Posted on 06/13/2004 12:34:35 AM PDT by Jeff Head
I took out the domain name "TributeToRonaldReagan.com" today (it will take about 96 hours to propogate across the web). It is my permanent tribute to President Ronald Wilson Reagan...the greatest President in my life time, in the 20th centruy, and among the two top presidents of all time, second IMHO, only to George Washington.
Here are some more humorous quotes:
On Politics:
"Politics is supposed to be the second-oldest profession. I have come to realize it bears a very close resemblance to the first."
"Politics is just like show business. You have a hell of an opening, you coast for awhile, you have a hell of a closing."
"Politics is not a bad profession. If you succeed there are many rewards, if you disgrace yourself you can always write a book."
On Actors and Politics:
"How can a president not be an actor?" (Upon being asked how an actor could become president.)
"I don’t know. I’ve never played a governor." (Upon being asked by a reporter in 1966 what kind of governor he would be.)
"What makes him think a middle-aged actor, who’s played with a chimp, could have a future in politics?" (On Clint Eastwood’s bid to be Mayor of Carmel, California.)
On Congress:
"I have wondered at times what the Ten Commandments would have looked like if Moses had run them through the U.S. Congress."
"I’m afraid I can’t use a mule. I have several hundred up on Capitol Hill."
On Government:
"Government is like a baby. An alimentary canal with a big appetite at one end and no sense of responsibility at the other."
"My friends, some years ago the federal government declared war on poverty — and poverty won."
On the Economy and Taxes:
"Government’s view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it."
"Republicans believe every day is 4th of July, but Democrats believe every day is April 15."
"I am not worried about the deficit. It is big enough to take care of itself."
"Recession is when your neighbor loses his job. Depression is when you lose yours. And recovery is when Jimmy Carter loses his."
On Communism:
"How do you tell a Communist? It’s someone who reads Marx and Lenin. And how do you tell an anti-Communist? It’s someone who understands Marx and Lenin."
On Being President:
"I have left orders to be awakened at any time in case of national emergency — even if I’m in a cabinet meeting."
"But there are advantages to being elected President. The day after I was elected, I had my high school grades classified Top Secret."
On the Assassination Attempt:
"Honey, I forgot to duck." (Explaining to his wife, Nancy Reagan, why he had been hit by John Hinckley’s bullet.)
"I hope you’re all Republicans." (To the surgeons in the operating room after the assassination attempt.)
On His Age:
"I want you to know that I will not make age an issue in this campaign. I am not going to exploit, for political purposes, my opponent’s youth and inexperience." (In response to a question during the second of the 1984 Presidential Debates against opposing candidate Walter Mondale.)
Some more:
We've heard a great deal about Republican "fat cats," and how the Republicans are the party of big contributions. I've never been able to understand why a Republican contributor is a "fat cat" and a Democratic contributor of the same amount of money is a "public-spirited philanthropist."
-- Ronald Reagan
Taxpayer: that's someone who works for the federal government but doesn't have to take the civil service examination.
-- Ronald Reagan
They say the world has become too complex for simple answers. They are wrong.
-- Ronald Reagan
Freedom is a fragile thing and is never more than one generation away from extinction. It is not ours by inheritance; it must be fought for and defended constantly by each generation, for it comes only once to a people. Those who have known freedom, and then lost it, have never known it again.
-- Ronald Reagan
The United States remains the last best hope for a mankind plagued by tyranny and deprivation. America is no stronger than its people - and that means you and me. Well, I believe in you, and I believe that if we work together then one day we will say, ``We fought the good fight. We finished the race We kept the faith.'' And to our children and our children's children we can say, ``We did all that could be done in the brief time that was given to us here on earth
-- Ronald Reagan
Whatever time I've got left now belongs to the Big Fella Upstairs.
-- Ronald Reagan
(spoke these words while recovering from gunshot wounds that almost took his life while serving as President).
Our forbearance should never be misunderstood. Our reluctance for conflict should not be misjudged as a failure of will. When action is required to preserve our national security, we will act.
-- Ronald Reagan
There are no easy answers ... but there are simple answers. We must have the courage to do what we know is morally right.
-- Ronald Reagan
"We establish no religion in this country, nor will we ever. We command no worship. We mandate no belief. But we poison our society when we remove its theological underpinnings. We court corruption when we leave it bereft of belief.
