Eisenhower quotes

Eisenhower was a smart man... for a Republican, and certainly one of our country's greatest military leaders. Here are some quotes attributed to him that are worth bearing in mind.


"Here in America we are descended in blood and in spirit from revolutionists and rebels - men and women who dare to dissent from accepted doctrine. As their heirs, may we never confuse honest dissent with disloyal subversion."

"I would rather try to persuade a man to go along, because once I have persuaded him, he will stick. If I scare him, he will stay just as long as he is scared, and then he is gone."

"Leadership is the art of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to do it."

"The people of the world genuinely want peace. Some day the leaders of the world are going to have to get out of the way and give it to them."

"You don't lead by hitting people over the head - that's assault, not leadership."

"Pull the string, and it will follow wherever you wish. Push it, and it will go nowhere at all."

And perhaps his two most well-known quotes:

"Things are more like they are now than they ever were before."

and from his farewell address of January 17, 1961:

A vital element in keeping the peace is our military establishment. Our arms must be mighty, ready for instant action, so that no potential aggressor may be tempted to risk his own destruction...

This conjunction of an immense military establishment and a large arms industry is new in the American experience. The total influence — economic, political, even spiritual — is felt in every city, every statehouse, every office of the federal government. We recognize the imperative need for this development. Yet we must not fail to comprehend its grave implications. Our toil, resources and livelihood are all involved; so is the very structure of our society.

In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist.

We must never let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes. We should take nothing for granted. Only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals so that security and liberty may prosper together.