It is impossible to tell which of the two dispositions we find in men is more harmful in a republic, that which seeks to maintain an established position or that which has none but seeks to acquire it.

I say violence is necessary. It is as American as cherry pie.

Politics, n. A strife of interests masquerading as a contest of principles. The conduct of public affairs for private advantage.

I’m president of the United States, and I’m not going to eat any more broccoli!

Whether for good or evil, it is sadly inevitable that all political leadership requires the artifices of theatrical illusion. In the politics of a democracy, the shortest distance between two points is often a crooked line.

No free man shall be taken or imprisoned or dispossessed or outlawed or exiled, or in any way destroyed, nor will we go upon him, nor will we send against him except by the lawful judgment of his peers or by the law of the land.

Sic semper tyrannis! The South is avenged.

An appeal to the reason of the people has never been known to fail in the long run.

A riot is at bottom the language of the unheard.

O citizens, first acquire wealth; you can practice virtue afterward.

To be turned from one’s course by men’s opinions, by blame, and by misrepresentation shows a man unfit to hold office.

The U.S. presidency is a Tudor monarchy plus telephones.

I am no courtesan, nor moderator, nor tribune, nor defender of the people: I am myself the people.