---
title: "11 Political Idea Quotes by 11 authors"
description: "Browse 11 Political Idea quotes by 11 authors. Discover the best Political Idea sayings and thoughts."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b7/william-t-vollmann-2100_politics_the-skin-of-her-naked-throat-was-as-perf_3132191.png"
---

> [“the skin of her naked throat was as perfect as a political idea. She”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/the-skin-of-her-naked-throat-was-as-perfect-as-a-political-idea-she/)

[William T. Vollmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b7/william-t-vollmann-2100_politics_the-skin-of-her-naked-throat-was-as-perf_3132191.png)

> [I have always moved by intuition alone. I have no system, literary or political. I have no guiding political idea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/v-s-naipaul/i-have-always-moved-by-intuition-alone-i-have-no-system-literary-or/)

[V. S. Naipaul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/v-s-naipaul/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/79a/v-s-naipaul-3828_alone_i-have-always-moved-by-intuition-alone-i_365497.png)

> [“In a way he was lucky. He was a member of a generation that thought it was a good, even joyous, political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-paley/in-a-way-he-was-lucky-he-was-a-member-of-a-generation-that-thought-it/)

[Grace Paley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-paley/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/91d/grace-paley-3243_generation_in-a-way-he-was-lucky-he-was-a-member-of_3193437.png)

> [Remember, the political idea being expressed a year ago was that because the GOP interpreted its 1994 mandate as a call to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jude-wanniski/remember-the-political-idea-being-expressed-a-year-ago-was-that/)

[Jude Wanniski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jude-wanniski/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e37/jude-wanniski-60781_austerity_remember-the-political-idea-being-expres_2082825.jpg)

> [The core idea that underlies all of our democratic states, the core political idea, is this idea that it's not that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noah-feldman/the-core-idea-that-underlies-all-of-our-democratic-states-the-core/)

[Noah Feldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noah-feldman/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/548/noah-feldman-12383_core_the-core-idea-that-underlies-all-of-our_1338823.png)

> [If you want to explore a political idea in the highest possible way, you embody it in the personal, because that's something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/if-you-want-to-explore-a-political-idea-in-the-highest-possible-way/)

[George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cc9/george-saunders-317_deny_if-you-want-to-explore-a-political-idea_1949602.jpg)

> [I hate to express political ideas directly in a book. I don't want my books to be seen as an expression of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abdellah-taia/i-hate-to-express-political-ideas-directly-in-a-book-i-don-t-want-my/)

[Abdellah Taia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abdellah-taia/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4e/abdellah-taia-44495_book_i-hate-to-express-political-ideas-direct_2560184.jpg)

> [That great political idea, sanctifying freedom and consecrating it to God, teaching men to treasure the liberties of others as their own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-acton/that-great-political-idea-sanctifying-freedom-and-consecrating-it-to/)

[Lord Acton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-acton/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e2/lord-acton-3040_charity_that-great-political-idea-sanctifying-fr_1108364.png)

> [“The Levantine political idea, which grew naturally among the communities of the eastern Mediterranean, was an original way of dealing with diverse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-l-friedman/the-levantine-political-idea-which-grew-naturally-among-the/)

[Thomas L. Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-l-friedman/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/945/thomas-l-friedman-5270_levantine_the-levantine-political-idea-which-grew_2918847.jpg)

> [The average educated man in America has about as much knowledge of what a political idea is as he has of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-jay-chapman/the-average-educated-man-in-america-has-about-as-much-knowledge-of/)

[John Jay Chapman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-jay-chapman/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/266/john-jay-chapman-14061_america_the-average-educated-man-in-america-has_650757.jpg)

> [I have one great political idea. . . . That idea is an old one. It is widely and generally assented to;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-have-one-great-political-idea-that-idea-is-an-old-one-it-is-widely/)

[Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a52/frederick-douglass-859_disregarded_i-have-one-great-political-idea-that-ide_390401.jpg)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "ItemList",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political-idea/#itemlist",
            "name": "Political Idea Quotes",
            "numberOfItems": 11,
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "item": {
                        "@type": "Quotation",
                        "text": "“the skin of her naked throat was as perfect as a political idea. She”",
                        "creator": {
                            "@type": "Person",
                            "name": "William T. Vollmann"
                        },
                        "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/the-skin-of-her-naked-throat-was-as-perfect-as-a-political-idea-she/",
                        "image": {
                            "@type": "ImageObject",
                            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b7/william-t-vollmann-2100_politics_the-skin-of-her-naked-throat-was-as-perf_3132191.png",
                            "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b7/william-t-vollmann-2100_politics_the-skin-of-her-naked-throat-was-as-perf_3132191.png",
                            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b7/william-t-vollmann-2100_politics_the-skin-of-her-naked-throat-was-as-perf_3132191.png",
                            "width": 1080,
                            "height": 1080,
                            "caption": "“the skin of her naked throat was as perfect as a political idea. She” — William T. Vollmann",
                            "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                            "creator": {
                                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                            }
                        }
                    }
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "item": {
                        "@type": "Quotation",
                        "text": "I have always moved by intuition alone. I have no system, literary or political. I have no guiding political idea.",
                        "creator": {
                            "@type": "Person",
                            "name": "V. S. Naipaul"
                        },
                        "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/v-s-naipaul/i-have-always-moved-by-intuition-alone-i-have-no-system-literary-or/",
                        "image": {
                            "@type": "ImageObject",
                            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/79a/v-s-naipaul-3828_alone_i-have-always-moved-by-intuition-alone-i_365497.png",
                            "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/79a/v-s-naipaul-3828_alone_i-have-always-moved-by-intuition-alone-i_365497.png",
                            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/79a/v-s-naipaul-3828_alone_i-have-always-moved-by-intuition-alone-i_365497.png",
                            "width": 1080,
                            "height": 1080,
                            "caption": "“I have always moved by intuition alone. I have no system, literary or political. I have no guiding political…” — V. S. Naipaul",
                            "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                            "creator": {
                                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                            }
                        }
                    }
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "item": {
                        "@type": "Quotation",
                        "text": "“In a way he was lucky. He was a member of a generation that thought it was a good, even joyous, political idea to put its brains, energy, labor at the service of the people.”",
                        "creator": {
                            "@type": "Person",
                            "name": "Grace Paley"
                        },
                        "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-paley/in-a-way-he-was-lucky-he-was-a-member-of-a-generation-that-thought-it/",
                        "image": {
                            "@type": "ImageObject",
                            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/91d/grace-paley-3243_generation_in-a-way-he-was-lucky-he-was-a-member-of_3193437.png",
                            "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/91d/grace-paley-3243_generation_in-a-way-he-was-lucky-he-was-a-member-of_3193437.png",
                            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/91d/grace-paley-3243_generation_in-a-way-he-was-lucky-he-was-a-member-of_3193437.png",
                            "width": 1080,
                            "height": 1080,
                            "caption": "“In a way he was lucky. He was a member of a generation that thought it was a good, even joyous, political…” — Grace Paley",
                            "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                            "creator": {
                                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                            }
                        }
                    }
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "item": {
                        "@type": "Quotation",
                        "text": "Remember, the political idea being expressed a year ago was that because the GOP interpreted its 1994 mandate as a call to budget-balancing austerity, the electorate would never give the White House to the GOP if its nominee was also a root-canal austerian.",
                        "creator": {
                            "@type": "Person",
                            "name": "Jude Wanniski"
                        },
                        "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jude-wanniski/remember-the-political-idea-being-expressed-a-year-ago-was-that/",
                        "image": {
                            "@type": "ImageObject",
                            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e37/jude-wanniski-60781_austerity_remember-the-political-idea-being-expres_2082825.jpg",
                            "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e37/jude-wanniski-60781_austerity_remember-the-political-idea-being-expres_2082825.jpg",
                            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e37/jude-wanniski-60781_austerity_remember-the-political-idea-being-expres_2082825.jpg",
                            "width": 1080,
                            "height": 1080,
                            "caption": "“Remember, the political idea being expressed a year ago was that because the GOP interpreted its 1994…” — Jude Wanniski",
                            "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                            "creator": {
                                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                            }
                        }
                    }
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 5,
                    "item": {
