Rick Perry Quotes

I'm a conservative first, and I believe that, if we do a better job of helping Americans understand what we're trying to do, to showcase every place in the country that our ideas are working at the state level, that that will help those at the federal level who want to carry those policies.

I've been a conservative my whole life. There is nothing hard-right or far-right about anything. I just believe in ideas and that ideas matter in history, and that's my background, and that's the way I'd like to be portrayed.

A disturbing prospect looms before us as Americans consider the possibility of a second term for President Barack Obama. Millions of conservatives who revere the Constitution, with its guarantees of freedom and limited government, have watched with alarm as the campaign season has unfolded.

I believe in being a happy conservative: that you're happy because your policies will give people greater freedom, greater independence. But you have to explain why your policy makes life better.

I'm trying to uphold what was true about conservatism. I consider myself a Reagan conservative.

It is important that we take full advantage of the RSC's size, character and the passion of its members to advance our conservative agenda in order to restore America to the 'shining city on a hill' that Ronald Reagan envisioned.

Consistent conservatives should frame their views in accordance with the fundamental belief that individuals, not governments, have the right to determine the course of their own lives.

I believe in the country America used to be.

The greatness of America is in the American people. And what we need to do is get the government the hell out of the way and let the American people win once again.

America, and particularly your conservative movement, is a light and an inspiration to people in this country and across the world.

I'm not worried about a 'blue wave,' I just think Republicans have to act like Republicans and govern like Republicans.

Let the Democrates go on making its case for more government control over every aspect of our lives. More taxes to pay. More debt to carry. More rules to follow. More judges who just make it up as they go along. We Republicans, we are committed to a federal government that acts again as a servant accountable to the people, following the constitution, and venturing not one inch beyond the consent of the governed. We, we in this party, offer a better way for our country based on fundamentals that go back to the founding generation.

I am a conservative Republican, but I believe in democracy and the separation of church and state. The conservative movement is founded on the simple tenet that people have the right to live life as they please as long as they don't hurt anyone else in the process.

The federal government should be less important in our lives, not more.

I do believe, in the long term, we will either get back to the principles that built America or we lose this country. And I'm an optimist.

In our own country, we take democratic values seriously - and so we always have a vigorous debate on the issues. That's part of the greatness of America, and we wouldn't have it any other way.

There's a very healthy tradition in America of skepticism of centralized power. If we ever lose the skepticism of centralized power, we'll lose the essence of the country.

Government is about coercion. Limiting government is the single most important instrument for guaranteeing liberty. We're working on a third generation which has little in the way of education about what our Constitution means and why it was written. Thus, we've fallen easy prey to charlatens, quacks, and hustlers.

I've always believed that conservatism is the politics of reality, and that reality ultimately asserts itself in a reasonably free society, in behalf of the conservative position.

Our country was founded on a distrust of government. Our founding fathers gave power to the people to keep an eye on government. So when politicians say, 'Trust me,' they're actually being very un-American.

The Conservative does not despise government. He despises tyranny. This is precisely why the Conservative reveres the Constitution and insists on adherence to it.

If the Republican Party stands for individual liberty, if we defend the Bill of Rights, if we stand for keeping this country safe, then we deserve to win, and if we don't, we deserve to lose. It shouldn't be - it's not just a game of blue team/red team. It is actually about making a difference in people's lives.

When I hear Donald Trump say, "Make America great again", I wonder when he thought America ever was great." He has been criticizing our country for decades. He even criticized Ronald Reagan.

Ted Cruz will point Americans back to the principles established by our Constitution enabling you to live free.

I do think if we take the power out of Washington and bring it back to the people, if we defend the Bill of Rights, free speech, religious liberty, the Second Amendment, privacy, if we repeal Obamacare, abolish the IRS, if we get Washington out of the way of job creators, I think we can transform this country.