Politics Quotes by Alexis de Tocqueville

We need a new political science for a new world.

— Alexis de Tocqueville

The last thing a political party gives up is its vocabulary.

— Alexis de Tocqueville

Socialism is a new form of slavery.

— Alexis de Tocqueville

What is understood by republican government in the United States is the slow and quiet action of society upon itself.

— Alexis de Tocqueville

“The most perilous moment for a bad government is one when it seeks to mend its ways.”

— Alexis de Tocqueville

I have always noticed in politics how often men are ruined by having too good a memory.

— Alexis de Tocqueville

One of the happiest consequences of the absence of government...is the development of individual strength that inevitably follows.

— Alexis de Tocqueville

“In other words, the government of the democracy is the only one under which the power which lays on taxes escapes the…

— Alexis de Tocqueville

A man's admiration for absolute government is proportionate to the contempt he feels for those around him.

— Alexis de Tocqueville

There are many men of principle in both parties in America, but there is no party of principle.

— Alexis de Tocqueville

There is hardly a political question in the United States which does not sooner or later turn into a judicial one.

— Alexis de Tocqueville

All revolutions more or less threaten the tenure of property: but most of those who live in democratic countries are possessed of…

— Alexis de Tocqueville

If ever America undergoes great revolutions, they will be brought about by the presence of the black race on the soil of…

— Alexis de Tocqueville

Religion, which never intervenes directly in the government of American society, should therefore be considered as the first of their political institutions

— Alexis de Tocqueville

Trade is the natural enemy of all violent passions. Trade loves moderation, delights in compromise, and is most careful to avoid anger.…

— Alexis de Tocqueville

The most perilous moment for a bad government is when it seeks to mend its ways. Only consummate statecraft can enable a…

— Alexis de Tocqueville

The regime which is destroyed by a revolution is almost always an improvement on its immediate predecessor, and experience teaches that the…

— Alexis de Tocqueville

“to be a government of "liberty regulated by law," with such results in the development of strength, in population, wealth, and military…

— Alexis de Tocqueville

On close inspection, we shall find that religion, and not fear, has ever been the cause of the long-lived prosperity of an…

— Alexis de Tocqueville

In the absence of government each man learns to think, to act for himself, without counting on the support of an outside…

— Alexis de Tocqueville

Despotism may govern without faith, but liberty cannot. How is it possible that society should escape destruction if the moral tie is…

— Alexis de Tocqueville

Society will develop a new kind of servitude which covers the surface of society with a network of complicated rules, through which…

— Alexis de Tocqueville

“Under its sway the transactions of the public administration are not nearly so important as what is done by private exertion. Democracy…

— Alexis de Tocqueville

I am deeply convinced that any permanent, regular administrative system whose aim is to provide for the needs of the poor will…

— Alexis de Tocqueville

Religion in America . . . Must be regarded as the foremost of the political institutions for that country; for if it…

— Alexis de Tocqueville

“It is, indeed, difficult to conceive how men who have entirely given up the habit of self-government should succeed in making a…

— Alexis de Tocqueville

“Whether democracy or aristocracy is the better form of government constitutes a very difficult question. But, clearly, democracy inconveniences one person while…

— Alexis de Tocqueville

“Burke had little notion of the conditions in which the monarchy he mourned had left us to face our new masters. The…

— Alexis de Tocqueville

“The democratic nations that have introduced freedom into their political constitution at the very time when they were augmenting the despotism of…

— Alexis de Tocqueville

“The principle of equality, which makes men independent of each other, gives them a habit and a taste for following, in their…

— Alexis de Tocqueville

“We must first understand what the purport of society and the aim of government is held to be. If it be your…

— Alexis de Tocqueville

“There is hardly any political question in the United States that sooner or later does not turn into a judicial question. From…

— Alexis de Tocqueville

“Our contemporaries are constantly excited by two conflicting passions: they want to be led, and they wish to remain free. As they…

— Alexis de Tocqueville

“In examining the division of powers, as established by the Federal Constitution, remarking on the one hand the portion of sovereignty which…

— Alexis de Tocqueville

In politics shared hatreds are almost always the basis of friendships.

— Alexis de Tocqueville

A man's admiration of absolute government is proportionate to the contempt he feels for those around him.

— Alexis de Tocqueville

The most dangerous moment for a bad government is when it begins to reform.

— Alexis de Tocqueville

In politics a community of hatred is almost always the foundation of friendships.

— Alexis de Tocqueville

Every central government worships uniformity: uniformity relieves it from inquiry into an infinity of details.

— Alexis de Tocqueville

“patriotism and religion are the only two motives in the world which can permanently direct the whole of a body politic to…

— Alexis de Tocqueville