Gerald R. Ford Quotes

We need to get back into grappling with people we disagree with if we want to restore the Republic.

It's a very important thing to learn to talk to people you disagree with.

We may disagree on some things, but we can do so without being disagreeable.

Our civilization is becoming less civil. You don’t have the right to demonize somebody just because they disagree with you.

We must learn that we can disagree with each other without becoming deadly enemies.

America remains an open society in which opposing forces can surface and clash, a necessary precondition for their solution.

We have differences. That’s why we’re here. That’s what Congress does.

We need to stop treating our opponents as our enemies.

I mean, you know, this idea that somebody we disagree with on economic or social policy or something we have to turn into some kind of ogre or demon, I think, is a mistake. I mean, it's like telling the American people or half the American people that don't agree with you they're all fools. That's just not true.

There is no right in the world not to be offended. That right simply doesn’t exist. In a free society, an open society, people have strong opinions, and these opinions very often clash. In a democracy, we have to learn to deal with this.

It is important in a democracy to respect contrary opinion without impugning the motives or maligning the character of ones opponents. To view it any other way is to encourage the same type of sickness in public life that leads to assassinations.

I have disagreements with some and more agreements with others. But that doesn't mean I cannot listen to those I disagree with.

It is only when the partisan shouting stops that we can hear each other's voices and concerns.

There is a way to disagree with someone, but it doesn't have to be threatening.

One of the hallmarks of higher education and of democracy is the ability to converse with people with whom we disagree.

You have to learn to have discourse with people you don't necessarily agree with.

Those that differ upon Reason, may come together by Reason.

One of the most serious problems that our country has inherited an unwillingness to talk to anyone who disagrees with us or who won't accept, before a discussion, all the premises that we demand.

You can disagree without being disagreeable.

Whether in families or in politics, a good observation: "One can disagree without being disagreeable."

We can't expect to solve problems if all we do is tear each other down. You can disagree with a certain policy without demonizing the person who espouses it.

It is not enough to be wrong, one must also be polite.

Democracy to me is letting the other person speak and being dissenting without being disagreeable.

To have compromise you must first have dialog. That is the true path of democracy.

You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.