Barack Obama Quotes

“We need to internalize this idea of excellence. Not many folks spend a lot of time trying to be excellent.”

“We need to steer clear of this poverty of ambition, where people want to drive fancy cars and wear nice clothes but don't want to work hard to accomplish these things. Everyone should try to realize their full potential.”

“Focusing your life solely on making a buck shows a certain poverty of ambition. It's only when you hitch your wagon to something larger than yourself that you realize your true potential.”

“Money is not the only answer, but it makes a difference.”

“We don't promise equal outcomes, but we were founded on the idea everybody should have an equal opportunity to succeed. Where you start should not determine where you end up.”

“Any fool can have a child. That doesn't make you a father. It's the courage to raise a child that makes you a father.”

“It took a lot of blood, sweat and tears to get to where we are today, but we have just begun.”

“We proved that we are still a people capable of doing big things and tackling our biggest challenges.”

“We, the People, recognize that we have responsibilities as well as rights; that our destinies are bound together.”

“What I'm asking for is hard. It's easier to be cynical; to accept that change isn't possible. But if we give up now, then we forsake a better future.”

“Do we participate in a politics of cynicism or a politics of hope?”

“Issues are never simple. One thing I'm proud of is that very rarely will you hear me simplify the issues.”

“A good compromise is like a good sentence, or a good piece of music. Everybody can recognize it. They say, "Huh. It works. It makes sense."

“We want everybody to act like adults, quit playing games, realize that it's not just my way or the highway.”

“I know my country has not perfected itself. We've made our share of mistakes.”

“But what we can do, as flawed as we are, is still see God in other people, and do our best to help them find their own grace.”

“Let us reach for the world that ought to be, that spark of the divine that still stirs within each of our souls.”

“Change doesn't come from Washington. Change comes to Washington.”

“If something needs fixing, then lace up your shoes and do some organizing.”

“It falls to each of us to be those anxious, jealous guardians of our democracy.”

“I am asking you to believe. Not in my ability to bring about change, but in yours.”

“Yes we did. Yes we can.”

“I'm the president of the United States. I'm not the emperor of the United States.”

“The thing about hip-hop today is it's smart, it's insightful. The way they can communicate a complex message in a very short space is remarkable.”

“Why can't I just eat my waffle?”