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Franklin D. Roosevelt

Franklin D. Roosevelt Quotes

32nd U.S. President

Franklin D. Roosevelt was the 32nd President of the United States, serving for 12 years, the longest tenure in U.S. history. He led the nation through the Great Depression and World War II, implementing a series of reform measures known as the New Deal.

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Famous Franklin D. Roosevelt Quotes

“Too often in recent history liberal governments have been wrecked on rocks of loose fiscal policy.”

Has Beens Government History Rocks Policy Fiscal Policy

Book:Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: F.D. Roosevelt, 1933, Volume 2

Source: Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: F.D. Roosevelt, 1933, Volume 2

“The peoples of many countries are being taxed to the point of poverty and starvation in order to enable Governments to engage in a mad race in armament which, if permitted to continue, may well result in war. This grave menace to the peace of the world is due in no small measure to the uncontrolled activities of the manufacturers and merchants of engines of destruction, and it it must be met by the concerted actions of the peoples of all Nations.”

World Country Government Action Nations Race Poverty Mets Activity Destruction Mad Dues Graves Engines Starvation Merchants Menace Armament

Author:Franklin D. Roosevelt

“This law represents a cornerstone in a structure which is being built but is by no means completed--a structure intended to lessen the force of possible future depressions, to act as a protection to future administrations of the Government against the necessity of going deeply into debt to furnish relief to the needy--a law to flatten out the peaks and valleys of deflation and of inflation--in other words, a law that will take care of human needs and at the same time provide for the United States an economic structure of vastly greater soundness.”

“All Government employees should realize that the process of collective bargaining, as usually understood, cannot be transplanted into the public service.”

Should Government Process Realizing Understood Employee Collectives Public Service Bargaining Collective Bargaining Government Employees

Author:Franklin D. Roosevelt

“The very nature and purposes of Government make it impossible for administrative officials to represent fully or to bind the employer in mutual discussions with Government employee organizations.”

Government Purpose Impossible Organization Discussion Officials Employee Mutual Employers Administrative Collective Bargaining Purpose Of Government Government Employees

Author:Franklin D. Roosevelt

“That, in its essence, is Fascism — ownership of Government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power.”

Government Political Individual Groups Essence Tyranny Fascism Ownership Corporatism Government Tyranny Fascism In America Monopoly Power

Author:Franklin D. Roosevelt

“The real truth of the matter is, as you and I know, that a financial element in the larger centers has owned the Government ever since the days of Andrew Jackson - and I am not wholly excepting the Administration of W. W. The country is going through a repetition of Jackson's fight with the Bank of the United States - only on a far bigger and broader basis.”

Knows Real Country Matter Government Fighting President United Elements Bases Bigger Financial Administration Repetition Andrew Real Truth

Author:Franklin D. Roosevelt

“Government cannot close its eyes to the pollution of waters, to the erosion of soil, to the slashing of forests any more than it can close its eyes to the need for slum clearance and schools.”

Needs Government Eye School Water Nature Environment Tree Forests Soil Fishing Pollution Slums Erosion Clearance

Book:Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: F.D. Roosevelt, 1936, Volume 5

Source: Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: F.D. Roosevelt, 1936, Volume 5

“Are we going to take the hands of the federal government completely off any effort to adjust the growing of national crops, and go right straight back to the old principle that every farmer is a lord of his own farm and can do anything he wants, raise anything, any old time, in any quantity, and sell any time he wants?”

Want Hands Government Can Do Effort Lord Principles Growing Raises Sells Farms Farmers Quantity Agriculture Federal Government Crops Old Time

Book:Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: F.D. Roosevelt, 1935, Volume 4

Source: Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: F.D. Roosevelt, 1935, Volume 4

“Let us never forget that government is ourselves and not an alien power over us.”

Government Forget Aliens Officials Never Forget Voters Rulers Democracies Have United States Government Voting And Democracy Government Officials English Government

Author:Franklin D. Roosevelt

“We know now that government by organized money is just as dangerous as government by organized mob.”

