Howard Dean Quotes & Sayings

There's not one person in this crowd who's gonna agree with everything I say. Not one. — Howard Dean

You have the power to take our country back. — Howard Dean

I like John Kerry. I think he's intellectually curious and very thoughtful. I think he's deeply committed on issues like the environment. I think he's an internationalist, which I am. — Howard Dean

The Democratic Party, all the candidates from Washington, they all know each other, they all move in the same circles, and what I'm doing is breaking into the country club. — Howard Dean

Not one Republican president has balanced the budget in 34 years. You can not trust Republicans with your money. — Howard Dean

I will use whatever position I have in order to root out hypocrisy. Democrats have strong moral values. Frankly, my moral values are offended by some of the things I hear on programs like 'Rush Limbaugh,' and we don't have to put up with that. — Howard Dean

The idea that the United States is going to win the war in Iraq is just plain wrong. — Howard Dean

The Iraqi prime minister is an anti-Semite. We don't need to spend $200 and $300 and $500 billion dollars bringing democracy to Iraq to turn it over to people who believe that Israel doesn't have a right to defend itself and who refuse to condemn Hezbollah. — Howard Dean

I intend to talk about race during this election in the South because the Republicans have been talking about it since 1968 in order to divide us. And I'm going to bring us together. Because you know what? You know what? White folks in the South who drive pickup trucks with Confederate flag decals in the back ought to be voting with us and not them, because their kids don't have health insurance either and their kids need better schools too. — Howard Dean

At every turn when there has been an imbalance of power, the truth questioned, or our beliefs and values distorted, the change required to restore our nation has always come from the bottom up from our people. — Howard Dean

There's been more than one time when I've said something, and sort of the middle of what I've said is not said but thought, and therefore assumed to be understood, which is a ridiculous assumption on my part, but sometimes gets me in trouble. — Howard Dean

As governor, I came to believe that the death penalty would be a just punishment for certain, especially heinous crimes, such as the murder of a child or the murder of a police officer. The events of September 11 convinced me that terrorists also deserve the ultimate punishment. — Howard Dean

Early withdrawal from Iraq would result in unarguably, defeat and humiliation for the United States. There's no question. We would be defeated by definition. We would be humiliated in that defeat. — Howard Dean

The idea that we're going to win this war is an idea that unfortunately is just plain wrong. — Howard Dean

Look, I'm not a perfect person. I have my warts. I sometimes say things that get me in trouble. I wear suits that are cheap. But I say what I think and I believe what I say, and I'm willing to say things that are not popular but ordinary people know are right. — Howard Dean

The truth is the President of the United States used the same device that Slobodan Milosevic used in Serbia. When you appeal to homophobia, when you appeal to sexism, when you appeal to racism, that is extraordinarily damaging to the country. — Howard Dean

I'm a committed Christian. I worship in my own way. That's my business. That's not the business of the pharisees who are going to preach to me about what I do and then do something else. — Howard Dean

I'm just deeply disappointed that once again we may have to settle for the lesser of two evils. — Howard Dean

I have never favored a Social Security retirement age of 70 nor do I favor one of 68. — Howard Dean

So the - the part of the problem is not just the rhetoric. It's the fact that we - we're so polarized in what we've done to each other as parties over the last thirty years in redistricting that it's very, very hard to overcome your own constituencies and move to the middle. — Howard Dean

The French will always do exactly the opposite on what the United States wants regardless of what happens, so we're never going to have a consistent policy. — Howard Dean

George Bush calls his biggest fundraisers Rangers and Pioneers. We gather here today and we call ourselves simply Americans. — Howard Dean

We have to say what we believe ... whether it's popular or not. — Howard Dean

I talked for a long time about that, what I call the hate wing of the Republican Party.And often been criticized for saying it. But there is such a thing, and it started in 1968 with the southern strategy developed by Richard Nixon to bring southern racists out of the Democratic Party and into the Republican Party, which they succeeded in doing. — Howard Dean

The way we're going to win elections in this country is not to become Republican lite. The way we're going to win elections in this country is to stand up for what we believe in. — Howard Dean

Someone earlier made a remark about losing 500 soldiers and 2,200 wounded in Iraq. Those soldiers were sent there by the vote of Sen. Lieberman, Sen. Edwards and Sen. Kerry. I think that is a serious matter. — Howard Dean

Most Christmas carols have no obvious religious content, or at least that's noticeable to most people. I mean, it is almost by definition, a cultural phenomenon, all these songs, even though they point to this very religious holiday. They're not religious songs in effect anymore. — Howard Dean

If you're really worried about the effect of "Silent Night" on the kids, you need a hobby or something, and I'm glad you're pointing that out. — Howard Dean

There are no ideas in the Republican Party right now in the Congress. They're the party of no. They desperately need some intellectual leadership. And whatever you think of Newt Gingrich, he can supply intellectual leadership. So I hope he does run. — Howard Dean

And people in America are very practical people across the political spectrum. Very conservative women want their kids, their daughters taking birth control. — Howard Dean

