Warren G. Harding Quotes

The government is us; we are the government, you and I.

Government is not a substitute for people, but simply the instrument through which they act. And if the individual fails to do his duty as a citizen, government becomes a very deadly instrument indeed.

The American Government will be what we all make of it.

What's wrong is that we are not participating to make this the type of government it needs to be.

Our future cannot depend on the government alone. The ultimate solutions lie in the attitudes and the actions of the American people.

Government is at its worst when you have apathy from its citizens.

The value of government to the people it serves is in direct relationship to the interest citizens themselves display in the affairs of state.

People always want change .... Government always raises expectations far beyond what is there.

The object of Socialism is not to render the individual capable of living on his personal resources. That is the theory of radical individualism. Its object is to create in him a greater and greater sense of his dependence upon the state, and, at the same time, to inculcate in him the conviction that he is a part of it and that he has a duty and responsibility toward the state; and that only in so far as he fulfills this duty can he benefit by the advantages of a complete personal and social life.

...no country can be well governed unless its citizens as a body keep religiously before their minds that they are the guardians of the law and that the law officers are only the machinery for its execution, nothing more.

... the even more fundamental task that lies before the leader of a democracy is to bring to the people the realization that true democracy is the effort of the people individually to carry their share of the burden of government.

The corporations are powerful only because we have allowed them to be. In theory, it is we, not they, who mandate the state. But we have neglected our duty of citizenship, and they have taken advantage of our neglect to seize the reins of government.

I think most people realize that our problems are our government, not me and you individually, except that we can - must have some sort of responsibility, because they're in there and they were elected, so we have to defend ourselves on those lines.

When the people become involved in their government, government becomes more accountable, and our society is stronger, more compassionate, and better prepared for the challenges of the future.

It is hard to feel individually responsible with respect to the invisible processes of a huge and distant government.

I had a lot of friends in high school who said, 'Louie, I don't care what the government does as long as they leave me alone.' Well, guess what, when you don't care what the government does, it does not leave you alone.

It is not the Government, the members of Parliament to whom the ultimate decision belongs, it is up to you to go forward sure of your sacred right of free opinion, sure of your patriotism.

It is no longer appropriate for me as an American to sit by and expect my government to get it done.

You have citizens who don't understand how government works and they're kind of soured on it. All they do is criticize. They have no idea that they can make things happen.

A government of, for and by the people, requires much from the people.

Somewhere along the line, the actions of this government are the actions of me.

If the government is determined to reject what we have accepted, then do not ask us to do it…since the supreme interests of the country are above personal considerations, the national government can act according to its conviction. We expect no thanks from the government. The nation and history will be our judge.

The first duty of an American citizen, then is that he shall work in politics.

A nation that expects the government to prevent churches from burning, to control the price of bread or gasoline, to secure every job, and to find some villain for every dramatic accident risks an even larger loss of life and liberty.

Clergymen do well to preach the neglected doctrine that the first duty of a citizen is to consider what he can do for the state and not what the state will do for him.