Newt Gingrich Quotes

The Department of Justice should never be reduced to a political arm of the White House.

The civil service can never be placed on a satisfactory basis until it is regulated by law. For the good of the service itself, for the protection of those who are entrusted with the appointing power against the waste of time and obstruction to the public business caused by the inordinate pressure for place, and for the protection of incumbents against intrigue and wrong.

Government scientists need protections so that they are not forced to choose between violating their scientific ethics or losing their job.

Throughout most of Chicago's history, the Civil Service Commission has been enmeshed in partisan politics. Thousands of city employees were given temporary appointments and kept in this status, year after year, in order to keep them loyal partisan political workers.

Democracy requires a strong civil service—government employees who are sufficiently protected from random political influences to carry out the law in a disinterested fashion.

The civil service reform movement fits into a pattern of those out of power verses those in power.

What we called the Civil Service was, in the main, merely a mass of Republican political appointees frozen into office by act of Congress.

On top of this it is now considered acceptable - indeed, almost compulsory - for incoming governments to politicize the upper reaches of the public service to such an extent that they have almost become subsidiaries of the governing party.

I ask the attention of the public to the paramount necessity of reform in our civil service—a reform not merely as to certain abuses and practices of so-called official patronage which have come to have the sanction of usage in the several Departments of our Government, but a change in the system of appointment itself; a reform that shall be thorough, radical, and complete; a return to the principles and practices of the founders of the Government.

It’s easier for Congress to beat civil servants about the ears than address the programs that are not working well.

There are many ways for the Federal bureaucracy to undermine the leadership of the nation.

The attorney general should be a watchdog for the rule of law, not a lapdog for the president - simple as that.

Federal employees are public servants, not partisan foot soldiers for President Obama, and shouldn't have to decide whether a partisan White House request can be ignored without consequences.

I think one of the things that's happening is that people are realizing that they can't pass the buck to the government because the government, at least as far it comes to environmental protection, doesn't exist. That they're going to have to bite the bullet a little bit themselves. Look, there are no silver linings to Trumpism. This is an unmitigated disaster. But let's hope that at least it helps people find their courage in this resistance.

We should never feel like we're going too far in breaking the law, because whatever laws you break to liberate animals or to protect the environment are very insignificant compared to the laws that are broken by that parliament of whores in Washington. They are the biggest lawbreakers, the biggest destroyers, the biggest mass-murderers on this planet right now.

One of the keys to ensuring accountability is to have civil servants who witness fraud, waste and abuse to blow the whistle.

What they don't realize is that I'm not in the business to make clothes. I'm not in the business to make more money for myself, for Christ's sake. This is the reason Patagonia exists - to put into action the recommendations I read about in books to avoid environmental collapse. That's the reason I'm in business - to try to clean up our own act, and try to influence other companies to do the right thing, and try to influence our customers to do the right thing. So we're not going to change.

Remember, most of the bureaucrats voted for Hillary Clinton. Most of the bureaucrats deeply dislike what Trump is trying to accomplish, and most of the bureaucrats think they can't be fired, so they can outlast you.

The men who administer public affairs must first of all see that everyone holds onto what is his, and that private men are never deprived of their goods by public men.

Not all civil servants admire strong political leadership. But if you want to change things for the better you need strong political leadership.

President Obama, don't you think you should follow in the footsteps of your predecessor? Remember, President George W. Bush? He stayed out of the political arena, and he let you, his successor, do your job.

...When the government goes into the business of destroying trust, it goes into the business of destroying itself.

When the public's right to know is threatened, all other public rights are threatened.

Edgar Wayburn has worked to preserve the most breath-taking examples of the American landscape. In fact, over the course of more than a half-century, both as President of the Sierra Club and as a private citizen, he has saved more of our wilderness than any person alive.

No officer should be required or permitted to take part in the management of political organizations, caucuses, conventions, or election campaigns. Their right to vote and to express their views on public questions, either orally or through the press, is not denied, provided it does not interfere with the discharge of their official duties. No assessment for political purposes on officers or subordinates should be allowed.