                        "@type": "Quotation",
                        "text": "The core idea that underlies all of our democratic states, the core political idea, is this idea that it's not that one person is the sovereign; it's that all of the people are sovereign.",
                        "creator": {
                            "@type": "Person",
                            "name": "Noah Feldman"
                        },
                        "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noah-feldman/the-core-idea-that-underlies-all-of-our-democratic-states-the-core/",
                        "image": {
                            "@type": "ImageObject",
                            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/548/noah-feldman-12383_core_the-core-idea-that-underlies-all-of-our_1338823.png",
                            "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/548/noah-feldman-12383_core_the-core-idea-that-underlies-all-of-our_1338823.png",
                            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/548/noah-feldman-12383_core_the-core-idea-that-underlies-all-of-our_1338823.png",
                            "width": 1080,
                            "height": 1080,
                            "caption": "“The core idea that underlies all of our democratic states, the core political idea, is this idea that it's…” — Noah Feldman",
                            "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                            "creator": {
                                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                            }
                        }
                    }
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 6,
                    "item": {
                        "@type": "Quotation",
                        "text": "If you want to explore a political idea in the highest possible way, you embody it in the personal, because that's something that no one can deny.",
                        "creator": {
                            "@type": "Person",
                            "name": "George Saunders"
                        },
                        "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/if-you-want-to-explore-a-political-idea-in-the-highest-possible-way/",
                        "image": {
                            "@type": "ImageObject",
                            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cc9/george-saunders-317_deny_if-you-want-to-explore-a-political-idea_1949602.jpg",
                            "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cc9/george-saunders-317_deny_if-you-want-to-explore-a-political-idea_1949602.jpg",
                            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cc9/george-saunders-317_deny_if-you-want-to-explore-a-political-idea_1949602.jpg",
                            "width": 1080,
                            "height": 1080,
                            "caption": "“If you want to explore a political idea in the highest possible way, you embody it in the personal, because…” — George Saunders",
                            "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                            "creator": {
                                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                            }
                        }
                    }
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 7,
                    "item": {
                        "@type": "Quotation",
                        "text": "I hate to express political ideas directly in a book. I don't want my books to be seen as an expression of this or that political idea. At the same time I want to show a kind of rebellion and transgression, something further.",
                        "creator": {
                            "@type": "Person",
                            "name": "Abdellah Taia"
                        },
                        "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abdellah-taia/i-hate-to-express-political-ideas-directly-in-a-book-i-don-t-want-my/",
                        "image": {
                            "@type": "ImageObject",
                            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4e/abdellah-taia-44495_book_i-hate-to-express-political-ideas-direct_2560184.jpg",
                            "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4e/abdellah-taia-44495_book_i-hate-to-express-political-ideas-direct_2560184.jpg",
                            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4e/abdellah-taia-44495_book_i-hate-to-express-political-ideas-direct_2560184.jpg",
                            "width": 1080,
                            "height": 1080,
                            "caption": "“I hate to express political ideas directly in a book. I don't want my books to be seen as an expression of…” — Abdellah Taia",
                            "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                            "creator": {
                                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                            }
                        }
                    }
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 8,
                    "item": {
                        "@type": "Quotation",
                        "text": "That great political idea, sanctifying freedom and consecrating it to God, teaching men to treasure the liberties of others as their own and to defend them for the love of justice and charity more than as a claim of right, has been the soul of what is great and good in the progress of the last two hundred years.",
                        "creator": {
                            "@type": "Person",
                            "name": "Lord Acton"
                        },
                        "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-acton/that-great-political-idea-sanctifying-freedom-and-consecrating-it-to/",
                        "image": {
                            "@type": "ImageObject",
                            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e2/lord-acton-3040_charity_that-great-political-idea-sanctifying-fr_1108364.png",
                            "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e2/lord-acton-3040_charity_that-great-political-idea-sanctifying-fr_1108364.png",
                            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e2/lord-acton-3040_charity_that-great-political-idea-sanctifying-fr_1108364.png",
                            "width": 1080,
                            "height": 1080,
                            "caption": "“That great political idea, sanctifying freedom and consecrating it to God, teaching men to treasure the…” — Lord Acton",
                            "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                            "creator": {
                                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                            }
                        }
                    }
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 9,
                    "item": {
                        "@type": "Quotation",
