159 quotes
We can gain no lasting peace if we approach it with suspicion and mistrust or with fear. We can gain it only if we proceed with the understanding, the confidence, and the courage which flow from conviction.
Fourth inaugural address (1945)
I know at the same time that you will be sympathetic to the point of view that public psychology, and for that matter, individual psychology, cannot, because of human weakness, be attuned for long periods of time to a constant repetition of the highest note on the scale.
We find our population suffering from old inequalities, little changed by vast sporadic remedies.
State of the Union address (1935)
We know it because democracy alone, of all forms of government, enlists the full force of men's enlightened will.
And so today, in this year of war, 1945, we have learned lessons — at a fearful cost — and we shall profit by them.
Fourth inaugural address (1945)
Forests require many years to mature; consequently the long point of view is necessary if the forests are to be maintained for the good of our country.
In nine cases out of ten the speaker or writer who, seeking to influence public opinion, descends from calm argument to unfair blows hurts himself more than his opponent.
Fireside Chat in the night before signing the Fair Labor Standards Act (1938)
I should be far more concerned about the general attitude of a candidate toward present day problems and his own inward desire to get practical needs attended to in a practical way.
Fireside Chat in the night before signing the Fair Labor Standards Act (1938)
During this Depression, when the spirit of the people is lower than at any other time, it is a splendid thing that for just 15 cents an American can go to a movie and look at the smiling face of a baby, and forget his troubles.
The Federal Government must and shall quit this business of relief.
State of the Union address (1935)
We must especially beware of that small group of selfish men who would clip the wings of the American Eagle in order to feather their own nests.
State of the Union Address — The Four Freedoms (1941)
Government cannot take a holiday of a year, a month, or even a day just because a few people are tired or frightened by the inescapable pace of this modern world in which we live.
Fireside Chat in the night before signing the Fair Labor Standards Act (1938)
I regard reduction in Federal spending as one of the most important issues in this campaign. In my opinion it is the most direct and effective contribution that Government can make to business.
We do not retreat. We are not content to stand still. As Americans, we go forward, in the service of our country, by the will of God.
It is only the unthinking conservatives who rejoice down in their hearts when a social or economic reform fails to be 100 per cent successful.
We not only earnestly desire peace, but we are moved by a stern determination to avoid those perils that will endanger our peace with the world.
Address at San Diego Exposition (1935)
If we lose that sacred fire — if we let it be smothered with doubt and fear — then we shall reject the destiny which Washington strove so valiantly and so triumphantly to establish.
The hours men and women worked, the wages they received, the conditions of their labor — these had passed beyond the control of the people, and were imposed by this new industrial dictatorship.
Speech to the Democratic National Convention (1936)
America's own rightful place in the world depends in large part upon how fully these and similar rights have been carried into practice for all our citizens. For unless there is security here at home there cannot be lasting peace in the world.
State of the Union Address — Second Bill of Rights (1944)
The right to adequate medical care and the opportunity to achieve and enjoy good health
State of the Union Address — Second Bill of Rights (1944)