Kennedy John F Quotes & Sayings

Our privileges can be no greater than our obligations. The protection of our rights can endure no longer than the performance of our responsibilities. — John F. Kennedy

Peace is a process - a way of solving problems. — John F. Kennedy

Peace does not rest in charters and covenants alone. It lies in the hearts and minds of the people. — John F. Kennedy

If the self-discipline of the free cannot match the iron discipline of the mailed fist, in economic, political, scientific, and all the other kinds of struggles, as well as the military, then the peril to freedom will continue to rise. — John F. Kennedy

The deadly arms race, and the huge resources it absorbs, have too long overshadowed all else we must do. We must prevent that arms race from spreading to new nations, to new nuclear powers and to the reaches of outer space. — John F. Kennedy

Every year since 1990, the Gallup poll has asked Americans to assess all the presidents since John F. Kennedy. And every year, Kennedy comes out on top. — Robert Dallek

While we cannot guarantee that we shall one day be first, we can guarantee that any failure to make this effort will make us last. — John F. Kennedy

An across-the-board, top-to-bottom cut in personal and corporate income taxes ... to expand the incentives and opportunities of private expenditures. — John F. Kennedy

They follow the Hitler line - no matter how big the lie; repeat it often enough and the masses will regard it as the truth. — John F. Kennedy

I can evade questions without help; what I need is answers — John F. Kennedy

The world knows that America will never start a war. This generation of Americans has had enough of war and hate ... we want to build a world of peace where the weak are secure and the strong are just. — John F. Kennedy

Neither smiles nor frowns, neither good intentions nor harsh words, are a substitute for strength. — John F. Kennedy

Our progress as a nation can be no swifter than our progress in education. The human mind is our fundamental resource. — John F. Kennedy

When the going gets tough, the tuff get going. — John F. Kennedy

Food is strength, and food is peace, and food is freedom, and food is a helping hand to people around the world whose good will and friendship we want. — John F. Kennedy

Those who foolishly sought power by riding the back of the tiger ended up inside — John F. Kennedy

In 1962, President John F. Kennedy said, "Our true choice is not between tax reduction on the one hand and avoidance of large federal deficits on the other; it is increasingly clear that no matter what party is in power, as long as our national security needs keep rising, an economy hampered by restrictive tax rates will never produce enough revenues to balance the budget - just as it will never produce enough jobs or enough profits. In short, the paradoxical truth is that the tax rates are too high today and tax revenues are too low and the soundest way to raise revenues in the long run is to cut rates now. — Ronald Reagan

Persons are judged to be great because of the positive qualities they possess, not because of the absence of faults. — John F. Kennedy

Second choice always comes as a result of being realistic and lowering your sights. If you want to go through life accepting second best, or worse still, third or fourth, then don't be surprised if you end up feeling unfulfilled with your lot. Set a goal that puts fire in your belly and keep striving until you reach it. Providing you want it badly enough, you will do whatever it takes. ~ "Once you say you're going to settle for second, that's what happens to you in life." - John F. Kennedy ~ — Jack The Crack

Freedom is not merely a word or an abstract theory, but the most effective instrument for advancing the welfare of man. — John F. Kennedy

Khrushchev reminds me of the tiger hunter who has picked a place on the wall to hang the tiger's skin long before he has caught the tiger. This tiger has other ideas. — John F. Kennedy

For, in a democracy, every citizen, regardless of his interest in politics, 'holds office'; every one of us is in a position of responsibility; and, in the final analysis, the kind of government we get depends upon how we fulfill those responsibilities. We, the people, are the boss, and we will get the kind of political leadership, be it good or bad, that we demand and deserve. — John F. Kennedy

We are not afraid to entrust the American people with unpleasant facts, foreign ideas, alien philosophies, and competitive values. For a nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people.
[Remarks on the 20th Anniversary of the Voice of America; Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, February 26, 1962] — John F. Kennedy

There is nothing more certain and unchanging than uncertainty and change. — John F. Kennedy

Disarmament without checks is but a shadow - and a community without law is but a shell. — John F. Kennedy

And a revolution of automation finds machines replacing men in the mines and mills of America, without replacing their incomes or their training or their needs to pay the family doctor, grocer and landlord. — John F. Kennedy

I do not say that all men are equal in their ability, character and motivation. I do say that every American should be given a fair chance to develop all the talents they may have. — John F. Kennedy

