Spending more time at home recently, I’ve increased my reading, although a lot of it has been via the Internet. For some reason, I’ve recently been drawn to several writings about, and by, Theodore Roosevelt. I’m becoming more and more convinced that he may have been one of the better leaders to hold the office of President. Apparently he was a master orator and he certainly was a prolific writer. Here’s a couple of his quotes that I thought might be worth reading today. They say a lot….
“The best executive is one who has sense enough to pick good people to do what he wants done, and self-restraint enough to keep from meddling with them while they do it.”
“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 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.”
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