110+ Harry S. Truman Quotes On Communism, Democracy And Politicians

Harry S. Truman was the 33rd President of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. He succeeded Franklin D. Roosevelt after his death in April 1945 and was the first president to serve in the post-World War II era. He is best known for his role in the Cold War, the Korean War, and the Marshall Plan. Following is our collection on famous quotes by Harry S. Truman on communism, democracy, politicians.

Top 10 Harry S. Truman Quotes

1. It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.
2. Work Hard. Do your best. Keep your word. Never get too big for your britches. Trust in God. Have no fear; and Never forget a friend.
3. My choice early in life was either to be a piano player in a whorehouse or a politician. To tell the truth, there's hardly a difference.
4. An honest public servant can't become rich in politics. He can only attain greatness and satisfaction by service.
5. Our debt to the heroic men and valiant women in the service of our country can never be repaid. They have earned our undying gratitude. America will never forget their sacrifices.
6. America was not built on fear. America was built on courage, on imagination and an unbeatable determination to do the job at hand.
7. Term limits would cure both senility and seniority- both terrible legislative diseases.
8. A President needs political understanding to run the government, but he may be elected without it.
9. When the Liberals said they were going to create a million new jobs, I didn't think they were all going to be tax collectors. If you can't convince them, confuse them.
10. Given the choice between a Republican and someone who acts like a Republican, people will vote for the real Republican all the time

Harry S. Truman Image Quotes

Never kick a fresh turd on a hot day. — Harry S. Truman

The only thing new in the world is the history you don't know. — Harry S. Truman

A bureaucrat is a Democrat who holds some office that a Republican wants. — Harry S. Truman

Harry S. Truman Short Quotes

• There's nothing better than cake but more cake.
• It's a recession when your neighbor loses his job; it's a depression when you lose yours.
• Never kick a fresh turd on a hot day.
• Selfishness and greed, individual or national, cause most of our troubles.
• Intense feeling too often obscures the truth.
• The only thing new in the world is the history you don't know.
• A bureaucrat is a Democrat who holds some office that a Republican wants.
• If you want a friend in Washington, buy a dog.
• Imperfect action is better than perfect inaction.
• If you can't convince them, confuse them.

Harry S. Truman Quotes About Democracy

Without a strong educational system — free of government control — democracy is crippled. Knowledge is not only the key to power. It is the citadel of human freedom. — Harry S. Truman

Secrecy and a free, democratic government don't mix. — Harry S. Truman

Democracy alone can supply the vitalizing force to stir the peoples of the world into triumphant action, not only against their human oppressors, but also against their ancient enemies-hunger, misery, and despair. — Harry S. Truman

Democracy is based on the conviction that man has the moral and intellectual capacity, as well as the inalienable right, to govern himself with reason and justice. — Harry S. Truman

Harry S. Truman Quotes About Politicians

A politician is a man who understands government, and it takes a politician to run a government. A statesman is a politician who's been dead 10 or 15 years. — Harry S. Truman

I can remember when a good politician had to be 75 percent ability and 25 percent actor, but I can well see the day when the reverse could be true. — Harry S. Truman

I always considered statesmen to be more expendable than soldiers. — Harry S. Truman

Harry S. Truman Quotes About Leadership

Men make history and not the other way around. In periods where there is no leadership, society stands still. Progress occurs when courageous, skillful leaders seize the opportunity to change things for the better. — Harry S. Truman

I wonder how far Moses would have gone if he had taken a poll in Egypt? What would Jesus Christ have preached if He had taken a poll in the land of Israel? Where would the Reformation have gone if Martin Luther had taken a poll? It isn't polls or public opinion alone of the moment that counts. — Harry S. Truman

In periods where there is no leadership, society stands still. — Harry S. Truman

The best way to give advice to your children is to find out what they want and then advise them to do it. — Harry S. Truman

To be able to lead others, a man must be willing to go forward alone. — Harry S. Truman

I wonder how far Moses would have gone if he'd taken a poll in Egypt? What would Jesus Christ have preached if he'd taken a poll in Israel? Where would the Reformation have gone if Martin Luther had taken a poll? — Harry S. Truman

It is understanding that gives us an ability to have peace. When we understand the other fellow's viewpoint, and he understands ours, then we can sit down and work out our differences. — Harry S. Truman

