Dennis Skinner Quotes

A life in politics is for people who know themselves and know where their own line is between loyalty and honesty.

It is hard for any one to be an honest politician who is not born and bred a Dissenter.

For years now I have been talking about personal responsibility and accountability, both in our private lives and in the halls of government. Those are important principles here in Idaho, and they will form the basis of this administration.

If politicians throwing mud begin to slip in it, perhaps they will head for higher ground.

Certainly he [Richard M. Nixon] is not of the generation that regards honesty as the best policy.

Armed with purity of intentions and firmness of purpose, I may reasonably entertain the hope of being able to clear the administrative agency of all corruption and incompetency, and impart to it the maximum of honesty and efficiency. I now warn my officials of all ranks that I have fully made up my mind to put down corruption and intrigue wherever they may be found.

A mistake that is kept secret only harms the person who has committed it, but if it becomes public and is not denounced, it harms the community

An honest man in politics shines more there than he would elsewhere.

Self-preservation shouldn't be the first instinct in politics. It should be doing the right thing for the country.

From day one, I've always tried to be an honest man. I ran for Congress to make a difference and not to just be another politician.

Would that the simple maxim, that honesty is the best policy, might be laid to heart; that a sense of the true aim of life might elevate the tone of politics and trade till public and private honor become identical.

Politics have no relation to morals.

Be fair in all your dealings, may it be in your family or in your business. At the end of it all, what matters is not how much money you make but how honest you are.

You shouldn't have one opinion when you're running and another when you're president.

No matter what name we give it or how we judge it, a candidate's character is central to political reporting because it is central to a citizen's decision in voting.

I could never be a career politician, because I believe in telling the truth.

A business of high principle generates greater drive and effectiveness because people know that they can do the right thing decisively and with confidence.

I learned one thing in Watergate: I was well-intentioned but rationalized illegal behavior. You cannot live your life other than walking in the truth. Your means are as important as your ends.

Both politicians and journalists face situations which strain their honesty and humanity. My opinion is that politicians on the average stand up somewhat better than journalists.

We just ask the agency to make reasonable and honest decisions, and the public deserves no less.

In all my public and private acts as your president, I expect to follow my instincts of openness and candor with full confidence that honesty is always the best policy in the end.

This idea that you can't be an honest man and a Washington politician is a myth, a crock made up by sellouts and careerist hacks who don't stand for anything and are impatient with people who do. It's possible to do this job with honor and dignity.

I don't aspire to have high approval ratings. I aspire, in light of my two predecessors, to be the most honest governor I can be. I'd rather focus on honesty than popularity.

In politics, the people I most despise are those who have no values.

I try to live honestly in every aspect of my life, which can make things a bit more complicated, right?