Bob Dole Quotes & Sayings

There they are. See no evil, hear no evil, and ... evil. — Bob Dole

I think one of life's great milestones is when a person can look back and be almost as thankful for the setbacks as for the victories. — Bob Dole

Stop telling the truth about my record! — Bob Dole

Things are going to get better. Be optimistic. — Bob Dole

If something happened along the route and you had to leave your children with Bob Dole or Bill Clinton, I think you would probably leave them with Bob Dole. — Bob Dole

This is what America's all about, nobody's being hurt they have a right to express themselves, I watched all the television I could on Miami-Dade and I didn't see anybody being shoved around. — Bob Dole

If we had known we were going to win control of the Senate, we'd have run better candidates. — Bob Dole

I think the voters believe that when you become president of the United States, you have a higher obligation and a higher standard than anybody in the world, ... And if you violate that standard, they're going to remember it on election day. — Bob Dole

The White House is not being very clever in how it takes on our plan, .. In fact the White House is being sloppy. They are taking everything Bob Dole has ever said we ought to do regarding taxes and adding all of those things up and saying it will cost $800 billion. — Bob Dole

I mean, there's always somebody in somebody's administration who jumps out early, sells a book, and goes after the guy who hired him, ... I don't know if that's good. It may be good business; it's not good politics. — Bob Dole

I'm not a Gingrich fan. He's just difficult to work with. It's either Newt's way or the highway. — Bob Dole

I've never known a lot of rich people. It's not my bag. — Bob Dole

What we dedicate today is not a memorial to war, rather it's a tribute to the physical and moral courage that makes heroes out of farm and city boys and that inspires Americans in every generation to lay down their lives for people they will never meet, for ideals that make life itself worth living. — Bob Dole

President Ronald Reagan on his 1980 opponent: "I had a dream the other night. I dreamed that Jimmy Carter came to me and asked why I wanted his job. I told him I didn't want his job. I want to be President." — Bob Dole

Something is wrong with America. I wonder sometimes what people are thinking about or if they're thinking at all. — Bob Dole

Merely presenting a driver's license or other document based on a birth certificate is not enough for an accurate verification. Biometric verification of identity must be made and then a data base of those persons who have legal status must be checked. — Bob Dole

The purpose of a tax cut is to leave more money where it belongs: in the hands of the working men and working women who earned it in the first place — Bob Dole

You read what Disraeli had to say. I don't remember what he said. He said something. He's no longer with us. — Bob Dole

A family from Mexico who arrived here this morning, legally, has as much right to the American dream as the direct descendants of the founding fathers ... when the blood of the sons of immigrants and the grandsons of slaves fell on foreign fields, it was American blood. In it you could not read the ethnic particulars of the soldier who died next to you. He was an American. And when I think of how we learned this lesson, I wonder [how] we could have unlearned it. — Bob Dole

If you're hanging around with nothing to do and the zoo is closed, come over to the Senate. You'll get the same kind of feeling and you won't have to pay. — Bob Dole

Abortions for some, miniature American flags for others! — Bob Dole

I really thought, with my background growing up, and my service, and all that, I thought it would be enough for the presidency. But ... It sure was enough when I ran for Congress. — Bob Dole

I have been uplifted by the extraordinary power of the American heart - by those armies of compassion, who are willing to cross town or cross the globe to minister to those they've never met and will never see again. — Bob Dole

At my age you find yourself looking back from time to time and you begin to appreciate some of the things that happened to you. — Bob Dole

When I was quite young, I put my trust in God
not government; and I never get the two confused. — Bob Dole

The California proposition [Prop. 187] is one I would agree with. That's the easiest way to put it. — Bob Dole

The wind doesn't bother me. I'm in the US Senate. — Bob Dole

Those who cultivate moral confusion for profit should understand this: we will name their names and shame them as they deserve to be shamed. — Bob Dole

I lost in '96, in case the word hadn't trickled out, and so I made a few commercials. — Bob Dole

If we added up the killed and wounded from the Democrat wars in this country, it would be about 1.6 million Americans — Bob Dole

He's [G.H.W. Bush] never had to do a day's work in his life. — Bob Dole

You have won the Cold War ... [Your] underappreciated valor [helped] topple the Berlin Wall, and bring down dictators the world over ... For the past four decades the world behind the Iron Curtain ... looked to Americans for hope, and America looked to you to get the job done. Today, the free world says thank you. — Bob Dole

I had a dream that I would be here this week, receiving something from the president, but I thought it would be the front door key. — Bob Dole

If Lincoln had an affair with a slave woman, it would be an outrage, but when Clinton does it with one of his staff, everyone is okay with it. — Bob Dole

The horizon is out there somewhere and you keep chasing it, looking for it and working for it. — Bob Dole

