votes: 0

If you can get enough votes so that mine will make a majority, you can have it. Votes: 0

To expect to increase prices and then to maintain them at a higher level by means of a plan which must of necessity increase production while decreasing consumption is to fly in the face of an economic law as well established as any law of nature. Votes: 0

These things do not happen by chance. There is much less luck in public affairs than some suppose. Votes: 0

America has many glories. The last one that she would wish to surrender is the glory of the men who have served her in war. While such devotion lives, the nation is secure. Whatever dangers may threaten from within or without, she can view them calmly. Turning to her veterans, she can say: 'These are our defenders. They are invincible. In them is our safety. Votes: 0

I have done it [appointed commissions] regretfully and with the hope that it would be temporary. But after a commission is established you find it always wants to enlarge itself, employ more people, is very busy with Senators and Congressmen to impress upon them the great value of the services of the commission, and even when I talk to people that I appoint to commissions and tell them I would like them to go on to various boards with the idea that they may be abolished, they say they ought to be abolished, but when they have taken their position they very soon seem to change their mind. Votes: 0

A colored man is precisely as much entitled to submit his candidacy in a party primary, as is any other citizen. The decision must be made by the constituents to whom he offers himself, and by nobody else. Votes: 0

I shouldn't want you to be surprised, or to draw any particular inference from my making speeches, or not making speeches, out there. I don't recall any candidate for President that ever injured himself very much by not talking. Votes: 0

The right of the police of Boston to affiliate has always been questioned, never granted, is now prohibited.... There is no rightto strike against the public safety by anybody, anywhere, any time. Votes: 0

[Speaking of Chinese president Sun Yat-sen] ...combined Benjamin Franklin and George Washington of China. Votes: 0

It would be difficult to conceive a finer example of true sport. Votes: 0

The appropriation of public money always is perfectly lovely until some one is asked to pay the bill. If we are to have a billion dollars of navy, half a billion of farm relief, [etc. ] the people will have to furnish more revenue by paying more taxes. It is for them, through their Congress, to decide how far they wish to go. Votes: 0

I am for economy. After that I am for more economy. At this time and under present conditions that is my conception of serving all the people. Votes: 0

It is very difficult to reconcile the American ideal of a sovereign people capable of owning and managing their own government with an inability to own and manage their own business. Votes: 0

If the people lose control of the arteries of trade and the natural sources of mechanical power, the nationalization of all industry should soon be expected. Our forefathers were alert to resist all encroachments upon their rights. If we wish to maintain our rights, we can do no less. Votes: 0

No matter what anyone may say about making the rich and the corporations pay the taxes, in the end they come out of the people who toil. It is your fellow workers who are ordered to work for the Government, every time an appropriation bill is passed. The people pay the expense of government, often many times over, in the increased cost of living. I want taxes to be less, that the people may have more. Votes: 0

One insidious practice which sugar-coats the dose of Federal intrusion is the division of expense . . . Votes: 0

Nations are beginning to look to some vague organization, some nebulous course of humanity, to pay their bills and tell them what to do. This is not local self-government. It is not American. It is not the method which has made this country what it is. We can not maintain the western standard of civilization on that theory. If it is supported at all, it will have to be supported on the principle of individual responsibility. Votes: 0

What America needs is to hold to its ancient and well-charted course. Our country was conceived in the theory of local self-government. It has been dedicated by long practice to that wise and beneficent policy. It is the foundation principle of our system of liberty. It makes the largest promise to the freedom and development of the individual. Its preservation is worth all the effort and all the sacrifice that it may cost. Votes: 0

No enterprise can exist for itself alone. Votes: 0

Public debt [is] a burden on all the people. Votes: 0

Baseball is our national game. Votes: 0

Why don't we just buy one airplane and let the pilots take turns flying it. Votes: 0

Despotism has forever had a powerful hold upon the world. Autocratic government, not self-government, has been the prevailing state of mankind. The record of past history is the record, not of the success of republics, but of their failure. Votes: 0