When a leader is in the Democratic Party he's a boss. When he's in the Republican Party he's nothing but a leader. — Harry S. Truman

A leader is the man who has the ability to get other people to do what they don't want to do, and like it. — Harry S. Truman

It isn't polls or public opinion at the moment that counts. It is right and wrong and leadership--men with fortitude, honesty, and a belief in the right that makes epochs in the history of the world. — Harry S. Truman

Harry S. Truman Quotes About Decisiveness

The atom bomb was no great decision. It was merely another powerful weapon in the arsenal of righteousness. — Harry S. Truman

Too many?pass judgement on wartime decisions in the luxury of a peacetime environment. — Harry S. Truman

Despite his unimpressive appearance and manner, he was a brilliant fellow with a crystal-clear mind.... It was just that, when it came time for him to act like an executive, he was like a great many other people; when the time comes to make decisions, they have difficulty doing it. — Harry S. Truman

One of the presidents we could have done without.... There are some things I admire about Tyler, but there were also plenty of things that weren't so admirable.... The reason I have a certain amount of grudging respect for John Tyler is that he knew his own mind and stuck to his decisions. — Harry S. Truman

I have to decide Japanese strategy - shall we invade Japan proper or shall we bomb and blockade? That is my hardest decision to date. But I'll make it when I have all the facts. — Harry S. Truman

When the decision is up before you-and on my desk I have a motto which says "The buck stops here"-the decision has to be made. — Harry S. Truman

Once a decision was made, I didn't worry about it afterward. — Harry S. Truman

All my life, whenever it comes time to make a decision, I make it and forget about it. — Harry S. Truman

A man who is influenced by the polls or is afraid to make decisions which make him unpopular is not a man to represent the welfare of the country. — Harry S. Truman

Harry S. Truman Famous Quotes And Sayings

The fundamental basis of this nation’s laws was given to Moses on the Mount…If we don’t have a proper fundamental moral background, we will finally end up with a totalitarian government which does not believe in rights for anybody except the State. — Harry S. Truman

Once a government is committed to the principle of silencing the voice of opposition, it has only one way to go, and that is down the path of increasingly repressive measures, until it becomes a source of terror to all its citizens and creates a country where everyone lives in fear. — Harry S. Truman

When even one American - who has done nothing wrong - is forced by fear to shut his mind and close his mouth - then all Americans are in peril. — Harry S. Truman

Three things ruin a man: power, money, and women. I never wanted power. I never had any money, and the only woman in my life is up at the house right now. — Harry S. Truman

A pessimist is one who makes difficulties of his opportunities and an optimist is one who makes opportunities of his difficulties. — Harry S. Truman

There are always a lot of people so afraid of rocking the boat that they stop rowing. We can never get ahead that way. — Harry S. Truman

I never would have agreed to the formulation of the Central Intelligence Agency back in forty-seven, if I had known it would become the American Gestapo. — Harry S. Truman

I had faith in Israel before it was established, I have in it now. I believe it has a glorious future before it - not just another sovereign nation, but as an embodiment of the great ideals of our civilization. — Harry S. Truman

Religious and racial persecution is moronic at all times, perhaps the most idiotic of human stupidities. — Harry S. Truman

Of course, there are dangers in religious freedom and freedom of opinion. But to deny these rights is worse than dangerous, it is absolutely fatal to liberty. — Harry S. Truman

There is some risk involved in action, there always is. But there is far more risk in failure to act. — Harry S. Truman

Of course I believe in free enterprise but in my system of free enterprise, the democratic principle is that there never was, never has been, never will be, room for the ruthless exploitation of the many for the benefit of the few. — Harry S. Truman

My favorite animal is the mule. He has more horse sense than a horse. He knows when to stop eating - and he knows when to stop working. — Harry S. Truman

Experience has shown how deeply the seeds of war are planted by economic rivalry and social injustice. — Harry S. Truman

The only thing new in the world is the history you don't know. — Harry S. Truman

I do not understand a mind which sees a gracious beneficence in spending money to slay and maim human beings in almost unimaginable numbers and deprecates the expenditure of a smaller sum to patch up the ills of mankind. — Harry S. Truman

The Marshall Plan will go down in history as one of America's greatest contributions to the peace of the world. — Harry S. Truman

