Franklin D. Roosevelt Quotes

“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself: nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.”

“Happiness lies not in the mere possession of money; it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort.”

“The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today.”

“Men are not prisoners of fate, but only prisoners of their own minds.”

“It is common sense to take a method and try it. If it fails, admit it frankly and try another. But above all, try something.”

“One thing is sure. We have to do something. We have to do the best we know how at the moment. If it doesn't turn out right, we can modify it as we go along.”

“To reach a port, we must sail: sail, not tie at anchor; sail, not drift.”

“There are many ways of going forward, but only one way of standing still.”

“It isn't sufficient just to want; you've got to ask yourself what you are going to do to get the things you want.”

“Never before have we had so little time in which to do so much.”

“There is a mysterious cycle in human events. To some generations much is given. Of other generations much is expected. This generation of Americans has a rendezvous with destiny.”

“We have always held to the hope, the belief, the conviction that there is a better life, a better world, beyond the horizon.”

“I do not look upon these United States as a finished product. We are still in the making.”

“Human kindness has never weakened the stamina or softened the fibre of a free people. A nation does not have to be cruel to be tough.”

“The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much; it is whether we provide enough for those who have little.”

“In our seeking for economic and political progress, we all go up, or else we all go down.”

“True individual freedom cannot exist without economic security and independence. People who are hungry and out of a job are the stuff of which dictatorships are made.”

“Confidence thrives on honesty, on honour, on the sacredness of obligations, on faithful protection and on unselfish performance. Without them it cannot live.”

“Rules are not necessarily sacred; principles are.”

“Repetition does not transform a lie into a truth.”

“The truth is found when men are free to pursue it.”

“Whoever seeks to set one religion against another seeks to destroy all religion.”

“Democracy cannot succeed unless those who express their choice are prepared to choose wisely. The real safeguard of democracy, therefore, is education.”

“The school is the last expenditure upon which America should be willing to economise.”

“Let us never forget that government is ourselves and not an alien power over us. The ultimate rulers of our democracy are the voters of this country.”