--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: America is great because America is good…" description: "\"“America is great because America is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great.”\" — Ben Carson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/194/ben-carson-3320_america-is-great_america-is-great-because-america-is-good_1135106.jpg" --- # America is great because America is good, and if America… ![“America is great because America is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great.” quote by Ben Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/194/ben-carson-3320_america-is-great_america-is-great-because-america-is-good_1135106.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/194/ben-carson-3320_america-is-great_america-is-great-because-america-is-good_1135106.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/194/ben-carson-3320_america-is-great_america-is-great-because-america-is-good_1135106.jpg) > ““America is great because America is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great.”” [Ben Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-carson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. America’s greatness depends on its moral character; losing virtue erodes national stature. **In simple terms:** Greatness follows goodness; without virtue, greatness fades. Key Takeaway Uphold moral standards. Themes patriotism morality national identity Mood proud reflective Type political inspirational When to use this quote - political discourse - public policy - education - community building Key Concepts civic virtue ethical leadership Questions to Reflect On - How do you define national greatness? - What moral standards should guide a nation? A Different Perspective Greatness can be claimed without moral substance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [America Is Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america-is-great/) ## Related quotes > [America is great because she is good. If America ceases to be good, America will cease to be great.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/america-is-great-because-she-is-good-if-america-ceases-to-be-good/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [I sought for the greatness and genius of America in her commodious harbors and her ample rivers, and it was not there; in her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-cleon-skousen/i-sought-for-the-greatness-and-genius-of-america-in-her-commodious/) [W. Cleon Skousen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-cleon-skousen/) > [Not until I went into the churches of America and heard her pulpits flame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/not-until-i-went-into-the-churches-of-america-and-heard-her-pulpits/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [“Some people cannot afford to believe that this country isn’t that bad, that as Hillary Clinton said, “America is great because America is good.”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yaa-gyasi/some-people-cannot-afford-to-believe-that-this-country-isn-t-that-bad/) [Yaa Gyasi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yaa-gyasi/) > [America is great because America is good and America is good because we protect the vulnerable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-e-james/america-is-great-because-america-is-good-and-america-is-good-because/) [John E. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-e-james/) > [What's good for America is great for Montana.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-rosendale/what-s-good-for-america-is-great-for-montana/) [Matt Rosendale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-rosendale/) > [Donald Trump thinks belittling women makes him bigger. We need to stand up and be clear that we don't want this, we need to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/donald-trump-thinks-belittling-women-makes-him-bigger-we-need-to/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [America is great, because America is good. And it really is up to all of us to make that true, now and in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/america-is-great-because-america-is-good-and-it-really-is-up-to-all/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [What I keep telling people is, getting trade agreements that are good for America is good for everybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-ryan/what-i-keep-telling-people-is-getting-trade-agreements-that-are-good/) [Paul Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-ryan/) > [If the white folks feel America is great for everybody, I don't want to change what they love. All I want is to bring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lil-b/if-the-white-folks-feel-america-is-great-for-everybody-i-don-t-want/) [Lil B](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lil-b/) > [Take it from this immigrant from Israel, a proud Israeli-American, born in Egypt, a Muslim country: America is great. Not perfect, but great. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haim-saban/take-it-from-this-immigrant-from-israel-a-proud-israeli-american-born/) [Haim Saban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haim-saban/) > [“Now look at the ideology of American supremacy. It has a solid foundation in reality; namely, the United States is the dominant power in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-soros/now-look-at-the-ideology-of-american-supremacy-it-has-a-solid/) [George Soros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-soros/) > [America is great not because it's a team. America is great because it is a nation whose founding documents elevated the rights of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/america-is-great-not-because-it-s-a-team-america-is-great-because-it/) [John Podhoretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/) > [America is great because she is good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/america-is-great-because-she-is-good/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [America is great, because America is free.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-quayle/america-is-great-because-america-is-free/) [Dan Quayle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-quayle/) ## More by Ben Carson > [“We all have choices in the way we react to the words we hear. Our lives and the lives of all those around us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-carson/we-all-have-choices-in-the-way-we-react-to-the-words-we-hear-our/) [Ben Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-carson/) > [“to do only if you don’t have a good argument. This is also a good way to keep people at one another’s throats constantly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-carson/to-do-only-if-you-don-t-have-a-good-argument-this-is-also-a-good-way/) [Ben Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-carson/) > [“Our founding fathers placed so much emphasis on nurturing a well-educated populace because they knew that our system of democracy could not long survive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-carson/our-founding-fathers-placed-so-much-emphasis-on-nurturing-a-well/) [Ben Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-carson/) > [“If mediocrity becomes the norm, the quantity of outstanding producers will decline, as will general prosperity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-carson/if-mediocrity-becomes-the-norm-the-quantity-of-outstanding-producers/) [Ben Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-carson/) > [“If we are ever going to have