A bureaucrat is a Democrat who holds some office that a Republican wants. — Harry S. Truman

The difficulty with businessmen entering politics, after they've had a successful business career, is that they want to start at the top. — Harry S. Truman

We must remember that the test of our religious principles lies not just in what we say, not only in our prayers, not even in living blameless lives - but in what we do for others — Harry S. Truman

Those who want the Government to regulate matters of the mind and spirit are like men who are so afraid of being murdered that they commit suicide to avoid assassination. — Harry S. Truman

The most peaceful thing in the world is plowing a field. Chances are you’ll do your best thinking that way. And that’s why I’ve always thought and said, farmers are the smartest people in the world, they don’t go for high hats and they can spot a phony a mile off. — Harry S. Truman

I have just read your lousy review. You sound like a frustrated old man who never made a success, an eightulcer man on a four ulcer job ... I have never met you but if I do, you'll need a new nose, a lot of beefsteak for black eyes, and a supporter below. — Harry S. Truman

Some day we'll awake, have a reformation of the heart, teach our kids honor and kill a few sex psychologists, put boys in high schools with men teachers (not sissies), close all the girls' finishing schools, shoot all the effeciency experts and become a nation of God's people once more. — Harry S. Truman

All the president is, is a glorified public relations man who spends his time flattering, kissing, and kicking people to get them to do what they are supposed to do anyway. — Harry S. Truman

If we do not abolish war on this earth, then surely one day war will abolish us from the earth. — Harry S. Truman

I had faith in Israel before it was established, I have faith in it now. — Harry S. Truman

You cannot get all the facts from just one newspaper, and unless you have the facts, you cannot make proper judgments about what is going on. — Harry S. Truman

It is noble in its administration: to think and let think, beyond the narrow contracted prejudices of bitter sectarians in these modern times. It is general or universal language, fitted to benefit the poor stranger, which no other institution is calculated to reach, by extending the beneficent hand. — Harry S. Truman

Not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers. — Harry S. Truman

We must have strong minds, ready to accept facts as they are. — Harry S. Truman

All will concede that in order to have good neighbors, we must also be good neighbors. That applies in every field of human endeavor. — Harry S. Truman

I found that the men and women who got to the top were those who did the jobs they had in hand, with everything they had of energy and enthusiasm and hard work. — Harry S. Truman

When you have an efficient government, you have a dictatorship. — Harry S. Truman

Carry the battle to them. Don't let them bring it to you. Put them on the defensive and don't ever apologize for anything. — Harry S. Truman

The fundamental basis of this Nation's law was given to Moses on the Mount. The fundamental basis of our Bill of Rights comes from the teachings which we get from Exodus and St. Matthew, from Isaiah and St. Paul. — Harry S. Truman

Any man who has had the job I've had and didn't have a sense of humor wouldn't still be here. — Harry S. Truman

Dictatorship, by whatever name, is founded on the doctrine that the individual amounts to nothing; that the State is the only one that counts; and that men and women and children were put on earth solely for the purpose of serving the state. — Harry S. Truman

No man should be allowed to be President who does not understand hogs. — Harry S. Truman

The friendless, the weak, the victims of prejudice and public excitement are entitled to the same quality of justice and fair play that the rich, the powerful, the well-connected, and the fellow with pull thinks he can get. — Harry S. Truman

Herbert Hoover once ran on the slogan, 'Two cars in every garage'. Apparently, the Republican candidate this year is running on the slogan, 'Two families in every garage'. — Harry S. Truman

The Russians are liars - you can't trust them. At Potsdam they agreed to everything and broke their word. It's too bad the second world power is like this, but that's the way it is, and we must keep our strength. — Harry S. Truman

Here we now have the freedom of all religions, and I hope that never again will we have a repetition of religious bigotry, as we have had in certain periods of our own history. There is no room for that kind of foolishness here. — Harry S. Truman

I come to the office each morning and stay for long hours doing what has to be done to the best of my ability. And when you've done the best you can, you can't do any better. — Harry S. Truman

For some time I have been disturbed by the way the CIA has been diverted from its original assignment. It has become an operational and at times a policy making arm of the government. — Harry S. Truman

I sit here all day trying to persuade people to do the things they ought to have the sense to do without my persuading them. That's all the powers of the President amount to. — Harry S. Truman