All are free to believe or not believe; all are free to practice a faith or not. But those who believe must be free to speak of and act on their belief, to apply moral teaching to public questions.
I submit to you that the tolerant society is open to and encouraging of all religions. And this does not weaken us; it strengthens us, it makes us strong. You know, if we look back through history to all those great civilizations, those great nations that rose up to even world dominance and then deteriorated, declined, and fell, we find they all had one thing in common. One of the significant forerunners of their fall was their turning away from their God or gods.
Without God, there is no virtue, because there's no prompting of the conscience. Without God, we're mired in the material, that flat world that tells us only what the senses perceive. Without God, there is a coarsening of the society. And without God, democracy will not and cannot long endure. If we ever forget that we're one nation under God, then we will be a nation gone under. If I could just make a personal statement of my own -- in these 3 1/2 years I have understood and known better than ever before the words of Lincoln, when he said that he would be the greatest fool on this footstool called Earth if he ever thought that for one moment he could perform the duties of that office without help from One who is stronger than all.
There are no such things as limits to growth, because there are no limits on the human capacity for intelligence, imagination and wonder.
-- Ronald Reagan
(from an address to the University of South Carolina, Columbia, September 20, 1983)
I thank you, thank you for inviting us here today. Thank you for your kindness and your patience. May God keep you, and may we, all of us, keep God."
-- Ronald Reagan
Remarks at an Ecumenical Prayer Breakfast in Dallas, Texas
August 23, 1984 http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/resource/speeches/1984/82384a.htm
Why should we be frightened? No people who have ever lived on this earth have fought harder, paid a higher price for freedom, or done more to advance the dignity of man than the living Americans, those Americans living in this land today.
-- Ronald Reagan
I'm convinced more than ever that man finds liberation only when he binds himself to God and commits himself to his fellow man.
-- Ronald Reagan
Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!
-- Ronald Reagan - 40th President of the United States of America Remarks at the Brandenburg Gate
West Berlin, Germany
June 12, 1987
"The house we hope to build is not for my generation but for yours. It is your future that matters. And I hope that when you are my age, you will be able to say as I have been able to say: We lived in freedom. We lived lives that were a statement, not an apology."
-- Ronald Wilson Reagan ... February 6, 1911--June 5, 2004
I thought I'd mention that you can get a high-quality copy of Reagan's farewell speech free at Audible.com right now.
MM
Hey, does anyone know of VIDEO clips online, of some of his great moments? One of my favorites will always be when referring to Kadafy: "He counted on America to be passive. He counted wrong."
MM
A beautiful job, Jeff. What a great idea.
Excellent. thank you for your efforts in the battle for minds. As the media begins its revision plan to marginalize RR, your site will be an invaluable resource.
Jeff, that's so wonderful. I'd been hoping to find a site with everything that you've got: speeches, quotes, pictures, etc., and thought it was impossible. Thanks for all of your hard work. It's beautiful.
I hope we can use the alternative media to bypass the Iron Curtain of Silence the usual suspects in the press & entertainment media have placed around Mr. Reagan's many accomplishments.
I knew he was a wonderful man the first time I heard him speak, and my long-lost first wife and I were bound and determined to rid America of Jimmy Carter's inept administration and see Ronald Reagan elevated to the Presidency. And many others felt the same way.
Easy to navigate, attractive - passionate intro, uplifting quotes - those too young, (or blind, like me) will be inspired to search deeper, imho.
Thanks for sharing your labor of love.
You did a great job Jeff! I'm going to bookmark this thread so my kids can see your site. When your site is up, I'll bookmark that on my computer.
One thing though, there are a few spelling errors here and there. I hate to be petty, but it's what I do for a living, and your site is otherwise wonderful. Thank you for putting it together!
"did so much after most of us would have been contently retired. President from 69-77"
That's a great point, Jeff!
LOL!!
Oh those quotes are priceless. They should be added if there is room.
Excellent job Jeff !
Thanks for the BUMP...hope you enjoyed the site.
Thanks...feel free to do so. The more who take the opportuniy to understand the goodness of this great man, and why it was so, and how it is tied to our liberties...the better.
You are very welcome...and thanks for the additional pings!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.