Ronald Reagan

“In this springtime of hope, some lights seem eternal; America's is.”

“If history teaches anything, it teaches that self-delusion in the face of unpleasant facts is folly.”

“Freedom prospers when religion is vibrant and the rule of law under God is acknowledged.”

“Government is like a baby: an alimentary canal with a big appetite at one end and no sense of responsibility at the other.”

“No people in all history paid a higher price for freedom. And no people have done so much to advance the dignity of man. We are called materialistic. May be so…but our materialism has made our children the biggest, tallest, most handsome, and intelligent generations of Americans yet. They will live longer with fewer illnesses, learn more, see more of the world, and have more success in realizing their personal dreams and ambitions than any other people in any other period of our history - because of our materialism…I think on our side of civilization and on the other side is the law of the jungle…We all have to recognize that this country has been handed the responsibility, greater than any nation, to preserve some 6000 years of civilization against the barbarians.”

“Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.”

“I hope we once again have reminded people that man is not free unless government is limited. There's a clear cause and effect here that is as neat and predictable as a law of physics: As government expands, liberty contracts.”

“A troubled and afflicted mankind looks to us, pleading for us to keep our rendezvous with destiny; that we will uphold the principles of self-reliance, self-discipline, morality, and, above all, responsible liberty for every individual that we will become that shining city on a hill.”

“If you analyze it I believe the very heart and soul of conservatism is libertarianism. I think conservatism is really a misnomer just as liberalism is a misnomer for the liberals — if we were back in the days of the Revolution, so-called conservatives today would be the Liberals and the liberals would be the Tories. The basis of conservatism is a desire for less government interference or less centralized authority or more individual freedom and this is a pretty general description also of what libertarianism is.”

“I have no recollection of that ever happening.”

“Each generation goes further than the generation preceding it because it stands on the shoulders of that generation. You will have opportunities beyond anything we've ever known.”

“They tell us we must learn to live with less, and teach our children that their lives will be less full and prosperous than ours have been; that the America of the coming years will be a place where — because of our past excesses — it will be impossible to dream and make those dreams come true. I don't believe that. And, I don't believe you do either. That is why I am seeking the presidency. I cannot and will not stand by and see this great country destroy itself. Our leaders attempt to blame their failures on circumstances beyond their control, on false estimates by unknown, unidentifiable experts who rewrite modern history in an attempt to convince us our high standard of living, the result of thrift and hard work, is somehow selfish extravagance which we must renounce as we join in sharing scarcity. I don't agree that our nation must resign itself to inevitable decline, yielding its proud position to other hands. I am totally unwilling to see this country fail in its obligation to itself and to the other free peoples of the world.”

“What would this country be without this great land of ours.”

“You can’t tax business. Business doesn’t pay taxes. It collects taxes.”

“Status quo, you know, is Latin for 'the mess we're in'.”

“A hippie is someone who looks like Tarzan, walks like Jane and smells like Cheetah.”

“Recession is when your neighbor loses his job. Depression is when you lose yours. And recovery is when Jimmy Carter loses his.”

“I'm no linguist, but I have been told that in the Russian language, there isn't even a word for freedom.”

“As government expands, liberty contracts.”

“Facts are stupid things.”

“Don't be afraid to see what you see.”

“Christmas can be celebrated in the school room with pine trees, tinsel and reindeers, but there must be no mention of the man whose birthday is being celebrated. One wonders how a teacher would answer if a student asked why it was called Christmas.”

“Heroes may not be braver than anyone else. They're just braver 5 minutes longer.”

“Our natural, inalienable rights are now considered to be a dispensation from government, and freedom has never been so fragile, so close to slipping from our grasp as it is at this moment.”

“I've heard that hard work never killed anyone, but I say why take the chance?”

“Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference in the world. But, the Marines don't have that problem.”

“America is too great for small dreams.”

“Let us not forget who we are. Drug abuse is a repudiation of everything America is.”

“Politics is not a bad profession. If you succeed there are many rewards, if you disgrace yourself you can always write a book.”

“How do you tell a Communist? Well, it’s someone who reads Marx and Lenin. And how do you tell an anti-Communist? It’s someone who understands Marx and Lenin.”

“The most terrifying words in the English language are: I'm from the government and I'm here to help.”

“There is no limit to the amount of good you can do if you don't care who gets the credit.”

“It has been said that politics is the second oldest profession. I have learned that it bears a striking resemblance to the first.”

“I know in my heart that man is good, that what is right will always eventually triumph, and there is purpose and worth to each and every life.”

“If we ever forget that we're one nation under God, then we will be one nation gone under.”

“Republicans believe every day is the Fourth of July, but the democrats believe every day is April 15.”

“We will always remember. We will always be proud. We will always be prepared, so we will always be free.”

“Democracy is worth dying for, because it's the most deeply honorable form of government ever devised by man.”

“Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children's children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.”

“You can tell a lot about a fellow's character by his way of eating jellybeans. ”

“To sit back hoping that someday, someway, someone will make things right is to go on feeding the crocodile, hoping he will eat you last - but eat you he will.”

“Government exists to protect us from each other. Where government has gone beyond its limits is in deciding to protect us from ourselves.”

“I have left orders to be awakened at any time during national emergency, even if I'm in a cabinet meeting.”

“Above all, we must realize that no arsenal, or no weapon in the arsenals of the world, is so formidable as the will and moral courage of free men and women.”