Eleanor Roosevelt Quotes

Advocacy groups and voters are not wrong to push candidates to declare their position clearly on policy issues. That is good citizenship. Hard questions should be asked of every candidate, every politician. And those public servants should be prepared to answer, but in their own words.

The American public should simply accept no distractions. In our democracy, it is our duty to hold our elected leaders accountable. We do it at the ballot box.

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.

When all Americans believe that the people we elect deserve to be in power, that their conduct in office is worthy of respect, and that they can be held accountable for their decisions, our politics will finally be worthy of our great people.

Democracy is not just voting for your leaders; it's really premised upon ordinary citizens understanding the issues.

When you become active in the system and communicate to your representatives, and they don't vote in accordance with your values, your responsibility is to support candidates who will.

We always hear about the rights of democracy, but the major responsibility of it is participation.

And they understand that to be an effective member of a democracy, you have to accept responsibility.

I don't feel responsible for things I didn't vote for.

After all, I have spent the better part of my adult life insisting that government be open... that government be accessible... and that government be held accountable to people who voted us into office.

Good government is good politics.

Democracy has always been in crisis: democracy is all about practicing the art of bearable dissatisfaction. In democratic societies, people often complain about their leaders and their institutions. The gap between the ideal democracy and the existing one cannot be bridged.

A functioning, robust democracy requires a healthy educated, participatory followership, and an educated, morally grounded leadership.

You must see the persons who are in charge - persons you can punish or vote for.

So I think democracy, in the long-term, in our countries will survive if it comes to be associated with leadership, will not survive if democracy plus media brings to us more and more followship rather than leadership.

Any politician in a democracy has to be mindful of public opinion.

I'd rather vote for something I want and not get it than vote for something I don't want, and get it.

Elections alone will never be enough to ensure good governance.

Congress is afraid of the voters, and the voters are looking for leadership.

I want to live … where the people who make the rules have to live by them.

Good government

Policy makers do the right thing only if the public makes as much noise as possible.

I have been in public office and have been criticized. I do not object to it. A public official should be willing to be criticized. An agent of the people of this country should be called to account.

We elect these people not to represent their parties but to represent us.

I'm proud of Congress as a body. At the end of the day, we're the people's house, and we should be very mindful that we represent the people.