Jim Lehrer Quotes

We are not educated well enough to perform the necessary act of intelligently selecting our leaders.

Even if politicians spew confusing, convoluted jargon, these people are still meant to represent me, and the only way that happens is if I stay informed and vote.

In a democracy you cannot stop public access to that art that will most misinform the people. You cannot stop people from being misinformed. But what you can do is to educate the people to the point that they will throw the rascals out.

Democracy cannot succeed unless those who express their choice are prepared to choose wisely. The real safeguard of democracy, therefore, is education.

It is a paradox that far too few Americans participate in the wonderful ritual of democracy that we call Election Day.

Without an educated populace, democracy cannot sustain itself.

If you rely on the media for your information, to educate yourself about the candidates and what issues are facing the country, then you get just part of the equation. I think it's important that we as citizens of this democracy take the responsibility to get as much information as possible before we go into the voting booth.

I think if people value democracy, they had damn well better get out and exercise their right to vote while their vote still means something.

Voting is the first duty of democracy.

Half of the American people never read a newspaper. Half never vote for president. One hopes it is the same half

The media has not done a great job in fulfilling their role - journalism's role in a democracy is to provide information on profoundly important subjects so we're an informed citizenry.

American democracy depends on the public's ability to remain accurately informed on our state of affairs.

We can't have an intelligent foreign policy unless we have an intelligent public, because we're a democracy.

I believe in an informed electorate, and we need to teach our children to become informed enough to have opinions on world issues or, at least, to understand what the major issues are and who the players are.

I don't want to tell anybody who to vote for; I'd rather people just do their homework and make sure they vote for the person that they feel like is best to run our country.

The very act of voting is a political act.

Here's what I know for sure: every single vote counts. That's not just a saying.

That's really what's kept me at 'TYT' even though I've gotten offers where I'd make a lot more money working at other media outlets: There's a value in making sure we inform our audience so they're responsible members of the democratic process. To me, that's more valuable than ratings or money or anything else you can get at these other networks.

Democracy doesn't work unless the public is informed.

If you have an informed electorate, it makes great choices.

I'm moved to think about the political state of our country right now. Most people who go out and vote have a very clear sense of what's right and wrong. And a lot of those people who don't aren't sure, so they don't go out and vote.

Voting is fundamental in our democracy. It has yielded enormous returns.

I can't control what other people do or say. I can only control the one vote I've been bestowed upon by the people in the Tennessee Valley.

We can change the direction of the country with our vote.

We... are not really free if we can't control our own government and its policies. And we will never do that if we remain ignorant.