The efforts of governments alone will never be enough. In the end, the people must choose and the people must help themselves. — John F. Kennedy

The White House used to belong to the American people. At least that's what I learned from history books and from covering every president starting with John F. Kennedy. — Helen Thomas

The Greeks understood that mind and body must develop in harmounious proportions to produce a creative intelligence. — John F. Kennedy

There can be no progress if people have no faith in tomorrow. — John F. Kennedy

Reagan is described as delivering Barry Goldwater's doctrine with John F. Kennedy's technique. — H.W. Brands

I can't see that it's wrong to give him a little legal experience before he goes out to practice law. — John F. Kennedy

Our alliance is born, not of fear, but of hope. It is an alliance that advances what we are for, as well as opposes what we are against. — John F. Kennedy

We stand for freedom. That is our conviction for ourselves; that is our only commitment to others. — John F. Kennedy

The state is the servant of the citizen, and not his master. — John F. Kennedy

Every accomplishment starts with the decision to try. — John F. Kennedy

Finally, I believe in an America where religious intolerance will someday end; where all men and all churches are treated as equal; where every man has the same right to attend or not attend the church of his choice; where there is no Catholic vote, no anti-Catholic vote, no bloc voting of any kind; and where Catholics, Protestants and Jews, at both the lay and pastoral level, will refrain from those attitudes of disdain and division which have so often marred their works in the past, and promote instead the American ideal of brotherhood. — John F. Kennedy

War and hunger and ignorance and despair know no religious barriers. — John F. Kennedy

I was born an American, I live like an American, I will die an American. — John F. Kennedy

The Jewish people, ever since David slew Goliath, have never considered youth as a barrier to leadership. — John F. Kennedy

A tired nation, said David Lloyd George, is a Tory nation, and the United States today cannot afford to be either tired or Tory. — John F. Kennedy

My call is not to those who believe they belong to the past. My call is to those who believe in the future. — John F. Kennedy

In a time of domestic crisis, men of goodwill and generosity should be able to unite regardless of party or politics. — John F. Kennedy

All problems, depressions, wars, disasters, assassinations, all of them were planned, caused, instigated, and implemented by the International Bankers and their attempt to establish a central bank in every country in the world, which they have now done, thanks to corrupt politicians who have been bought and paid for. This is all you need to know about the history of the world. — John F. Kennedy

Unconditional war can no longer lead to unconditional victory. It can no longer serve to settle disputes. It can no longer be of concern to great powers alone. For a nuclear disaster, spread by winds and waters and fear, could well engulf the great and the small, the rich and the poor, the committed and the uncommitted alike. Mankind must put an end to war or war will put an end to mankind. — John F. Kennedy

Suspicion on one side breeds suspicion on the other, and new weapons beget counter-weapons. — John F. Kennedy

Anyone who is honestly seeking a job and can't find it, deserves the attention of the United States government, and the people. — John F. Kennedy

For to save mankind's future freedom, we must face up to any risk that is necessary. We will always seek peace
but we will never surrender. — John F. Kennedy

Although she's miles away, still I remember spending that December, staring at the sounds she made with her breath. And when I asked what it was she was up to "five foot nothing" came from her cracked honky-tonk lips and from a calico bonnet monstrous curls unfurled like apple-blossoms scattering about into the back-country. And wreaths of snowflakes swarmed over the hems of her garments and wandered with us into the ether on John F. Kennedy Avenue, and mingled in the traffic. While she held my head together like Jackie Onassis.
Although she's miles away, still I remember her pinning roses to a lapel and the icicles that hung upon the city when I told her "I may not be a handsome man and I probably don't have what it takes to make you forget for long, but know that I'm grateful we had this little drink and a dance before I'm sent ony way." Down John F. Kennedy Avenue, thumbing to Dallas. She held my head together
Like Jackie Onassis. — Valentine Xavier

John F. Kennedy went to bed at 3:30 in the morning on November 9, 1960, uncertain whether he had defeated Richard Nixon for the presidency. He thought he had won, but six states hung in the balance, and after months of exhaustive campaigning, he was too tired to stay awake any longer. — Robert Dallek

Everywhere immigrants have enriched and strengthened the fabric of American life. — John F. Kennedy

But if the life will not be easy, it will be rich and satisfying. For every young American who participates in the Peace Corps-who works in a foreign land-will know that he or she is sharing in the great common task of bringing to man that decent way of life which is the foundation of freedom and a condition of peace. — John F. Kennedy

