Top quotes by Jim Hightower

What created democracy was Thomas Paine and Shays' Rebellion, the suffragists and the abolitionists and on down through the populists and the labor movement, including the Wobblies. Tough, in your face people... Mother Jones, Woody Guthrie... Martin Luther King and Caesar Chavez. And now it's down to us. Votes: 63

The opposite for courage is not cowardice, it is conformity. Even a dead fish can go with the flow. Votes: 28

Populists have always been out to challenge the orthodoxy of the corporate order and to empower workaday Americans so they can control their own economic and political destinies. This approach distinguishes the movement from classic liberalism, which seeks to live in harmony with concentrated corporate power by trying to regulate excesses. Votes: 28

Populism is not a style, it's a people's rebellion against the iron grip that big corporations have on our country - including our economy, government, media, and environment. Votes: 19

There's enormous progressive activism and, more often than not, success at the grassroots level - everything from living wage campaigns to efforts to finance our elections are having terrific success. Votes: 18

So now is the time, more than ever, for those who truly value all the principles of democracy, especially including dissent, to be the most forceful in speaking up, standing up and speaking out. Votes: 18

But the good news is that out in the countryside, just about every place that's got a zip code has somebody or some group of people battling the economic and political exclusion that Wall Street and Washington are shoving down our throats. Votes: 15

It's hard to believe President George Bush gave a speech in New Orleans about disaster recovery and failed to mention the word 'farm' or the word 'rural.' Votes: 14

The middle of the road is for yellow lines and dead armadillos. Votes: 14

Ronald Reagan's idea of a good farm program was Hee Haw. Votes: 13

Reagan promised everyone a seven-course dinner. Ours turned out to be a possum and a six-pack. Votes: 12

The good news, though, is that I find in my political travels that people, as regular citizens, are more interested than ever in getting together and having discussions. They want to hear about other viewpoints that differ entirely from what the administration is putting out. Votes: 11

Even a dead fish can go with the flow. Votes: 10

The corporations don't have to lobby the government anymore. They are the government. Votes: 9

If you don't speak out now when it matters, when would it matter for you to speak out? Votes: 9

The only difference between a pigeon and the American farmer today is that a pigeon can still make a deposit on a John Deere. Votes: 9

There's nothing in the middle of the road but a yellow stripe and dead armadillos. Votes: 9

The Bible declares that on the sixth day God created man. Right then and there, God should have demanded a damage deposit. Votes: 9

Some of these rich folks seem to think that everything belongs to them and they'll even get to take it with them when they die. But you know what? You don't ever see a hearse pulling a U Haul. Votes: 9

Democracy is not something that happens, you know, just at election time, and it's not something that happens just with one event. It's an ongoing building process. But it also ought to be a part of our culture, a part of our lives. Votes: 8

When I entered politics, I took the only downward turn you could take from journalism. Votes: 8

Like NASCAR race drivers or PGA golfers, why not require each of the [US presidential] candidates to cover their clothing, briefcases and staff with the logo patches of their corporate sponsors? Votes: 7

This is a matter of public health. The public was sick and tired of DeLay and his corruption. Votes: 5

Do something. If it doesn't work, do something else. No idea is too crazy. Votes: 4

The water won't clear up until we get the hogs out of the creek. Votes: 4

We've got to go to the people with bold ideas and candidates of conviction - we've got to be hotter than high school love. Votes: 4

Some people say we need a third party. I wish we had a second one. Votes: 4

Little ol' boy in the Panhandle told me the other day you can still make a small fortune in agriculture. Problem is, you got to start with a large one. Votes: 3

Even the smallest dog can lift its leg on the tallest building. Votes: 2

Well, I've been in the political arena all of my life, and 10 years of that as a candidate and elected official, and that's about enough. Votes: 2

Founders v. Bush brings the wisdom and eloquence of the Founding Fathers back to the people, while unmasking the fraudulent PR machine that is corrupting their words and stealing our legacy. Votes: 0

The issue isn't just jobs. Even slaves had jobs. The issue is wages. Votes: 0

You can't do progressive government from the inside. You have to rally those outsiders and make them a force. Votes: 0

If you can't be a populist in Arkansas, you ain't going to be a populist in Washington. Votes: 0

It's hard for the donkeys to win the race if they're going to carry the elephants on their backs. Votes: 0

What's new is that the White House itself has now been corporatized. It's not politicians working for the corporate interests. They are the corporate interests. That's where Bush came from, and Cheney and Rumsfeld. Votes: 0

But, as my mother used to tell me, two wrongs don't make a right. But I soon figured out that three left turns do. Votes: 0

Liberals want to manage the damage with government programs to take care of those who have fallen between the cracks. Populists want to fix the cracks so that people don't fall in the first place. Votes: 0

It may be the rooster that does all the crowing but it's the hen that delivers the goods. Votes: 0

America's drug war is so stupid that if you pay close attention to just how stupid it is -- it'll drive you to use drugs. Votes: 0

The media isn't only asleep; it doesn't want to know this news, that the people are revolting, in the very best sense of the term, revolting against the thieves in high places and reaching out to each other, which is our great strength. Votes: 0

When Rick Perry says I can do for America what I've done for Texas, pay attention. That's no idle threat. Votes: 0

Republicans are so empty-headed, they wouldn't make a good landfill. Votes: 0

If you don't speak out when it matters, when would it matter to speak out? Votes: 0

When everybody does better, EVERYBODY does better. Votes: 0

America was not built by conformists, but by mutineers. Votes: 0

Politics ought to be fun. It shouldn't be just boring meetings. Votes: 0

The original Greek word "idiotes" referred to people who might have had a high IQ, but were so self-involved that they focused exclusively on their own life and were both ignorant of and uncaring about public concerns and the common good. Votes: 0

It's an essential fight librarians are making, an age-old fight; yours is a battle for civilization. It's a fight for our country's founding values. Votes: 0

Organic agriculture is more about fairness and respect than it is about parts-per-billion of pesticide residues Votes: 0

If it's dangerous to talk to yourself, it's probably even dicier to listen. Votes: 0

If ignorance goes to forty dollars a barrel, I want drilling rights to George Bush's head. Votes: 0

Good wages are pro business, since they reduce turnover, increase morale, produce better-skilled employees, and improve productivity. Votes: 0

Politics isn't about left versus right; it's about top versus bottom. Votes: 0

You have to learn to read between the lies. Votes: 0

The [Democratic] party is a bank. It collects money and gives it to TV stations. Votes: 0

Banks don't commit crimes. Bankers do. And they won't ever stop if they don't have to pay for their crimes. Votes: 0

Becoming a politician is the only step down I could take from being a journalist. Votes: 0

The real bias of the media is not to the left or to the right, but to the thin strata of economic elites at the top of our society. Votes: 0

Populism is at its essence [...] just determined focus on helping people be able to get out of the iron grip of the corporate power that is overwhelming our economy, our environment, energy, the media, government. [...] One big difference between real populism and what the Tea Party thing is, is that real populists understand that government has become a subsidiary of corporations. So you can't say, let's get rid of government. You need to be saying let's take over government. Votes: 0

The corporation cannot be ethical, its only responsibility is to make a profit. Votes: 0

Even a little dog can piss on a big building. Votes: 0