Quote-a-palooza
“Let each citizen remember at the moment he is offering his vote that he is not making a present or a compliment to please an individual—or at least that he ought not so to do; but that he is executing one of the most solemn trusts in human society for which he is accountable to God and his country.” —Samuel Adams
“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.” —Calvin Coolidge
“Democrats believe in immediate withdrawal from Iraq. If they succeed in forcing us to leave under these circumstances, the United States will suffer a stinging defeat in the war on terror. The terrorists already believe that they drove the Russians from Afghanistan and Israel from Lebanon and Gaza. They are convinced they chased us out of Lebanon in 1983 and from Somalia in 1993. According to Osama bin Laden and those who share his views, we are militarily strong but psychologically and spiritually weak. Like it or not—and no one likes it—we cannot leave Iraq now without utterly and decisively validating this analysis. We might as well run a white flag up the flagpole at the Capitol.” —Mona Charen
“I hope that someday your children and grandchildren will tell of the time that a certain president came to town at the end of a long journey and asked their parents and grandparents to join him in setting America on the course to the new millennium—and that a century of peace, prosperity, opportunity, and hope followed. So, if I could ask you just one last time: Tomorrow, when mountains greet the dawn, would you go out there and win one for the Gipper?” —Ronald Reagan, November 7, 1988
“Stem cell research needs neither government money nor politics. It is better to get the government out and let the private sector continue its good work. Those people calling for increased funding could take out their checkbooks and support it. Those who oppose embryonic stem cell research would not be forced to pay for it. The vast majority of medical and scientific breakthroughs in this country’s history have been accomplished by the private sector. There’s no reason for stem cell research to be any different. Let’s end the political debate, and get back to scientific research.” —Michael Tanner
“Ronald Reagan, though derided endlessly by Democrats and media elites, won the presidency not just as a consummate showman but as the apostle of three big ideas. First, he believed that a free enterprise system is not merely more efficient than a government-run command-and-control economy—it also is far more consistent with ideals of human freedom and dignity. Second, personal liberty and personal responsibility go hand-in-hand—and are preferable to government choice and group responsibility. Third, America is a fundamentally good nation—we should be willing to stand up for it and if necessary to fight for it. Reagan’s optimism about America and devotion to freedom fueled his belief that it was necessary to defeat communism—a system that denied human freedom, denied God, suppressed free will, and sought global dominion—and that we could win if we were committed to doing that. Despite the hoots from sophisticates, Reagan proved right on all counts. His vision of ‘morning in America’ resonated with us... [Tomorrow], Americans have the opportunity to reaffirm President Reagan’s vision or to take a step back toward the vision of government and of America he fought against... [Tomorrow], Ronald Reagan’s sun can continue to shine on America. But conservatives must be willing to make that happen. They must embrace the mantra that partial sunshine is better than rain any day of the week. It’s a good time to remember Reagan’s optimism, his pragmatism, and his values. And it would be enormously gratifying to win this one for the Gipper.” —Ronald Cass