He [John F. Kennedy] might have envisioned himself being "alone, at the top" but, like Woodrow Wilson, he would find out that not even a President moves free of human entanglement, human needs, human illusions; not even a President can be independent of those around him. — Tom Wicker

If anyone is crazy enough to want to kill a president of the United States, he can do it. All he must be prepared to do is give his life for the president's. — John F. Kennedy

The New Frontier of which I speak is not a set of promises, it is a set of challenges.
It sums up not what I intend to offer the American people, but what I intend to ask of them. — John F. Kennedy

Forbidden fruit tastes sweet, but its aftertaste is bitter. — John F. Kennedy

The second [presidential] term changes, and I think that John F. Kennedy certainly ran on that and he knew that second term would give him oxygen, and he needed it. Unfortunately, he didn't get there. — Oliver Stone

I was once invited to attend a private dinner for Senator John F. Kennedy. But it was a Saturday evening, and I passed. Had better things to do. — Jack McDevitt

Our Constitution wisely assigns both joint and separate roles to each branch of the government; and a President and a Congress who hold each other in mutual respect will neither permit nor attempt any trespass. — John F. Kennedy

I have asked the secretary of the treasury to report by April 1 on whether present tax laws may be stimulating in undue amounts the flow of American capital to the industrial countries abroad through special preferential treatment. — John F. Kennedy

All my life Ive known better than to depend on the experts. How could I have been so stupid, to let them go ahead? — John F. Kennedy

To be courageous requires no exceptional qualifications, no magic formula, no special combination of time, place, and circumstance. It is an opportunity that sooner or later is presented to us all. — John F. Kennedy

We must use time as a tool, not as a couch. — John F. Kennedy

The work I did on 'Killing Kennedy' was very meticulous and, in some ways, actually tedious. It was hard work because there is so much known about John F. Kennedy and Lee Harvey Oswald. To try to distill that into a clear narrative that's interesting and tells two great stories was a real challenge. — Kelly Masterson

I can assure you that every degree of mind and spirit that I possess will be devoted to the long-range interests of the United States and to the cause of freedom around the world. — John F. Kennedy

It's important to remember something: California is not a state built on moderation. We invented motion pictures. We made an electric sports car. We're both the brain (Silicon Valley) and the heart (Hollywood, alas) of this great nation, and meanwhile we grow everyone's strawberries. We're open to innovation. We're open to new ideas. We're open to odd couples - and to strays from all parts of the world. Look at our last governor: an Austrian body builder and son of a Nazi married to John F. Kennedy's niece. Anything can happen. — Scott Hutchins

By God, no matter what Republicans say, the people of this country really do care about each other. We are not a cold people. By God, when John F. Kennedy said, "Ask what you can do for your country," he spoke to this country's heart and conscience. — Garrison Keillor

We cannot negotiate with people who say what's mine is mine and what's yours is negotiable.
[ The Berlin Crisis: Radio and Television Address to the American People (The White House, July 25, 1961)] — John F. Kennedy

We have all seen these circus elephants complete with tusks, ivory in their head and thick skins, who move around the circus ring and grab the tail of the elephant ahead of them. — John F. Kennedy

Events of October 1962 indicated, as they had all through history, that control of the sea means security. Control of the seas can mean peace. Control of the seas can mean victory. The United States must control the seas if it is to protect your security ... — John F. Kennedy

Our progress as a nation can be not swifter than our progress in education. — John F. Kennedy

Today our concern must be with the future. For the world is changing. The old era is ending. The old ways will not do. — John F. Kennedy

I strongly believe in Scouting ... It's a source of great strength to us. — John F. Kennedy

We want to be first; not first if, not first but; but first! — John F. Kennedy

Neither the fanatics nor the faint-hearted are needed. And our duty as a Party is not to our Party alone, but to the nation, and, indeed, to all mankind. Our duty is not merely the preservation of political power but the preservation of peace and freedom.
So let us not be petty when our cause is so great. Let us not quarrel amongst ourselves when our Nation's future is at stake.
Let us stand together with renewed confidence in our cause
united in our heritage of the past and our hopes for the future
and determined that this land we love shall lead all mankind into new frontiers of peace and abundance. — John F. Kennedy

You're in there with me. Personally. — John F. Kennedy

I know my Republican friends were glad to see my wife feeding an elephant in India. She gave him sugar and nuts. But of course the elephant wasn't satisfied. — John F. Kennedy