Knows Government Dangerous Organized New Deal Corporatism

Book:Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: F.D. Roosevelt, 1936, Volume 5

Source: Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: F.D. Roosevelt, 1936, Volume 5

“It is the purpose of the government to see that not only the legitimate interests of the few are protected but that the welfare and rights of the many are conserved.”

Government Purpose Interest Rights Welfare Protected

Book:Looking Forward

Source: Looking Forward

“The function of Government must be to favor no small group at the expense of its duty to protect the rights of personal freedom and of private property of all its citizens.”

Government Rights Groups Duty Citizens Protect Function Property Favors Expenses Private Property Small Groups Personal Freedom

Author:Franklin D. Roosevelt

“Our government is based on the belief that a people can be both strong and free, that civilized men need no restraint but that imposed by themselves against abuse of freedom.”

People Men Needs Government Belief Strong Liberty Abuse Civilized Restraint

Book:Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: F.D. Roosevelt, 1936, Volume 5

Source: Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: F.D. Roosevelt, 1936, Volume 5

“A government can be no better than the public opinion which sustains it.”

Government Opinion Public Opinion

Book:Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: F.D. Roosevelt, 1936, Volume 5

Source: Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: F.D. Roosevelt, 1936, Volume 5

“You sometimes find something good in the lunatic fringe. In fact, we have got as part of our social and economic government today a whole lot of things which in my boyhood were considered lunatic fringe, and yet they are now part of everyday life.”

Sometimes Whole Facts Government Today Social Economic Everyday Everyday Life Fringe Lunatic Boyhood Radicalism

Book:Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: F.D. Roosevelt, 1944-1945, Volume 13

Source: Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: F.D. Roosevelt, 1944-1945, Volume 13

“Any Government, like any family, can for a year spend a little more than it earns. But you and I know that a continuation of that habit means the poorhouse.”

Knows Years Mean Littles Government Habit Continuation

Book:Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: F.D. Roosevelt, 1937, Volume 6

Source: Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: F.D. Roosevelt, 1937, Volume 6

“History proves that dictatorships do not grow out of strong and successful governments, but out of weak and helpless ones. If by democratic methods people get a government strong enough to protect them from fear and starvation, their democracy succeeds; but if they do not, they grow impatient. Therefore, the only sure bulwark of continuing liberty is a government strong enough to protect the interests of the people, and a people strong enough and well enough informed to maintain its sovereign control over its government.”

Source: Fireside chats of Franklin Delano Roosevelt: radio addresses to the American people about the Depression, the New Deal, and the Second World War, 1933-1944

“Let me make it clear that I do not assert that a President and the Congress must on all points agree with each other at all times. Many times in history there has been complete disagreement between the two branches of the Government, and in these disagreements sometimes the Congress has won and sometimes the President has won. But during the Administration of the present President we have had neither agreement nor a clear-cut battle.”

Has Beens Two Sometimes Government President Clear Cutting Battle Let Me Agree Congress All Time Administration Branches Agreement Disagreement

Author:Franklin D. Roosevelt

“Is the United States going to decide, are the people of this country going to decide that their Federal Government shall in the future have no right under any implied power or any court-approved power to enter into a solution of a national economic problem, but that that national economic problem must be decided only by the States?... We thought we were solving it, and now it has been thrown right straight in our faces. We have been relegated to the horse-and-buggy definition of interstate commerce.”

“The Social Security Act offers to all our citizens a workable and working method of meeting urgent present needs and of forestalling future need. It utilizes the familiar machinery of our Federal-State government to promote the common welfare and the economic stability of the Nation.”

Source: Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: F.D. Roosevelt, 1938, Volume 7

“It was natural and perhaps human that the privileged princes of these new economic dynasties, thirsting for power, reached out for control over government itself. They created a new despotism and wrapped it in the robes of legal sanction. ...And as a result the average man once more confronts the problem that faced the Minute Man.”

Men Humans Problem Government Natural Results Liberty Economic Minutes Average Privileged Dissent Sanctions Despotism Robes Average Man Dynasty

Book:The Essential Franklin Delano Roosevelt

Source: The Essential Franklin Delano Roosevelt