Tennys Sandgren Quotes

I don’t expect anyone to just sit there and agree with me, that’s not their job.

I think it's important to have conversation about things instead of shutting things down.

Debate is so much better than denial.

Dialogue between people of differing views is critical for fostering understanding in a democracy.

That's what we're missing. We're missing argument. We're missing debate. We're missing colloquy. We're missing all sorts of things. Instead, we're accepting.

I want people to have conversations, to have controversy because it creates dialogue and builds bridges.

I think it's interesting to me to talk to people who don't agree with me all the time.

You can tell if someone is about social intercourse or just about browbeating somebody with their opinion. It's no fun arguing with a closed-minded person.

People don't listen when you lecture. No one wants to be talked down to or scolded.

I decided to get to know my opponents and their arguments.

Dialogue means debates and everyone's point of view.

I love disagreements. I love the democratic process. If I'm in a room where everybody agrees, I start to nod off.

As I say, I'm a discourse advocate. What form it comes is less important to me than the fact that there is discourse.

I'd much rather have 15 people arguing about something than 15 people splitting into two camps, each side convinced it's right and not talking to the other.

I will listen to any argument put to me.

Civility is not not saying negative or harsh things. It is not the absence of critical analysis. It is the manner in which we are sharing this territorial freedom of political discussion. If our discourse is yelled and screamed and interrupted and patronized, that's uncivil.

The aim of argument, or of discussion, should not be victory, but progress.

Hold on. It’s not a fight. It’s a discussion.

The very essence of modern life is the opportunity for people everywhere to speak, hear, persuade, change their minds, know what others are thinking, and think for themselves.

Somewhere in this we got into impugning people's character and motives if we didn't like their ideas. We gotta get back to just debating ideas.

If you would convince others, seem open to conviction yourself.

If you disagree with me about a position I have taken, or what I've done, tell me, argue with me, debate. Sometimes, right and good are not that clear; at other times, it is only deliberate and respectful debate that leads us to understand what road we should take.

I don't believe that we should never not talk to people we don't agree with politically. If you can make that person laugh, it's the first step to getting him to listen to change their mind.

I often go into the lions' den and engage with those I know oppose my views, because I want to understand what other people think.

My view is, let's not shut down anyone's right to speak, let's meet their comments with more speech.