--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What we should be asking is not whether…" description: "\"What we should be asking is not whether we need a big government or small government, but how we can create a smarter and better government.\" — Barack ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2e/barack-obama-17_asking_what-we-should-be-asking-is-not-whether_1745218.jpg" --- # What we should be asking is not whether we need a big… ![“What we should be asking is not whether we need a big government or small government, but how we can create a smarter and better government.” quote by Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2e/barack-obama-17_asking_what-we-should-be-asking-is-not-whether_1745218.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2e/barack-obama-17_asking_what-we-should-be-asking-is-not-whether_1745218.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2e/barack-obama-17_asking_what-we-should-be-asking-is-not-whether_1745218.jpg) > “What we should be asking is not whether we need a big government or small government, but how we can create a smarter and better government.” [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Effective governance is less about size and more about intelligence and quality of policies, urging smarter solutions over partisan size debates. **In simple terms:** Good government is smart, not big. Key Takeaway Focus on improving policy design and effectiveness. Themes governance policy design innovation public administration political discourse Mood optimistic analytical Type political inspirational When to use this quote - policy drafting - public‑private partnerships - technology integration - citizen engagement Key Concepts efficiency evidence‑based collaboration Questions to Reflect On - What makes a government "smarter"? - How can we measure policy quality? A Different Perspective Smaller government may lack resources for complex problems. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Asking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/asking/) [Better Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/better-government-626045/) [Big government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/big-government/) [Bigs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bigs/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [Government Create](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government-create-970709/) [Government Small](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government-small-1333215/) [Needs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needs/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) [Small government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/small-government/) [Smarter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smarter/) ## Related quotes > [“...small government gives you big freedoms--and Big Government leaves you with very little freedom. The opposite of Big Government is not small government, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/small-government-gives-you-big-freedoms-and-big-government-leaves-you/) [Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/) > [We need to keep government small, but we also need to keep the influence of big business small, and we need to keep the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-monroe/we-need-to-keep-government-small-but-we-also-need-to-keep-the/) [Michael Monroe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-monroe/) > [Freedom is messy. In free societies, people will fall through the cracks - drink too much, eat too much, buy unaffordable homes, fail to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/freedom-is-messy-in-free-societies-people-will-fall-through-the/) [Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/) > [Big Government is the small option: it's the guarantee of smaller freedom, smaller homes, smaller cars, smaller opportunities, smaller lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/big-government-is-the-small-option-it-s-the-guarantee-of-smaller/) [Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/) > [Mentioning Jesus in your speech: Small government. Doing what Jesus asked: Big government.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/mentioning-jesus-in-your-speech-small-government-doing-what-jesus/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [Look, this debate is basic: it's small government vs. big government. So how cowardly do folks like Blood and Frank Rich have to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-gutfeld/look-this-debate-is-basic-it-s-small-government-vs-big-government-so/) [Greg Gutfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-gutfeld/) > [“The opposite of Big Government is not small government, but Big Liberty.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/the-opposite-of-big-government-is-not-small-government-but-big-liberty/) [Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/) > [America's Christian conservative movement is confronted with this divide: small-government advocates who want to practice their faith independent of heavy-handed government versus big-government sympathizers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-armey/america-s-christian-conservative-movement-is-confronted-with-this/) [Dick Armey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-armey/) > [Big-government proponents embrace both the power of the federal government and the idea that millions of Americans ought to be dependent on its largesse.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-bauer/big-government-proponents-embrace-both-the-power-of-the-federal/) [Gary Bauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-bauer/) > [The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether government works.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/the-question-we-ask-today-is-not-whether-our-government-is-too-big-or/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [“Mainly, though, the Democratic Party has become the party of reaction. In reaction to a war that is ill conceived, we appear suspicious of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/mainly-though-the-democratic-party-has-become-the-party-of-reaction/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [We Conservatives believe not in big, interventionist, centralized government. But in small and limited government, government as close to the people as possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxime-bernier/we-conservatives-believe-not-in-big-interventionist-centralized/) [Maxime Bernier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxime-bernier/) > [Memo to Congress: America's problem is not that government is too small. It's the spending, stupid!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-beauprez/memo-to-congress-america-s-problem-is-not-that-government-is-too/) [Bob Beauprez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-beauprez/) > [The question is what will Mitt Romney do as president if his policy is simply to be hands off and let the government be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-granholm/the-question-is-what-will-mitt-romney-do-as-president-if-his-policy/) [Jennifer Granholm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-granholm/) > [The government's Small Business Administration reports that small businesses represent 99% of all employers in the U.S. and are responsible for generating well over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-tauscher/the-government-s-small-business-administration-reports-that-small/) [Ellen Tauscher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-tauscher/) ## More by Barack Obama > [So here's what I want you to know, and here's what I want all our men and women in uniform to know: Because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-here-s-what-i-want-you-to-know-and-here-s-what-i-want-all-our-men/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [The peaceful transition of power is one of the hallmarks of our democracy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/the-peaceful-transition-of-power-is-one-of-the-hallmarks-of-our/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [As opposed to getting into arguments about, well, these folks have been treated fairly so now we're going to be doing things that, very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/as-opposed-to-getting-into-arguments-about-well-these-folks-have-been/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Donald Trump is temperamentally unfit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/donald-trump-is-temperamentally-unfit/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [What we've said to the girls is: 'If you guys ever decide that you're going to get a tattoo, then mommy and me will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/what-we-ve-said-to-the-girls-is-if-you-guys-ever-decide-that-you-re/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Nobody is listening to your telephone calls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/nobody-is-listening-to-your-telephone-calls/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [All of us take offense to anyone who reaps the rewards of living in America without taking on the responsibilities of living in America.