If you had to work in the environment of Washington, D.C., as I do, and watch those men who are so imprisoned and so confined by their eighteenth-century thought patterns, you would know that if anybody is going to be liberated, it’s men who must be liberated in this country.
BARBARA JORDANIf you’re going to play the game [politics] properly, you’d better know every rule.
More Barbara Jordan Quotes
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It is a privilege to serve people, a privilege that must be earned, and once earned, there is an obligation to do something good with it.
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Even as I stand here and admit that we have made mistakes I still believe that as the people of America sit in judgment on each party, they will recognize that our mistakes were mistakes of the heart. They’ll recognize that.
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I have confidence that we can form this kind of national community.
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When do any of us ever do enough?
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Let each person do his or her part. If one citizen is unwilling to participate, all of us are going to suffer. For the American idea, though it is shared by all of us, is realized in each one of us.
BARBARA JORDAN -
It is reason, and not passion, which must guide our deliberations, guide our debate, and guide our decision.
BARBARA JORDAN -
If we promise as public officials, we must deliver. If we as public officials propose, we must produce.
BARBARA JORDAN -
We cannot improve on the system of government handed down to us by the founders of the Republic. There is no way to improve upon that. But what we can do is to find new ways to implement that system and realize our destiny.
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Fairness is an across-the-board requirement for all our interactions with each other …Fairness treats everbody the same.
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A nation is formed by the willingness of each of us to share in the responsibility for upholding the common good.
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We want to be in control of our lives. Whether we are jungle fighters, craftsmen, company men, gamesmen, we want to be in control. And when the government erodes that control, we are not comfortable.
BARBARA JORDAN -
The earth is bread we take and eat.
BARBARA JORDAN -
The majority of the American people still believe that every single individual in this country is entitled to just as much respect, just as much dignity, as every other individual.
BARBARA JORDAN -
We must not become the new puritans and reject our society. We must address and master the future together. It can be done if we restore the belief that we share a sense of national community, that we share a common national endeavor. It can be done.
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One thing is very clear: Illegal immigrants are not entitled to benefits.
BARBARA JORDAN