There's no question that Saddam Hussein is a threat to the United States and to our allies. If Saddam persists in thumbing his nose at the inspectors, then we're clearly going to have to do something about it. — Howard Dean

As Commander in Chief of the United States Military, I will never send our sons and daughters and our brothers and sisters to die in a foreign land without telling the truth about why they're going there. — Howard Dean

The way to balance the budget is for Congress to cut Social Security, move the retirement age to 70, cut defense, Medicare and veterans pensions, while the states cut almost everything else. It would be tough but we could do it. — Howard Dean

The war in Iraq was unwinnable. — Howard Dean

The fact is that we wouldn't be in Iraq if it weren't for Democrats like Senator Kerry. — Howard Dean

I think in general the ends do not justify the means. — Howard Dean

You can't make Howard Dean a straw man. He is what he appears to be. And that's the beauty of Howard Dean. — Howard Dean

I still want to be the candidate for guys with Confederate flags in their pickup trucks. We can't beat George Bush unless we appeal to a broad cross-section of Democrats. — Howard Dean

Not only are we going to New Hampshire ... we're going to South Carolina and Oklahoma and Arizona and North Dakota and New Mexico, and we're going to California and Texas and New York! And we're going to South Dakota and Oregon and Washington and Michigan. And then we're going to Washington, D.C. to take back the White House, Yeeeeeaaaaaargh! — Howard Dean

You think people can work all day and then pick up their kids at child care or wherever and get home and still manage to sandwich in an eight-hour vote? Well Republicans, I guess can do that. Because a lot of them have never made an honest living in their lives. — Howard Dean

From a religious point of view, if God had thought homosexuality is a sin, he would not have created gay people. — Howard Dean

I'm tired of the ayatollahs of the right wing. We're fighting for freedom in Iraq. We're going to fight for freedom in America. — Howard Dean

Luckily, I'm a governor - so I get to tell you what I've already done not just what I'm going to do. — Howard Dean

I have my warts. I sometimes say things that get me in trouble. In other words, I lead with my heart and not my head. That's the only chance we have against George Bush. — Howard Dean

Tom DeLay himself has never been the issue. DeLay is a symptom of a larger disease?a sick Republican culture of corruption that touches everyone who took his dirty money, voted for his corrupt leadership, or sat silently while their party has sold our government to the highest bidder. — Howard Dean

There are definitely some people who cheat, but how come we're only focusing on people who are on welfare who cheat, and not the bank presidents who cheat? — Howard Dean

John Ashcroft is not a patriot, John Ashcroft is a descendant of Joseph McCarthy. — Howard Dean

Prison is an important part of life. We can't have violent people running around in the streets. (3 out of 4 federal prisoners are serving time for non-violent crimes.) Most competent and qualified kindergarden teachers can tell you who the 5 kids are in his or her class likely to wind up in prison 15 - 20 years from now. — Howard Dean

You know, to listen to Senator Lieberman, Senator Kerry, Representative Gephardt, I'm anti-Israel, I'm anti-trade, I'm anti-Medicare and I'm anti-Social Security. I wonder how I ended up in the Democratic Party. I'm not a new entrant to the Democratic Party. I've been here a long time. — Howard Dean

We've not had one Republican president in 34 years balance the budget. You can't trust right-wing Republicans with your money. You ought to hire somebody who has balanced a budget. I'm much more conservative with money than George Bush is. — Howard Dean

I wish that there was a unified Democratic position on the war in Iraq. I was that there was a unified American position and everybody agreed with me that we ought to be out of there yesterday. But they don't, and that's the fact. I mean, he's stating a fact about what's going on. — Howard Dean

No doctor is going to do an abortion on a live fetus. That doesn't happen. Doctors don't do that. If they do, they'll get their license pulled, as well they should. — Howard Dean

Stop scapegoating immigrants[Stop using] outrageous phrases like 'illegal aliens.' — Howard Dean

I'm not attacking liberals with a broad brush. — Howard Dean

This country was the moral leader of the world until George Bush became president. — Howard Dean

The corporatization of the press really has hurt the press. — Howard Dean

We will ultimately be judged by how we react in times of trouble and how we care for the least among us. — Howard Dean

What I want to know is what in the world so many Democrats are doing supporting the President's unilateral intervention in Iraq? — Howard Dean

We need to go everywhere. There is not one county in this state, I don't care how far west you go, that doesn't have Democrats. We have to be proud of who we are. — Howard Dean

The path to a better future goes directly through our public schools. I have nothing against private schools, parochial schools and home schooling, and I think that parents with the means and inclination should choose whatever they believe is best for their children. But those choices cannot compete, and cannot come at the expense of what has been
and what must always be
the great equalizer in our society, a free and equal public education. — Howard Dean

I think democracy fails under a variety of conditions and one of the conditions occurs when people don't have the ability to get the kind of information they need to make up their mind. Ideologically, I don't care much for FOX News. But the truth is that, as long as there are countervailing points of view available on the spectrum, it doesn't matter. — Howard Dean

