Top 10 Greatest Quips from Ronald Reagan

Human Events ^ | 1/20/05

[rhema]

10. "Politics is supposed to be the second oldest profession. I have come to realize that it bears a very close resemblance to the first." —Remarks at a business conference, Los Angeles, March 2, 1977

9. "You can tell a lot about a fellow's character by his way of eating jellybeans." —The Observer, March 29, 1981

8. “Thomas Jefferson once said, "We should never judge a president by his age, only by his works.' And ever since he told me that, I stopped worrying." —Circa 1988

7. "I have left orders to be awakened at any time in case of national emergency, even if I'm in a cabinet meeting." —Said often during his presidency, 1981-1989

6. "How do you tell a communist? Well, it's someone who reads Marx and Lenin. And how do you tell an anti-Communist? It's someone who understands Marx and Lenin." —Remarks in Arlington, Virginia, September 25, 1987

5. "The 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." —Remarks to the White House Conference on Small Business, August 15, 1986

4. “I am not worried about the deficit. It is big enough to take care of itself.” —Said often during his presidency, 1981-1989

3. "All great change in America begins at the dinner table." —Farewell Address to the Nation, The White House, January 11, 1989

2. "I've noticed that everyone who is for abortion has already been born." —The New York Times, September 22, 1980

1. "There is no limit to what a man can do or where he can go if he doesn't mind who gets the credit." — First Inaugural Address, January 21, 1981

[rcrngroup]

"Before I refuse to take your questions, I have an opening statement."

You wrote "Haha! The man made fools out of the press and they thought he was the fool."

I agree & I had never seen that quote before. I am still laughing & grinning from ear to ear. Great quote! Maybe we should just ask Scott McClellan to read & re-read quotes from Ronald Reagan instead of fielding questions from a grossly disrespectful & hostile press corps, and him looking foolish & weak in the process.

This is a GREAT thread!

[ntnychik]

Reagan ping

[Waco]

Anyone remember the time a reported questioned him about why he hadn't met with more Commie leaders? He said "they keep dying" or something like that.

[rcrngroup]

These are the boys of Pointe du Hoc.

This was absolutely great! I got chills up & down my spine as I read this speech. Thanks for posting this!

[admiralsn]

Not a favorite, necessarily, but I do remember him telling a heckler to "shut up." It was a great, "in the moment" quip from the Great One.

[ALWAYSWELDING]

Bush is a good man, but not in the same league.

I agree that GW has been sucked in by the government givaways, but he's been a fierce fighter for America and a tax cutter. He's still got three years to go. Let's wait and see about GW before we judge his legacy as less than anyones.

[esarlls3]

Bump for later

[Cacique]

Ping

Cetainly, to me at least, the greatest president of the 20th cnetury.

[TexasTransplant]

Best that I can remember the story, A lib asked him to autograph a picture, it was the picture of a young Reagan ant the chimp Bonzo, Reagan autographed it with "I'm the one with the watch"

[Enduring Freedom]

Video:

Pointe Du Hoc speech.

http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/rreaganddayaddress.html

[sagar]

Brilliant!

[Enduring Freedom]

Video:

Space Shuttle Challenger

http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/rreaganchallenger.htm

[Enduring Freedom]

Audio:

Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall.

http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/rreaganbrandenburggate.htm

[Enduring Freedom]

Audio:

George W. Bush defending the Reagan legacy from John Kerry.

"If you gave a speech, as my opponent did, calling the Reagan presidency eight years of "moral darkness," then you may be a lot of things, but the candidate of conservative values is not one of them."

http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/convention2004/georgewbushrnc.htm

[Enduring Freedom]

Video:

First Inaugural Address

http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/rreagandfirstinaugural.html

[SouthTexas]

"Meaning no disrespect to the religious convictions of others, I still can't help wondering how we can explain away what to me is the greatest miracle of all and which is recorded in history. No one denies there was such a man, that he lived and that he was put to death by crucifixion. Where...is the miracle I spoke of? Well consider this and let your imagination translate the story into our own time -- possibly to your own hometown. A young man whose father is a carpenter grows up working in his father's shop. One day he puts down his tools and walks out of his father's shop. He starts preaching on street corners and in the nearby countryside, walking from place to place, preaching all the while, even though he is not an ordained minister. He never gets farther than an area perhaps 100 miles wide at the most. He does this for three years. Then he is arrested, tried and convicted. There is no court of appeal, so he is executed at age 33 along with two common thieves. Those in charge of his execution roll dice to see who gets his clothing -- the only possessions he has. His family cannot afford a burial place for him so he is interred in a borrowed tomb. End of story? No, this uneducated, propertyless young man who...left no written word has, for 2,000 years, had a greater effect on the world than all the rulers, kings, emperors; all the conquerors, generals and admirals; all the scholars, scientists and philosophers who have ever lived -- all of them put together. How do we explain that? ...[U]nless he really was what he said he was." --Ronald Reagan

My favorite.

[Proud Conservative2]

"Don't want to get into an argument here, but Bush makes me proud to be an American every bit as much as Reagan did."

Then why post this? This thread is about Reagan...not Bush. Why not just read it and enjoy it?

[Rocky]

Thanks for starting this thread. A truly great man, and one of our very best presidents.

[operation clinton cleanup]

This thread is about Reagan...not Bush. Why not just read it and enjoy it?

I am and I will. There are plenty of threads about President Bush. GIPPER BUMP!

[Ultra Sonic 007]

Reagan ping!