Politics is not an end, but a means. It is not a product, but a process. It is the art of government. Like other values it has its counterfeits. So much emphasis has been placed upon the false that the significance of the true has been obscured and politics has come to convey the meaning of crafty and cunning selfishness, instead of candid and sincere service. Votes: 0

While legislation can stimulate and encourage, the real creative ability which builds up and develops the country, and in general makes human existence more tolerable and life more complete, has to be supplied by the genius of the people themselves. The Government can supply no substitute for enterprise. Votes: 0

A government must govern, must prescribe and enforce laws within its sphere or cease to be a government. Moreover, the individual must be independent and free within his own sphere or cease to be an individual. The fundamental question ... is now, and always will be through what adjustments, by what actions, these principles may be applied. Votes: 0

The Jews themselves, of whom a considerable number were already scattered throughout the colonies, were true to the teachings of their prophets. The Jewish faith is predominantly the faith of liberty. Votes: 0

Coolidge expressed his "sympathy with the deep and intense longing which finds such fine expression in the Jewish National Homeland in Palestine." Votes: 0

The more I study it [the Constitution], the more I have come to admire it, realizing that no other document devised by the hand of man ever brought so much progress and happiness to humanity. Votes: 0

No matter what anyone may say about making the rich and the corporations pay taxes, in the end they come out of the people who toil Votes: 0

It is all the more necessary under a system of free government that the people should be enlightened, that they should be correctly informed, than it is under an absolute government that they should be ignorant. Under a republic the institutions of learning, while bound by the constitution and laws, are in no way subservient to the government. Votes: 0

When a man begins to feel that he is the only one who can lead in this republic, he is guilty of treason to the spirit of our institutions. Votes: 0

To the American People: Christmas is not a time or a season but a state of mind. To cherish peace and good will, to be plenteous in mercy, is to have the real spirit of Christmas. If we think on these things, there will be born in us a Savior and over us will shine a star sending its gleam of hope to the world." ~ Calvin Coolidge (1872-1933), American president. Presidential message (December 25, 1927). Votes: 0

The people cannot look to legislation generally for success. Industry, thrift, character, are not conferred by act or resolve. Government cannot relieve from toil. It can provide no substitute for the rewards of service. It can, of course, care for the defective and recognize distinguished merit. The normal must care for themselves. Self-government means self-support. Votes: 0

There is only one form of political strategy in which I have any confidence, and that is to try to do the right thing and sometimes be able to succeed. Votes: 0

I want the people of America to be able to work less for the government and more for themselves. I want them to have the rewards of their own industry. This is the chief meaning of freedom. Until we can reestablish a condition under which the earnings of the people can be kept by the people, we are bound to suffer a very severe and distinct curtailment of our liberty. Votes: 0

We live an age of science and of abounding accumulation of material things. These did not create the Declaration. Our Declaration created them. ... If we are to maintain the great heritage which has been bequeathed to us, we must be like-minded as the fathers who created it. Votes: 0

Whenever Nature's bounty is in danger of exhaustion, the chemist has sought for a substitute. The conquest of disease has made great progress as a result of your efforts. Wherever we look, the work of the chemist has raised the level of our civilization and has increased the productive capacity of the nation. Waste materials, formerly cast aside, are now being utilized. Votes: 0

The benefit of one is the benefit of all, and the neglect of one is the neglect of all. Votes: 0

Do the day's work. If it be to protect the rights of the weak, whoever objects, do it. If it be to help a powerful corporation better to serve the people, whatever the opposition, do that. Expect to be called a stand-patter, but don't be a stand-patter. Expect to be called a demagogue, but don't be a demagogue. Don't hesitate to be as revolutionary as science. Don't hesitate to be as reactionary as the multiplication table. Don't expect to build up the weak by pulling down the strong. Don't hurry to legislate. Give administration a chance to catch up with legislation. Votes: 0

