Ronald Reagan quotes

My fellow Americans, I am pleased to tell you I just signed legislation which outlaws Russia forever. The bombing begins in five minutes.

I've noticed that everybody that is for abortion has already been born.

We are never defeated unless we give up on God.

But there are advantages to being elected President. The day after I was elected, I had my high school grades classified Top Secret.

Government does not solve problems; it subsidizes them.

Nations crumble from within when the citizenry asks of government those things which the citizenry might better provide for itself.

Trust, but verify.

Entrepreneurs and their small enterprises are responsible for almost all the economic growth in the United States.

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

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 believe the highest aspiration of man should be individual freedom and the development of the individual.

I have wondered at times what the Ten Commandments would have looked like if Moses had run them through the US Congress.

If we ever forget that we are One Nation Under God, then we will be a nation gone under.

Politics I supposed to be the second-oldest profession. I have come to realize that it bears a very close resemblance to the first.

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

We should measure welfare's success by how many people leave welfare, not by how many are added.

Within the covers of the Bible are the answers for all the problems men face.

A government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth.

A people free to choose will always choose peace.

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. It is a weapon our adversaries in today's world do not have.

All great change in America begins at the dinner table.

All the waste in a year from a nuclear power plant can be stored under a desk.

America is no stronger than its people - and that means you and me. Well, I believe in you, and I believe that if we work together then one day we will say, ``We fought the good fight. We finished the race We kept the faith.'' And to our children and our children's children we can say, ``We did all that could be done in the brief time that was given to us here on earth.

Approximately 80% of our air pollution stems from hydrocarbons released by vegetation, so let's not go overboard in setting and enforcing tough emission standards from man-made sources.

As government expands, liberty contracts.

Concentrated power has always been the enemy of liberty.

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

Facts are stubborn things.

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.

Freedom is the recognition that no single person, no single authority or government has a monopoly on the truth, but that every individual life is infinitely precious, that every one of us put in this world has been put there for a reason and has something to offer.

I hope that when you are my age, you will be able to say as I have been able to say: We lived in freedom. We lived lives that were a statement, not an apology.

Let us be sure that those who come after will say of us in our time, that in our time we did everything that could be done. We finished the race; we kept them free; we kept the faith.

Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate! Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!

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.

A baby is an alimentary canal with a loud voice at one end and no responsibility at the other.

A tree's a tree. How many more do you need to look at?

Are you entitled to the fruits of your labor or does government have some presumptive right to spend and spend and spend?

Before I refuse to take your questions, I have an opening statement.

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.

Don't be afraid to see what you see.

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.

Freedom is the right to question and change the established way of doing things. It is the continuous revolution of the marketplace. It is the understanding that allows us to recognize shortcomings and seek solutions.

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

Going to college offered me the chance to play football for four more years.

Government always finds a need for whatever money it gets.

Government does not tax to get the money it needs; government always finds a need for the money it gets.

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

Government is not a solution to our problem, government is the problem.

Government's first duty is to protect the people, not run their lives.

Governments tend not to solve problems, only to rearrange them.

Have we the courage and the will to face up to the immorality and discrimination of the progressive tax, and demand a return to traditional proportionate taxation?

Heroes may not be braver than anyone else. They're just braver five minutes longer.

History teaches that war begins when governments believe the price of aggression is cheap.

History teaches that wars begin when governments believe the price of aggression is cheap.

How can a president not be an actor?

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.

I am not worried about the deficit. It is big enough to take care of itself.

I call upon the scientific community in our country, those who gave us nuclear weapons, to turn their great talents now to the cause of mankind and world peace: to give us the means of rendering these nuclear weapons impotent and obsolete.

I favor the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and it must be enforced at gunpoint if necessary.

I had a dream the other night. I dreamed that Jimmy Carter came to me and asked why I wanted his job. I told him I didn't want his job. I want to be President.

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

I know in my heart that man is good. That what is right will always eventually triumph. And there's purpose and worth to each and every life.

