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Government Power Quotes: Freedom and Accountability

Keeping power in check

These government power quotes argue that the Freedom to criticize openly acts as a vital check against unchecked government power and control.

Well, first of all, I think that a lot of the voters who are voting for the tea party candidates have really good impulses. That is, they believe that for years and years and years, the people with wealth and...

Quotes by William J. Clinton

Maher Arar's case stands as a sad example of how we have been too willing to sacrifice our core principles to overarching government power in the name of security, when doing so only undermines the principles we stand for and...

Quotes by Patrick Leahy

As a conservative who believes in limited government, I believe that the only check on government power in real time is a free and independent press.

Quotes by Mike Pence

Our freedom to criticize the government - as openly and brutally as we want to - serves as a vital check against unbridled government power and control.

Quotes by Kat Timpf

Able Quotes

Democrats want to use government power to make people's lives go better; Republicans respond that people know more than politicians do. We think that both might be able to agree that nudging can maintain free markets, and liberty, while also...

Quotes by Cass Sunstein

Nothing for the Left, nothing the government does is ever about its superficial reason; it's only and always about expanding government power and control over you.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does criticizing the government matter, according to these quotes?
One quote argues that criticizing the government loudly and honestly works as a crucial safeguard against unchecked government power.
What do these quotes say about expanding government control?
One is sharply critical, claiming that government action is rarely about its stated reason and is instead always about expanding power and control over ordinary people.
How does a free press factor into limiting government power?
A conservative voice who believes in limited government argues that a free, independent press is the only real-time check on government power available.
Are tea party supporters described positively or negatively here?
Positively in one quote, which credits voters drawn to tea party candidates with good impulses, particularly around concerns about who holds wealth and power.
Do these quotes agree on how much people are able to limit government power?
Not entirely. Some frame a free press and open criticism as sufficient checks, while others suggest power keeps expanding regardless of what ordinary citizens are Able to do about it.

Others tie the idea to a free press, insisting that in real time it may be the only genuine Control on how far government power can expand.