                        "text": "“The Levantine political idea, which grew naturally among the communities of the eastern Mediterranean, was an original way of dealing with diverse tribal, village, and sectarian identities, and it inspired the Beirutis and ultimately the Lebanese to believe that they could build a modern Arab republic, melding together seventeen different Christian, Muslim, and Druse sects.”",
                        "creator": {
                            "@type": "Person",
                            "name": "Thomas L. Friedman"
                        },
                        "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-l-friedman/the-levantine-political-idea-which-grew-naturally-among-the/",
                        "image": {
                            "@type": "ImageObject",
                            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/945/thomas-l-friedman-5270_levantine_the-levantine-political-idea-which-grew_2918847.jpg",
                            "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/945/thomas-l-friedman-5270_levantine_the-levantine-political-idea-which-grew_2918847.jpg",
                            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/945/thomas-l-friedman-5270_levantine_the-levantine-political-idea-which-grew_2918847.jpg",
                            "width": 1080,
                            "height": 1080,
                            "caption": "“The Levantine political idea, which grew naturally among the communities of the eastern Mediterranean, was…” — Thomas L. Friedman",
                            "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                            "creator": {
                                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                            }
                        }
                    }
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 10,
                    "item": {
                        "@type": "Quotation",
                        "text": "The average educated man in America has about as much knowledge of what a political idea is as he has of the principles of counterpoint. Each is a thing used in politics or music which those fellows who practice politics or music manipulate somehow. Show him one and he will deny that it is politics at all. It must be corrupt or he will not recognize it. He has only seen dried figs. He has only thought dried thoughts. A live thought or a real idea is against the rules of his mind.",
                        "creator": {
                            "@type": "Person",
                            "name": "John Jay Chapman"
                        },
                        "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-jay-chapman/the-average-educated-man-in-america-has-about-as-much-knowledge-of/",
                        "image": {
                            "@type": "ImageObject",
                            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/266/john-jay-chapman-14061_america_the-average-educated-man-in-america-has_650757.jpg",
                            "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/266/john-jay-chapman-14061_america_the-average-educated-man-in-america-has_650757.jpg",
                            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/266/john-jay-chapman-14061_america_the-average-educated-man-in-america-has_650757.jpg",
                            "width": 1080,
                            "height": 1080,
                            "caption": "“The average educated man in America has about as much knowledge of what a political idea is as he has of the…” — John Jay Chapman",
                            "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                            "creator": {
                                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                            }
                        }
                    }
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 11,
                    "item": {
                        "@type": "Quotation",
                        "text": "I have one great political idea. . . . That idea is an old one. It is widely and generally assented to; nevertheless, it is very generally trampled upon and disregarded. The best expression of it, I have found in the Bible. It is in substance, \"Righteousness exalteth a nation; sin is a reproach to any people\" [Proverbs 14:34]. This constitutes my politics - the negative and positive of my politics, and the whole of my politics. . . . I feel it my duty to do all in my power to infuse this idea into the public mind, that it may speedily be recognized and practiced upon by our people.",
                        "creator": {
                            "@type": "Person",
                            "name": "Frederick Douglass"
                        },
                        "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-have-one-great-political-idea-that-idea-is-an-old-one-it-is-widely/",
                        "image": {
                            "@type": "ImageObject",
                            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a52/frederick-douglass-859_disregarded_i-have-one-great-political-idea-that-ide_390401.jpg",
                            "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a52/frederick-douglass-859_disregarded_i-have-one-great-political-idea-that-ide_390401.jpg",
                            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a52/frederick-douglass-859_disregarded_i-have-one-great-political-idea-that-ide_390401.jpg",
                            "width": 1080,
                            "height": 1080,
                            "caption": "“I have one great political idea. . . . That idea is an old one. It is widely and generally assented to…” — Frederick Douglass",
                            "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                            "creator": {
                                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                            }
                        }
                    }
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "@type": "CollectionPage",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political-idea/#webpage",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political-idea/",
            "name": "Political Idea Quotes",
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "mainEntity": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political-idea/#itemlist"
            },
            "primaryImageOfPage": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b7/william-t-vollmann-2100_politics_the-skin-of-her-naked-throat-was-as-perf_3132191.png"
            },
            "description": "Browse 11 Political Idea quotes by 11 authors. Discover the best Political Idea sayings and thoughts.",
            "breadcrumb": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political-idea/#breadcrumb"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political-idea/#breadcrumb",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Topics",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/categories/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Political Idea Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political-idea/"
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```