I never drink coffee at lunch. I find it keeps me awake for the afternoon.

I think the best possible social program is a job.

I'm not worried about the deficit. It is big enough to take care of itself.

I've never been able to understand why a Republican contributor is a 'fat cat' and a Democratic contributor of the same amount of money is a 'public-spirited philanthropist'.

I've often said there's nothing better for the inside of a man than the outside of a horse.

If the federal government had been around when the Creator was putting His hand to this state, Indiana wouldn't be here. It'd still be waiting for an environmental impact statement.

If the Soviet Union let another political party come into existence, they would still be a one-party state, because everybody would join the other party.

If we love our country, we should also love our countrymen.

In an atmosphere of liberty, artists and patrons are free to think the unthinkable and create the audacious; they are free to make both horrendous mistakes and glorious celebrations.

Inflation is as violent as a mugger, as frightening as an armed robber and as deadly as a hit man.

Information is the oxygen of the modern age. It seeps through the walls topped by barbed wire, it wafts across the electrified borders.

It doesn't do good to open doors for someone who doesn't have the price to get in. If he has the price, he may not need the laws. There is no law saying the Negro has to live in Harlem or Watts.

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

It is the march of freedom and democracy which will leave Marxism- Leninism on the ash heap of history as it has left other tyrannies which stifle the freedom and muzzle the self-expression of the people.

It's difficult to believe that people are still starving in this country because food isn't available.

It's silly talking about how many years we will have to spend in the jungles of Vietnam when we could pave the whole country and put parking stripes on it and still be home by Christmas.

It's true hard work never killed anybody, but I figure, why take the chance?

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

Life is just one grand sweet song, so start the music.

Life is one grand, sweet song, so start the music.

Man is not free unless government is limited.

Mr Gorbachev, tear down this wall!

My philosophy of life is that if we make up our mind what we are going to make of our lives, then work hard toward that goal, we never lose - somehow we win out.

No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size.

No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth!

No matter what time it is, wake me, even if it's in the middle of a Cabinet meeting.

No mother would ever willingly sacrifice her sons for territorial gain, for economic advantage, for ideology.

Of the four wars in my lifetime, none came about because the U.S. was too strong.

One definition of an economist is somebody who sees something happen in practice and wonders if it will work in theory.

One picture is worth 1,000 denials.

One way to make sure crime doesn't pay would be to let the government run it.

Outside of its legitimate function, government does nothing as well or as economically as the private sector.

Peace is not absence of conflict, it is the ability to handle conflict by peaceful means.

Peace is not the absence of conflict, it is the ability to handle conflict by peaceful means.

People do not make wars; governments do.

Politics is just like show business. You have a hell of an opening, coast for a while, and then have a hell of a close.

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

Politics is supposed to be the second oldest profession. I have come to realize that it bears a very close resemblance to the first.

Protecting the rights of even the least individual among us is basically the only excuse the government has for even existing.

Recession is when a neighbor loses his job. Depression is when you lose yours.

Recession is when a neighbour loses his job. Depression is when you lose yours.

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

Some of your countrymen were unable to distinguish between their native dislike for war and the stainless patriotism of those who suffered its scars. But there has been a rethinking and now we can say to you, and say as a nation, thank you for your courage.

Some people wonder all their lives if they've made a difference. The Marines don't have that problem.

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

Surround yourself with the best people you can find, delegate authority, and don't interfere as long as the policy you've decided upon is being carried out.

The best minds are not in government. If any were, business would steal them away.

The crew of the space shuttle Challenger honored us by the manner in which they lived their lives. We will never forget them, nor the last time we saw them, this morning, as they prepared for their journey and waved goodbye and 'slipped the surly bonds of earth' to 'touch the face of God.'

The federal government has taken too much tax money from the people, too much authority from the states, and too much liberty with the Constitution.

The Goliath of totalitarianism will be brought down by the David of the microchip.