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/all-of-us-take-offense-to-anyone-who-reaps-the-rewards-of-living-in/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [The world is complicated and full of grays, but there's still truth there to be found.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/the-world-is-complicated-and-full-of-grays-but-there-s-still-truth/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [ That is another theme in the book \[Dreams from My Father\]. How do we exercise more empathy in our public discourse? How do we… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/that-is-another-theme-in-the-book-dreams-from-my-father-how-do-we/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [I can say across Europe that many principles that have been taken for granted here around free speech, and around civil liberties and an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/i-can-say-across-europe-that-many-principles-that-have-been-taken-for/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [So Americans understand the costs of war. Yet as a country, we will never tolerate our security being threatened, nor stand idly by when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-americans-understand-the-costs-of-war-yet-as-a-country-we-will/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [I want to thank the Greek people publicly for their humanitarian response to the crisis of so many migrants and refugees seeking safety in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/i-want-to-thank-the-greek-people-publicly-for-their-humanitarian/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [We had a farewell dinner for some of my senior staff, and generally everybody likes to talk about how cool I was.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/we-had-a-farewell-dinner-for-some-of-my-senior-staff-and-generally/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [ It's good to get fresh legs in \[the White house\]. I think that it refreshes our democracy. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/it-s-good-to-get-fresh-legs-in-the-white-house-i-think-that-it/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Believe it or not, entertainment is part of our American diplomacy, it is part of what makes us exceptional, part of what makes us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/believe-it-or-not-entertainment-is-part-of-our-american-diplomacy-it/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) [Explore all 3,624 Barack Obama quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) ## More Asking quotes > [Why did Erich von Stronheim leave Germany? Why did Hitchcock leave England? If you were a director you'd like to work in Hollywood too.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roman-polanski/why-did-erich-von-stronheim-leave-germany-why-did-hitchcock-leave/) [Roman Polanski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roman-polanski/) > [And in your new lives you'll have to live entirely for that one sensation-that of imminent truth. And you're going to have to holler…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/and-in-your-new-lives-you-ll-have-to-live-entirely-for-that-one/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) > [“Stop asking yourself how or why and tell yourself you can." - Charmainism”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charmaine-smith-ladd/stop-asking-yourself-how-or-why-and-tell-yourself-you-can-charmainism/) [Charmaine Smith Ladd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charmaine-smith-ladd/) > [Closing his eyes, he sent up a prayer to anyone who was listening, asking please, for God's sake, stop sending him signals that they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-ward/closing-his-eyes-he-sent-up-a-prayer-to-anyone-who-was-listening/) [J.R. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-ward/) > [People will identify with a persecuted minority without asking themselves what they are identifying with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/people-will-identify-with-a-persecuted-minority-without-asking/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [If you're having a bad day already and everybody is just asking you petty questions, it drives people to the edge, or something really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jess-weixler/if-you-re-having-a-bad-day-already-and-everybody-is-just-asking-you/) [Jess Weixler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jess-weixler/) > [You never give away your heart; you lend it from time to time. If it were not so, how could we take it back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/you-never-give-away-your-heart-you-lend-it-from-time-to-time-if-it/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [I'm not asking people to feel sorry for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-abramoff/i-m-not-asking-people-to-feel-sorry-for-me/) [Jack Abramoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-abramoff/) > [The boldness of asking deep questions may require unforeseen flexibility if we are to accept the answers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-greene/the-boldness-of-asking-deep-questions-may-require-unforeseen/) [Brian Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-greene/) > [Use Google Before Asking A Stupid Question.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muskaan/use-google-before-asking-a-stupid-question/) [Muskaan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muskaan/) > [There were people asking 'Can women be funny?' People still ask that. It's like asking: 'Can women breathe in and out?'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-walters/there-were-people-asking-can-women-be-funny-people-still-ask-that-it/) [Julie Walters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-walters/) > [Whether that's speaking up in your job or asking for a promotion or saying, 'I think I can do that.' Using your voice in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-shriver/whether-that-s-speaking-up-in-your-job-or-asking-for-a-promotion-or/) [Maria Shriver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-shriver/) > [Love cannot be had for the asking; it comes only as a gift from the heart of another](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/love-cannot-be-had-for-the-asking-it-comes-only-as-a-gift-from-the/) [Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/) > [The Baseball Hall of Fame is something every player dreams about, but being a member of God's Hall of Fame is the greatest achievement…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-carter/the-baseball-hall-of-fame-is-something-every-player-dreams-about-but/) [Gary Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-carter/) > [“In such a regime, I say you died a good death if your life had inspired someone to come forward and shoot your murdered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chinua-achebe/in-such-a-regime-i-say-you-died-a-good-death-if-your-life-had/) [Chinua Achebe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chinua-achebe/) [Browse all 3,313 Asking quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/asking/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "What we should be asking is not whether we need a big government or small government, but how we can create a smarter and better government.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Barack Obama" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/what-we-should-be-asking-is-not-whether-we-need-a-big-government-or/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Asking" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/what-we-should-be-asking-is-not-whether-we-need-a-big-government-or/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2e/barack-obama-17_asking_what-we-should-be-asking-is-not-whether_1745218.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2e/barack-obama-17_asking_what-we-should-be-asking-is-not-whether_1745218.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2e/barack-obama-17_asking_what-we-should-be-asking-is-not-whether_1745218.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“What we should be asking is not whether we need a big government or small government, but how we can create…” — Barack Obama", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "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": "Barack Obama", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "What we should be asking is...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/what-we-should-be-asking-is-not-whether-we-need-a-big-government-or/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/what-we-should-be-asking-is-not-whether-we-need-a-big-government-or/#breadcrumb" }, { "@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 } } ] } ```