“I thought the Vietnam war was an utter, unmitigated disaster, so it was very hard for me to say anything good about it.”
War
“I would not plan to base my campaign primarily on opposition to the war in the Persian Gulf.”
WarAll Quotes by George McGovern
“Democrats believe that the federal government is not our enemy, it's our partner.”
Government“I hope I live long enough to see every hungry school child in the world being fed under the so-called McGovern-Dole program.”
Hope“People didn't have the political guts to stand up against an American war.”
War“I make one pledge above all others - to seek and speak the truth with all the resources of mind and spirit I command.”
Truth“The Establishment center... has led us into the stupidest and cruelest war in all history. That war is a moral and political disaster - a terrible cancer eating away at the soul of our nation.”
History“I'm fed up to the ears with old men dreaming up wars for young men to die in.”
Men“I always thought of myself as a moderate liberal, a fighter for peace and justice. I never thought of myself as being all that far out.”
Peace“I think the country's getting disgusted with Washington partly because of the decline of civility in government.”
Government“I seek to call America home to those principles that gave us birth.”
Home“Well, we ought to be stirred, even to tears, by society's ills.”
Society“I would not plan to base my campaign primarily on opposition to the war in the Persian Gulf.”
War“The truth is that I oppose the Iraq war, just as I opposed the Vietnam War, because these two conflicts have weakened the U.S. and diminished our standing in the world and our national security.”
Truth“I did frequently refer to my war record in World War II, but not in any flamboyant way.”
War“From secrecy and deception in high places, come home, America. From military spending so wasteful that it weakens our nation, come home, America.”
Home“I think it was my study of history that convinced me that the Democratic Party was more on the side of the average American.”
History“My dad was a Methodist minister.”
Dad“When I was a youngster growing up in South Dakota, we never referred to the national debt, it was always referred to as the war debt because it stemmed from World War I.”
War“Politics is an act of faith you have to show some kind of confidence in the intellectual and moral capacity of the public.”
Faith“There is a strong tendency in the United States to rally round the flag and their troops, no matter how mistaken the war.”
War