Home > Author > Harry Truman
1 " It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit. "
― Harry Truman
2 " I never did give them hell. I just told the truth, and they thought it was hell. "
3 " Fame is a vapor, popularity is an accident, riches take wings, those who cheer today may curse tomorrow and only one thing endures - character. "
4 " Selfishness and greed, individual or national, cause most of our troubles. "
5 " Show me a man that gets rich by being a politician, and I'll show you a crook. "
6 " We must remember that the test of our religious principles lies not just in what we say, not only in our prayers, not even in living blameless lives - but in what we do for others "
7 " The only thing new in the world is the history you do not know. "
8 " Not all readers become leaders, but all leaders must be readers. "
9 " [The American President] has to take all sorts of abuse from liars and demagogues.… The people can never understand why the President does not use his supposedly great power to make ’em behave. Well, all the President is, is a glorified public relations man who spends his time flattering, kissing and kicking people to get them to do what they are supposed to do anyway. "
10 " You want a friend in this city? [Washington, DC.] Get a dog! "
11 " But we are only termites on a planet and maybe when we bore too deeply into the planet there'll be a reckoning. Who knows? "
12 " The fundamental basis of this nation’s laws was given to Moses on the Mount…If we don’t have a proper fundamental moral background, we will finally end up with a totalitarian government which does not believe in rights for anybody except the State. "
13 " Republicans approve of the American farmer, but they are willing to help him go broke. They stand four-square for the American home--but not for housing. They are strong for labor--but they are stronger for restricting labor's rights. They favor minimum wage--the smaller the minimum wage the better. They endorse educational opportunity for all--but they won't spend money for teachers or for schools. They think modern medical care and hospitals are fine--for people who can afford them. They consider electrical power a great blessing--but only when the private power companies get their rake-off. They think American standard of living is a fine thing--so long as it doesn't spread to all the people. And they admire of Government of the United States so much that they would like to buy it. "
14 " The Republicans believe in the minimum wage -- the more the minimum, the better. "
15 " In most of my campaigns, I find it is best not to mention my opponent by name because, by doing so, it just gives him a chance to get into the headlines. "
16 " Suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a Republican. But I repeat myself. "
17 " Republicans don't like people to talk about depressions. You can hardly blame them for that. You remember the old saying: Don't talk about rope in the house where somebody has been hanged. "
18 " Millions of our citizens do not now have a full measure of opportunity to achieve and to enjoy good health. Millions do not now have protection or security against the economic effects of sickness. And the time has now arrived for action to help them attain that opportunity and to help them get that protection. "
19 " Not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers. "
20 " There is a lure in power. It can get into a man's blood just as gambling and lust for money have been known to do. "