When you get to be President, there are all those things, the honors, the twenty-one gun salutes, all those things. You have to remember it isn't for you. It's for the Presidency. — Harry S. Truman

I think there is an immense shortage of Christian charity among so-called Christians. — Harry S. Truman

No one in the world can take the place of your mother. Right or wrong, from her viewpoint you are always right. She may scold you for little things, but never for the big ones. — Harry S. Truman

A person who is fundamentally honest doesn't need a code of ethics. The Ten Commandments and the Sermon on the Mount are all the ethical code anybody needs. — Harry S. Truman

We shall never be able to remove suspicion and fear as potential causes of war until communication is permitted to flow, free and open, across international boundaries. — Harry S. Truman

If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen. — Harry S. Truman

Tact is the ability to step on a man's toes without messing up the shine on his shoes. — Harry S. Truman

He wanted to know what assurance we could give the American people that we aren't getting the tar licked out of us by the North Korean army. It has never happened to us. It won't happen this time. — Harry S. Truman

The greatest honor that has come to me, and that can ever come to me in my life, is to be Grand Master of Masons in Missouri. — Harry S. Truman

I have no desire to crow over anybody or to see anybody eating crow, figuratively or otherwise. We should all get together and make a country in which everybody can eat turkey whenever he pleases. — Harry S. Truman

How do you live a long life? "Take a two-mile walk every morning before breakfast." — Harry S. Truman

There is no more fundamental axiom of American freedom than the familiar statement: In a free country we punish men for the crimes they commit but never for the opinions they have. — Harry S. Truman

Our goal must be not peace in our time, but peace for all time. — Harry S. Truman

The newcomers quickly learned their way about and soon felt at home. The Homestead Act of 1862 provided them, as well as many other pioneers, with an opportunity to acquire land and establish family farms. To the land-hungry immigrants, the tough prairie sod seemed a golden opportunity and they conquered it by hard work. — Harry S. Truman

Upon books the collective education of the race depends; they are the sole instruments of registering, perpetuating and transmitting thought. — Harry S. Truman

If I want to be great, I have to win the victory over myself...self-d iscipline. — Harry S. Truman

When you have to deal with a beast, you have to treat him as a beast. It is most regrettable but nevertheless true. — Harry S. Truman

Sixteen hours ago an American airplane dropped one bomb on Hiroshima. . . . The force from which the sun draws its power has been loosed against those who brought war to the Far East. — Harry S. Truman

I can assure you that flying saucers, given that they exist, are not constructed by any power on Earth. — Harry S. Truman

We must face the fact that peace must be built on power, as well as upon good will and good deeds. — Harry S. Truman

You can always amend a big plan, but you can never expand a little one. I don't believe in little plans. I believe in plans big enough to meet a situation which we can't possibly foresee now. — Harry S. Truman

I can always get along with an honest friend. — Harry S. Truman

There shall be equality of treatment and opportunity for all persons in the armed services without regard to race, color, religion or national origin. — Harry S. Truman

The responsibility of the great states is to serve, and not to dominate, the world. — Harry S. Truman

A President cannot always be popular. — Harry S. Truman

Actions are the seed of fate deeds grow into destiny. — Harry S. Truman

In reading the lives of great men, I found that the first victory they won was over themselves... self-discipline with all of them came first. — Harry S. Truman

I would rather have peace in the world than be President. — Harry S. Truman

I believe that it must be the policy of the United States to support free peoples who are resisting attempted subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressures. — Harry S. Truman

Always be sincere, even if you don't mean it. — Harry S. Truman

This Nation was established by men who believed in God. ... You will see the evidence of this deep religious faith on every hand. — Harry S. Truman

I wonder how many times you have to be hit on the head before you find out who's hitting you? It's about time that the people of America realized what the Republicans have been doing to them. — Harry S. Truman

The Marine Corps is the Navy's police force and as long as I am President that is what it will remain. They have a propaganda machine that is almost equal to Stalin's. — Harry S. Truman

Life Lessons by Harry S. Truman

1. Harry S. Truman taught us the importance of making tough decisions and standing by them, even in the face of great opposition.
2. He also showed us the value of having a strong moral compass and using it to guide our actions.
3. Additionally, Truman showed us the importance of having a strong work ethic and never giving up, no matter how difficult the task may seem.