Above all, we are coming to understand that the arts incarnate the creativity of a free people. When the creative impulse cannot flourish, when it cannot freely select its methods and objects, when it is deprived of spontaneity, then society severs the root of art. — John F. Kennedy

The most powerful single force in the world today is neither Communism nor Capitalism, neither the H-bomb nor the guided missile
it is man's eternal desire to be free and independent. — John F. Kennedy

We will not prematurely or unnecessarily risk the costs of a worldwide nuclear war in which even the fruits of victory would be ashes in our mouth - but neither shall we shrink from that risk any time it must be faced. — John F. Kennedy

In free society art is not a weapon ... Artists are not engineers of the soul. — John F. Kennedy

I believe in an America ... where no public official either requests or accepts instructions on public policy from the Pope, the National Council of Churches, or any other ecclesiastical source. — John F. Kennedy

The final and best means of strengthening demand among consumers and business is to reduce the burden on private income and the deterrence to private initiative which are imposed by our present tax system, and this administration pledged itself last summer to an across-the-board, top-to-bottom cut in personal and corporate income taxes to be enacted and become effective in 1963. — John F. Kennedy

Collective bargaining has always been the bedrock of the American labor movement. I hope that you will continue to anchor your movement to this foundation. Free collective bargaining is good for the entire Nation. In my view, it is the only alternative to State regulation of wages and prices - a path which leads far down the grim road of totalitarianism. Those who would destroy or further limit the rights of organized labor - those who would cripple collective bargaining or prevent organization of the unorganized - do a disservice to the cause of democracy. — John F. Kennedy

We must live our lives in such a way that our children, and their children after them, will form a natural and lasting commitment to the vigorous life. Only in this way can we be assured that the spirit and strength of America will be constantly replenished.. — John F. Kennedy

Let us not seek the Republican answer or the Democratic answer, but the right answer. Let us not seek to fix the blame for the past. Let us accept our own responsibility for the future. — John F. Kennedy

The complacent, the self-indulgent, the soft societies are about to be swept away with the debris of history. Only the strong, only the industrious, only the determined, only the courageous, only the visionary who determine the real nature of our struggle can possibly survive. — John F. Kennedy

The argument that John F. Kennedy was a closet peacenik, ready to give up on what the Vietnamese call the 'American War' upon re-election, received its most farcical treatment in Oliver Stone's 'JFK.' — Rick Perlstein

There is nothing, I think, more unfortunate than to have soft, chubby, fat-looking children who go to watch their school play basketball every Saturday and regard that as their weeks exercise. — John F. Kennedy

A child miseducated is a child lost. — John F. Kennedy

The success of this Government, and thus the success of our Nation, depends in the last analysis upon the quality.of our career services. The legislation enacted by the Congress, as well as the decisions made by me and by the department and agency heads, must all be implemented by the career men and women in the Federal service. In foreign affairs, national defense, science and technology, and a host of other fields, they face problems of unprecedented importance and perplexity. We are all dependent on their sense of loyalty and responsibility as well as their competence and energy. — John F. Kennedy

If men and women are in chains anywhere in the world, then freedom is endangered everywhere. — John F. Kennedy

In early 1961 a new president, John F. Kennedy, was told by military leaders and civilian officials that the Kingdom of Laos - of no conceivable strategic importance to the U.S. - required the presence of American troops and perhaps even tactical nuclear weapons. Why? Because if Laos fell, Asia would go red from Thailand to Indonesia. — Jeff Greenfield

We would like to live as we once lived, but history will not permit it. — John F. Kennedy

I feel like the fellow in jail who is watching his scaffold being built. (On construction of reviewing stands for inauguration of his successor John F Kennedy) — Dwight D. Eisenhower

It is insane that two men, sitting on opposite sides of the world, should be able to decide to bring an end to civilization. — John F. Kennedy

I think the success of any school can be measured by the contribution the alumni make to our national life. — John F. Kennedy

The courage of life is often a less dramatic spectacle than the courage of a final moment; but it is no less a magnificent mixture of triumph and tragedy. A man does what he must - in spite of personal consequences, in spite of obstacles and dangers and pressures - and that is the basis of all morality. — John F. Kennedy

I know few significant questions of public policy which can safely be confided to computers. In the end, the hard decisions inescapably involve imponderables of intuition, prudence, and judgment. — John F. Kennedy