I just consider myself a Republican, none of this hyphenated stuff. I was a mainstream conservative Republican, and most people are in that category. — Bob Dole

One of my most often repeated quips was the one I made when former Presidents Carter, Ford and Nixon stood by each other at a White House event. 'There they are,' I said. 'See no evil, hear no evil, and ... evil.' — Bob Dole

If there is one clear lesson of our century, it is this: where aggression is tolerated, it multiplies. — Bob Dole

The Internet is a great way to get on the net. — Bob Dole

Think I'll win. Could be big. — Bob Dole

I think it's OK to talk about your military service, but there's a fine line between, you know, too much and just about right. — Bob Dole

As president, I will fight illegal immigration in order to preserve an appropriate level of legal immigration. At the same time, I believe our system of legal immigration needs to be re-examined. As part of this re-examination, I support a modest, temporary reduction in the annual rate of legal immigration. — Bob Dole

We'll all be riding that streetcar of desire. — Bob Dole

I've thought about it, not a lot, but I thought my relationship with Congress - the Democrats and Republicans - would help me get some things done. Not everything, but at least they'd be willing to try. — Bob Dole

All the wisdom doesn't reside in one party. — Bob Dole

I know there are California oranges and Florida oranges. When I'm in Florida, I like Florida oranges. Today, I think California oranges are the best, of course. — Bob Dole

This is not politics ... it's to protect the innocence of children. — Bob Dole

Life is very important to Americans. — Bob Dole

Having been in Congress, you know that's part of our responsibility the constituent has a problem, We're supposed to write back and say, 'Well I can't do anything' That's not what they elect you for. — Bob Dole

President Obama came to visit me in the hospital. He said, 'I wish you were still in the Senate; I need your help.' I'm not certain I can help on everything. Maybe some things. — Bob Dole

I will seek the presidency with nothing to fall back on but the judgment of the people of the United States, and nowhere to go but the White House or home. — Bob Dole

We know smoking tobacco is not good for kids, but a lot of other things aren't good. Drinking's not good. Some would say milk's not good. — Bob Dole

Elizabeth's back at the red cross, and I'm walking the dog. — Bob Dole

We're trying to get good pictures. Don't worry very much about what I say. — Bob Dole

With all the divisive forces tearing at our country, we need the glue of language to help hold us together. If we want to ensure that all our children have the same opportunities in life, alternative language education should stop and English should be acknowledged once and for all as the official language of the United States. — Bob Dole

You feel a little older in the morning. By noon I feel about 55. — Bob Dole

Sure, losing an election hurts, but I've experienced worse. And at an age when every day is precious, brooding over what might have been is self-defeating. In conceding the 1996 election, I remarked that "tomorrow will be the first time in my life I don't have anything to do." I was wrong. Seventy-two hours after conceding the election, I was swapping wisecracks with David Letterman on his late-night show. — Bob Dole

The State is now more involved than it has ever been in the raising of children, and children are now more neglected, abused, and mistreated than they have been in our time. This is not a coincidence, and, with all due respect, I am here to tell you: It does not take a village to raise a child-it takes a family. — Bob Dole

I used to think that seniority was a terrible thing when I didn't have any. — Bob Dole

No more verbally incomprehensible no more devoid of the vision thing and no more the cautious pragmatist proudly displaying the virtues of tradition and the advantages of biological seniority. — Bob Dole

It's going to be hard for someone like me to run for president. — Bob Dole

You know, a better man for a better America. That's sort of our slogan. — Bob Dole

When it's all over, it's not who you were ... it's whether you made a difference. — Bob Dole

As long as there are only 3 to 4 people on the floor, the country is in good hands. It's only when you have 50 to 60 in the Senate that you want to be concerned. — Bob Dole

Our intent will not be to create gridlock. Oh, except maybe from time to time. — Bob Dole

The Brooklyn Dodgers had a no hitter last night. — Bob Dole

History buffs probably noted the reunion at a Washington party a few weeks ago of three ex-presidents: Carter, Ford and Nixon - See No Evil, Hear No Evil and Evil. — Bob Dole

When these political action committees give money, they expect something in return other than good government. — Bob Dole

A government that seizes control of the economy for the good of the people, ends up seizing control of the people for the good of the economy — Bob Dole

At least she's the president of something, which is more than I can say. — Bob Dole

All you need to know is this. You can never go wrong by voting for a bill that fails, or against a bill that passes. — Bob Dole

It's a lot more fun winning. It hurts to lose. — Bob Dole

We are a nation conceived, born and nurtured by faith ... Our faith is declared in our Constitution, on our currency and in our lives. — Bob Dole

Political advice is a bit like your average Christmas fruitcake: something everyone gives and no one wants. — Bob Dole

I don't know how many people run for vice president and president and lose both. — Bob Dole