What I usually do is tell funny stories from the road, many of which are, of course, unprintable. But I don't actually have a joke. I don't tell jokes much. I tell little stories. — Howard Dean

I don't mind being called a liberal. I just don't really think it's true. — Howard Dean

People have said I'm the candidate of anger. Well, we have a right to be angry. We lost 3 million jobs. We lost our place as the moral leader of the world. — Howard Dean

I've always been endorsed by the National Rifle Association. — Howard Dean

We are the great grassroots campaign of the modern era, built from mousepads, shoe leather and hope. — Howard Dean

Real Democrats don't make promises they can't keep. — Howard Dean

The Republicans are all about suppressing votes. — Howard Dean

We've gotten rid of (Saddam Hussein), and I suppose that's a good thing. — Howard Dean

I hate Republicans and everything they stand for. — Howard Dean

America is a conservative country with a small "c" - they want change, but they don't want too much change too fast. — Howard Dean

America's greatness rests on far more than the power of our arms. Our greatness is also measured by our goodness, it's in the capacity of our minds, of our hearts, and it's in the strength of our democracy. — Howard Dean

What I want to do more than anything as president of the United States is to restore the honor and dignity and respect that this country is owed around the world. — Howard Dean

My view of Christianity is that the hallmark of being a Christian is to reach out to people who have been left behind. So I think there was a religious aspect to my decision to support civil unions. — Howard Dean

If money is a form of speech, as the Supreme Court has regrettably found, rich donors will always be the loudest speakers. — Howard Dean

This is a struggle of good and evil. And we're the good. — Howard Dean

My view is FOX News is a propaganda outlet for the Republican Party and I don't comment on FOX News. — Howard Dean

I actually spoke in an African-American church yesterday. — Howard Dean

I've resisted pronouncing a sentence before guilt is found. I still have this old-fashioned notion that even with people like Osama, who is very likely to be found guilty, we should do our best not to, in positions of executive power, not to prejudge jury trials. — Howard Dean

The capture of Saddam has not made America safer. — Howard Dean

Barry Goldwater once said, 'I'd rather be right than president.' I can't tell you how much I disagree with that Barry Goldwater. — Howard Dean

So what we - all we really want, I think, from the so-called Democratic wing of the Democratic Party is really to stand up for what we believe in. — Howard Dean

I'm not against the Hanukkah songs. I like Hanukkah songs. I grew up with Hanukkah songs. I'm not opposed to Hanukkah or the songs that accompany it, at all. — Howard Dean

Second of all, I don't think Wall Street is doing what it's supposed to be doing, even after the shameful performance of the last two years. They're are not allocating capital. — Howard Dean

Hypocrisy is a value that I think has been embraced by the Republican Party. We get lectured by people all day long about moral values by people who have their own moral shortcomings. — Howard Dean

Tom DeLay ought to go back to Houston where he can serve his jail sentence. — Howard Dean

I think we had quite enough capitalism in the last eight years; I think we need some regulation now. — Howard Dean

My energy level is very high ... how ambitious it all is depends on lots of different things. But pretty high energy level. I take on a lot of projects at the same time. — Howard Dean

We owe something to the government to grow up in this great country. I'm tired of hearing people in the private sector talk like they don't owe the government anything. We do. This is a great country because we all pay into it. It's about time we all pay into it ... If we paid the same amount of taxes we paid when Bill Clinton was president, I would be a happy guy, and the budget would be closer to balanced. You cannot give away money, whether you give it to rich or poor people. That's what George Bush did
excuse me, trillions of dollars. You can't do that. — Howard Dean

How much courage does it take for Dean to throw red meat to the party faithful? — Howard Dean

When you - when you - and this is still going on today - are making your money by pushing paper around, when you should be making your money by investing venture capital in various job-creating things, that makes it much harder to recover. — Howard Dean

The real truth is, there's no such thing as a red state or a blue state, they're all purple. Some are more purple than others and our job is to get them all deep purple and then blue. And we can do that. — Howard Dean

I think most people ... would be glad to pay the same taxes they paid when Bill Clinton was president, if only they could have the same economy they had when Bill Clinton was president. — Howard Dean

I supported the war in Afghanistan because 3000 of our people were murdered and I thought we had a right to defend the people of the United States. — Howard Dean

I think with a lifetime appointment to the Supreme Court, you can't play, you know, hide the salami, or whatever it's called. — Howard Dean

Every single American has a voice and ... it ought to be heard in the halls of power every day. — Howard Dean

I was hoping to get a reception like this, I'd just hoped that it would be on Thursday night instead of Tuesday night. — Howard Dean

Every day it becomes clearer that this was the wrong war at the wrong time. — Howard Dean

I think the recovery hasn't been stronger because the hole that was dug for President Obama by the Bush administration was far worse than anybody could imagine, first of all. — Howard Dean

I believe that the flag of the Confederate States of America is a painful symbol and reminder of racial injustice and slavery which (Abraham) Lincoln denounced from here over 150 years ago — Howard Dean