adequate funding for health care and other major line items in our budget, however, we have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-carson/if-we-are-ever-going-to-have-adequate-funding-for-health-care-and/) [Ben Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-carson/) > [“capitalism is an economic system in which individuals or corporate groups have the right to make private decisions and to acquire private property and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-carson/capitalism-is-an-economic-system-in-which-individuals-or-corporate/) [Ben Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-carson/) > [“A gigantic, bloated government has to keep itself busy in order to justify its existence; hence, you have more regulations and meddling in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-carson/a-gigantic-bloated-government-has-to-keep-itself-busy-in-order-to/) [Ben Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-carson/) > [“Everyone should realize that today the average person lives to be about eighty years of age, the first twenty to twenty-five of which are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-carson/everyone-should-realize-that-today-the-average-person-lives-to-be/) [Ben Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-carson/) > [“One of America’s most respected legacies is indeed that of rebelling for change.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-carson/one-of-america-s-most-respected-legacies-is-indeed-that-of-rebelling/) [Ben Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-carson/) > [“The real question is, will we as Americans, accustomed to freedom, continue to sheepishly submit to the purveyors of political correctness without recognizing its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-carson/the-real-question-is-will-we-as-americans-accustomed-to-freedom/) [Ben Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-carson/) > [“Many well-meaning Americans have bought into the PC speech code, thinking that by being extra careful not to offend anyone we will achieve unity.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-carson/many-well-meaning-americans-have-bought-into-the-pc-speech-code/) [Ben Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-carson/) > [“Many in Europe saw an opportunity to escape the oppressive and overbearing governmental systems under which they languished, and these people emigrated in droves,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-carson/many-in-europe-saw-an-opportunity-to-escape-the-oppressive-and/) [Ben Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-carson/) > [“As long as you have broad representation from many parts of society, representative government works extremely well. And it works even better when the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-carson/as-long-as-you-have-broad-representation-from-many-parts-of-society/) [Ben Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-carson/) > [“The Constitution is quite clear that the government has the right to tax in order to support its programs, but there is nothing in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-carson/the-constitution-is-quite-clear-that-the-government-has-the-right-to/) [Ben Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-carson/) > [“Proverbs 11:9: Evil words destroy one’s friends; wise discernment rescues the godly. Proverbs 11:12: It is foolish to belittle a neighbor; a person with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-carson/proverbs-11-9-evil-words-destroy-one-s-friends-wise-discernment/) [Ben Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-carson/) [Explore all 131 Ben Carson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-carson/) ## More America quotes > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/) [Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/) > [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/) > [Today, the world looks to America for leadership. And America looks to its Corps of Marines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/today-the-world-looks-to-america-for-leadership-and-america-looks-to/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [ I'll smoke, I'll cough, I'll get the tumors, I'll die, deal? Thank you America. \[salutes\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-ll-smoke-i-ll-cough-i-ll-get-the-tumors-i-ll-die-deal-thank-you/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I'm gonna bring America together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-m-gonna-bring-america-together/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [We need a system that serves our needs, not the needs of others. Remember, under a Trump administration it's called America first. Remember that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-need-a-system-that-serves-our-needs-not-the-needs-of-others/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/) [Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/) > [You live overseas, you see these exotic places and you want to know about them. But, weirdly, it also made me homesick for all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-jennings/you-live-overseas-you-see-these-exotic-places-and-you-want-to-know/) [Ken Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-jennings/) > [Freedom in every sense but primarily political sense, a rise in repression that stems from a repression of sexuality. It's AIDS, it's herpes, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-nicholson/freedom-in-every-sense-but-primarily-political-sense-a-rise-in/) [Jack Nicholson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-nicholson/) > [“In American terms, the accomplishment of Genghis Khan might be understood if the United States, instead of being created by a group of educated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-weatherford/in-american-terms-the-accomplishment-of-genghis-khan-might-be/) [Jack Weatherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-weatherford/) [Browse all 20,382 America quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“America is great because America is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ben Carson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-carson/america-is-great-because-america-is-good-and-if-america-ever-ceases/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "America" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-carson/america-is-great-because-america-is-good-and-if-america-ever-ceases/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/194/ben-carson-3320_america-is-great_america-is-great-because-america-is-good_1135106.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/194/ben-carson-3320_america-is-great_america-is-great-because-america-is-good_1135106.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/194/ben-carson-3320_america-is-great_america-is-great-because-america-is-good_1135106.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“America is great because America is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be…” — Ben Carson", "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": "Ben Carson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-carson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“America is great because America is...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-carson/america-is-great-because-america-is-good-and-if-america-ever-ceases/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-carson/america-is-great-because-america-is-good-and-if-america-ever-ceases/#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 } } ] } ```