John Fitzgerald Kennedy

People have not been horrified by war to a sufficient extent ... War will exist until that distant day when read more

People have not been horrified by war to a sufficient extent ... War will exist until that distant day when the conscientious objector enjoys the same reputation and prestige as the warrior does today.

The President is merely the most important among a large number
of public servants. He should be supported or read more

The President is merely the most important among a large number
of public servants. He should be supported or opposed exactly to
the degree which is warranted by his good conduct or bad conduct,
his efficiency or inefficiency in rendering loyal, able, and
disinterested service to the nation as a whole. Therefore it is
absolutely necessary that there should be full liberty to tell
the truth about his acts, and this means that it is exactly as
necessary to blame him when he does wrong as to praise him when
he does right. Any other attitude in an American citizen is both
base and servile. To announce that there must be no criticism of
the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or
wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally
treasonable to the American public. Nothing but the truth should
be spoken about him or any one else. But it is even more
important to tell the truth, pleasant or unpleasant, about him
than about any one else.

For if Freedom and Communism were to compete for man's allegiance in a world at peace, I would look to read more

For if Freedom and Communism were to compete for man's allegiance in a world at peace, I would look to the future with ever increasing confidence.

All this will not be finished in the first 100 days. Nor will it
be finished in the first read more

All this will not be finished in the first 100 days. Nor will it
be finished in the first 1,000 days, not in the life of this
Administration, nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet.
But let us begin.

I think this is the most extraordinary collection of talent, of human knowledge, that has ever been gathered at the read more

I think this is the most extraordinary collection of talent, of human knowledge, that has ever been gathered at the White House--with the possible exception of when Thomas Jefferson dined alone.