Under our institutions the only way to perfect the Government is to perfect the individual citizen. It is necessary to reach the mind and soul of the individual. I know of no way that this can be done save through the influence of religion and education. By religion I do not mean fanaticism or bigotry; by education I do not mean the cant of the schools, but a broad and tolerant faith, loving thy neighbor as thyself, and a training and experience that enables the human mind to see into the heart of things. Votes: 0

The strength of a country is the strength of its religious convictions. Votes: 0

Faith is the great motive power, and no man realizes his full possibilities unless he has the deep conviction that life is eternally important and that his work well done is a part of an unending plan. Votes: 0

Advertising ministers to the spiritual side of trade. Votes: 0

It seems to me probable that of all our economic life the element on which we are inclined to place too low an estimate is advertising. Votes: 0

Of course, the accumulation of wealth cannot be justified as the chief end of existence, Votes: 0

If there is to be responsible party government, the party label must be something more than a mere device for securing office. Unless those who are elected under the same party designation are willing to assume sufficient responsibility and exhibit sufficient loyalty and coherence, so that they can cooperate with each other in the support of the broad general principles, of the party platform, the election is merely a mockery, no decision is made at the polls, and there is no representation of the popular will. Votes: 0

Realizing that we can not live unto ourselves alone, we have contributed of our resources and our counsel to the relief of the suffering and the settlement of the disputes among the European nations. Because of what America is and what America has done, a firmer courage, a higher hope, inspires the heart of all humanity. Votes: 0

It is not easy to conceive of anything that would be more unfortunate in a community based upon the ideals of which Americans boast than any considerable development of intolerance as regards religion. Votes: 0

[May] this civic and social landmark [the Washington, D.C., Jewish Community Center] ... be a constant reminder of the inspiring service that has been rendered to civilization by men and women of the Jewish faith. May [visitors] recall the long array of those who have been eminent in statecraft, in science, in literature, in art, in the professions, in business, in finance, in philanthropy and in the spiritual life of the world. Votes: 0

It is necessary to have party organization if we are to have effective and efficient government. The only difference between a mob and a trained army is organization, and the only difference between a disorganized country and one that has the advantage of a wise and sound government is fundamentally a question of organization. Votes: 0

The two great political parties of the nation have existed for the purpose, each in accordance with its own principles, of undertaking to serve the interests of the whole nation. Their members of the Congress are chosen with that great end in view. Votes: 0

Men do not make laws. They do but discover them. Votes: 0

Parties do not maintain themselves. They are maintained by effort. The government is not self-existent. It is maintained by the effort of those who believe in it. The people of America believe in American institutions, the American form of government and the American method of transacting business. Votes: 0

There is far more danger of harm than there is hope of good in any radical changes. Votes: 0

The only hope of a short war is to prepare for a long one. Votes: 0

You have to stand every day three or four hours of visitors. Nine-tenths of them want something they ought not to have. If you keep dead-still they will run down in three or four minutes. If you even cough or smile they will start up all over again. Votes: 0

There is no escaping the fact that when the taxation of large incomes is excessive, they tend to disappear. Votes: 0

I should be very sorry to see the United States holding anyone in confinement on account of any opinion that that person might hold. It is a fundamental tenet of our institutions that people have a right to believe what they want to believe and hold such opinions as they want to hold without having to answer to anyone for their private opinion. Votes: 0

One of the greatest dangers to peace lies in the economic pressure to which people find themselves subjected. One of the most practical things to be done in the world is to seek arrangements under which such pressure may be removed, so that opportunity may be renewed and hope may be revived. Votes: 0

If we expect others to rely on our fairness and justice we must show that we rely on their fairness and justice. Votes: 0

Wherever despotism abounds, the sources of public information are the first to be brought under its control. Where ever the cause of liberty is making its way, one of its highest accomplishments is the guarantee of the freedom of the press. Votes: 0