The 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.

The greatest security for Israel is to create new Egypts.

The greatness of our country has been based on our thinking that everyone has a right even to be wrong.

The problem is not that people are taxed too little, the problem is that government spends too much.

The taxpayer - that's someone who works for the federal government but doesn't have to take the civil service examination.

The thought of being President frightens me and I do not think I want the job.

The thought of being president frightens me. I do not think I want the job.

The West will not contain Communism, it will transcend Communism. We will not bother to denounce it, we'll dismiss it as a sad, bizarre chapter in human history whose last pages are even now being written.

There are no constraints on the human mind, no walls around the human spirit, no barriers to our progress except those we ourselves erect.

There are no easy answers' but there are simple answers. We must have the courage to do what we know is morally right.

There are no great limits to growth because there are no limits of human intelligence, imagination, and wonder.

There are no such things as limits to growth, because there are no limits on the human capacity for intelligence, imagination and wonder.

There are some who've forgotten why we have a military. It's not to promote war; it's to be prepared for peace.

They say hard work never hurt anybody, but I figure why take the chance.

They say the world has become too complex for simple answers. They are wrong.

Thomas Jefferson once said, 'We should never judge a president by his age, only by his works.' And ever since he told me that, I stopped worrying.

To paraphrase Winston Churchill, I did not take the oath I have just taken with the intention of presiding over the dissolution of the world's strongest economy.

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

Today we did what we had to do. They counted on America to be passive. They counted wrong.

Today, if you invent a better mousetrap, the government comes along with a better mouse.

Trust the people. This is the one irrefutable lesson of the entire postwar period contradicting the notion that rigid government controls are essential to economic development.

Unemployment insurance is a pre-paid vacation for freeloaders.

Violence has been Nicaragua's most important export to the world.

We can not play innocents abroad in a world that is not innocent.

We can't help everyone, but everyone can help someone.

We have the duty to protect the life of an unborn child.

We might come closer to balancing the Budget if all of us lived closer to the Commandments and the Golden Rule.

We must reject the idea that every time a law's broken, society is guilty rather than the lawbreaker. It is time to restore the American precept that each individual is accountable for his actions.

We need true tax reform that will at least make a start toward restoring for our children the American Dream that wealth is denied to no one, that each individual has the right to fly as high as his strength and ability will take him.

We should declare war on North Vietnam. We could pave the whole country and put parking strips on it, and still be home by Christmas.

We who live in free market societies believe that growth, prosperity and ultimately human fulfillment, are created from the bottom up, not the government down. Only when the human spirit is allowed to invent and create, only when individuals are given a personal stake in deciding economic policies and benefitting from their success -- only then can societies remain economically alive, dynamic, progressive, and free.

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

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

We're in greater danger today than we were the day after Pearl Harbor. Our military is absolutely incapable of defending this country.

We've been tempted to believe that society has become too complex to be managed by self-rule, that government by an elite group is superior to government for, by, and of the people. Well, if no one among us is capable of government himself, then who among us has the capacity to govern someone else?

Welfare's purpose should be to eliminate, as far as possible, the need for its own existence.

Well, I learned a lot... I went down to Latin America to find out from them and (learn) their views. You'd be surprised. They're all individual countries.

What we have found in this country, and maybe we're more aware of it now, is one problem that we've had, even in the best of times, and that is the people who are sleeping on the grates, the homeless, you might say, by choice.

When you can't make them see the light, make them feel the heat.

While I take inspiration from the past, like most Americans, I live for the future.

Without God, democracy will not and cannot long endure.

You and I are told we must choose between a left or right, but I suggest there is no such thing as a left or right. There is only an up or down. Up to man's age-old dream -- the maximum of individual freedom consistent with order -- or down to the ant heap of totalitarianism.

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

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

You know, if I listened to Michael Dukakis long enough, I would be convinced we're in an economic downturn and people are homeless and going without food and medical attention and that we've got to do something about the unemployed.