Lemuel K. Washburn Quotes

Sometimes party loyalty asks too much.

Politicians are elected to do what is right, but too many are just doing what is right for the party.

Damn your principles! Stick to your party.

By a Party, With a Party, but for the Country.

I loathe the professional politician. I have never been a regular. I have fought political machines and party politics at every opportunity.

However much I have been blamed for not showing more deference to a great party, and for not acting more steadily on party principles, all I have to regret is that I showed so much

A man of sound political instincts can no more subscribe to the doctrine of absolute independence of party on the one hand than to that of unquestioning party allegiance on the other…. If we had no party allegiance, our politics would become mere windy anarchy, and, under present conditions, our government could hardly continue at all. If we had no independence, we should always be running the risk of the most degraded kind of despotism,—the despotism of the party boss and the party machine.

I am sorry to say I do doubt the honesty of many men that are called good at home, that have given themselves up to serve a party.

When there is a lack of honor in government, the morals of the whole people are poisoned.

Party honesty is party expediency.

I am voting for this war so as not to be disloyal to President Bush.

The American people cannot be divided into parties on a question of simple morals or of common honesty.

This isn’t a religion, it’s a political party. So there are times I agree and times I disagree …. I don’t think you sacrifice your … integrity and ability to do your job to a political party.

Party loyalty lowers the greatest of men to the petty level of the masses.

In the field of actual politics, parties are a necessity and organization is essential. It is the duty of the citizen, therefore, to support the party that stands for right policies and to adhere closely to its official organization. Loyalty should be rewarded by positions within the gift of the party; and disloyalty should be looked upon as politician treason.

No Federalist over the age of 30 has ever changed his mind on anything

Without the party I am nothing.

I never desire to know anything of the detail of political measures, lest even those which I think best should lose anything of their intrinsic value to me, by seeing what low, paltry, personal motives and base machinery and dirty hands have helped to bring them about.

The politician may change sides so frequently as to find himself always in the majority, but most politicians have a preference for one party to the other

Partisanship is culture. Loyalty to the team takes precedence over loyalty to the truth.

Thus it comes about that (with some few exceptions) we have a House of Commons composed of a number of mediocrities who are content to echo the shibboleths of their party, to vote like sheep and to respond to the crack of the party whip.

The political parties have lost their loyalties.

Laws were most numerous when the commonwealth was most corrupt.

There are many men of principle in both parties in America, but there is no party of principle.

The choice between a Labour government and a Tory one is sharpening minds.