When each citizen submits himself to the authority of law he does not thereby decrease his independence or freedom, but rather increases it. By recognizing that he is a part of a larger body which is banded together for a common purpose, he becomes more than an individual, he rises to a new dignity of citizenship. Instead of finding himself restricted and confined by rendering obedience to public law, he finds himself protected and defended and in the exercise of increased and increasing rights. Votes: 0

I always figured the American public wanted a solemn ass for president, so I went along with them. Votes: 0

It is a great advantage to a President, and a major source of safety to the country, for him to know he is not a great man. Votes: 0

The attempt to regulate, control, and prescribe all manner of conduct and social relations is very old. It was always the practice of primitive peoples. Votes: 0

Self-government means self support. Votes: 0

Nature is inexorable. If men do not follow the truth they cannot live. Votes: 0

Workmen’s compensation, hours and conditions of labor are cold consolations, if there be no employment. Votes: 0

Government price-fixing once started, has alike no justice and no end. It is an economic folly from which this country has every right to be spared. Votes: 0

Measured by the standards of men of their time, [the Pilgrims] were the humble of the earth. Measured by later accomplishments, they were the mighty. In appearance weak and persecuted they came -- rejected, despised -- an insignificant band; in reality strong and independent, a mighty host of whom the world was not worthy destined to free mankind. Votes: 0

It is hard to see how a great man can be an atheist. . . . We need to feel that behind us is intelligence and love. Votes: 0

No Congress of the United States ever assembled, on surveying the state of the Union, has met with a more pleasing prospect than that which appears at the present time. In the domestic field there is tranquillity and contentment, harmonious relations between management and wage earner, freedom from industrial strife, and the highest record of years of prosperity. Votes: 0

American ideals do not require to be changed so much as they require to be understood and applied. Votes: 0

If the Government gets into business on any large scale, we soon find that the beneficiaries attempt to play a large part in the control. While in theory it is to serve the public, in practice it will be very largely serving private interests. It comes to be regarded as a species of government favor and those who are the most adroit get the larger part of it. Votes: 0

The things I never say never get me into trouble. Votes: 0

Christmas is not a time or a season but a state of mind. Votes: 0

It has not been my fortune to know very much of Freemasonry, but I have had the great fortune to know many Freemasons and have been able in that way to judge the tree by its fruit. I know of your high ideals. I have seen that you hold your meetings in the presence of the open Bible, and I know that men who observe that formality have high sentiments of citizenship, of worth, and character. That is the strength of our Commonwealth and nation. Votes: 0

All growth depends upon activity. Votes: 0

Our doctrine of equality and liberty and humanity comes from our belief in the brotherhood of man, through the fatherhood of God. Votes: 0

We do not need to import any foreign economic ideas or any foreign government. We had better stick to the American brand of government, the American brand of equality, and the American brand of wages. America had better stay American Votes: 0

Unless we lay our course in accordance with this principle, the great power for good in the world with which we have been intrusted by a Divine Providence will be turned to a power for evil. Votes: 0

It is only when people can feel that their lives and the property which their industry has produced today will continue to be safe...that there can be...stability of value and...economic progress... Votes: 0

No advance, no progress can be made beyond these propositions. If anyone wishes to deny their truth or their soundness, the only direction in which he can proceed historically is not forward, but backward toward a time when there was no equality, no rights of the individual, no rule of the people. Those who wish to proceed in that direction cannot lay claim to progress. They are reactionary. Their ideas are not more modern, but more ancient than those of our Revolutionary ancestors. Votes: 0

In its main features the Declaration of Independence is a great spiritual document. It is a declaration not of material but of spiritual conceptions. Equality, liberty, popular sovereignty, the rights of man - these are not elements which we can see and touch. They are ideals. They have their source and their roots in the religious convictions. They belong to the unseen world. Unless the faith of the American people in these religious convictions is to endure, the principles of our Declaration will perish. We can not continue to enjoy the result if we neglect and abandon the cause. Votes: 0