--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To those who charge that liberalism has…" description: "\"To those who charge that liberalism has been tried and found wanting, I answer that the failure is not in the idea, but in the course of recent history..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3e/george-mcgovern-3955_answers_to-those-who-charge-that-liberalism-has_311491.jpg" --- # To those who charge that liberalism has been tried and… ![“To those who charge that liberalism has been tried and found wanting, I answer that the failure is not in the idea, but in the course of recent history. The New Deal was ended by World War II. The New Frontier was closed by Berlin and Cuba almost before it was opened. And the Great Society lost…” quote by George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3e/george-mcgovern-3955_answers_to-those-who-charge-that-liberalism-has_311491.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3e/george-mcgovern-3955_answers_to-those-who-charge-that-liberalism-has_311491.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3e/george-mcgovern-3955_answers_to-those-who-charge-that-liberalism-has_311491.jpg) > “To those who charge that liberalism has been tried and found wanting, I answer that the failure is not in the idea, but in the course of recent history. The New Deal was ended by World War II. The New Frontier was closed by Berlin and Cuba almost before it was opened. And the Great Society lost its greatness in the jungles of Indochina.” [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Liberal reforms have been undermined by historical events, not because ideas are flawed but because external crises disrupted their implementation. **In simple terms:** Ideas are sound; history disrupted them. Key Takeaway Adapt policies to changing contexts. Themes politics history policy l ism Mood optimistic analytical Type political inspirational When to use this quote - government planning - social activism - education curricula - community organizing Key Concepts historical analysis policy design Questions to Reflect On - How can liberalism evolve to withstand future crises? - What lessons can be learned from past interruptions? A Different Perspective External crises can also expose deeper flaws in policies. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Berlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/berlin/) [Cuba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cuba/) [Excellence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/excellence/) [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Frontiers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/frontiers/) [Great society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-society/) [Greatness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/greatness/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Indochina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/indochina/) [Jungle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jungle/) [Liberalism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/liberalism/) [Military](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/military/) [New deal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new-deal/) [New frontiers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new-frontiers/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [War of the worlds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war-of-the-worlds/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) [World war](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world-war/) [World war ii](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world-war-ii/) ## Related quotes > [“The United States bombed Indochina with three times the tonnage of bombs used in all of World War II; Cambodia alone was hit with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaddey-ratner/the-united-states-bombed-indochina-with-three-times-the-tonnage-of/) [Vaddey Ratner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaddey-ratner/) > [“...if that energy could have been channelled into anything more than noise, waste and pain it would have lighted up Indochina for a thousand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-herr/if-that-energy-could-have-been-channelled-into-anything-more-than/) [Michael Herr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-herr/) > [“The hypothesis advanced by the propaganda model, excluded from debate as unthinkable, is that in dealing with the American wars in Indochina, the media…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-hypothesis-advanced-by-the-propaganda-model-excluded-from-debate/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [In the end, we lost IndoChina to the communists. But we did not lose Southeast Asia.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-westmoreland/in-the-end-we-lost-indochina-to-the-communists-but-we-did-not-lose/) [William Westmoreland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-westmoreland/) > [The U.S. has strategic and economic interests in Southeast Asia that must be secured. Holding Indochina is essential to securing these interests. Therefore, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-u-s-has-strategic-and-economic-interests-in-southeast-asia-that/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [France turned a deaf ear to the demands, but Ho had succeeded in attracting great publicity in progressive French circles to the situation in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilfred-burchett/france-turned-a-deaf-ear-to-the-demands-but-ho-had-succeeded-in/) [Wilfred Burchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilfred-burchett/) > [American imperialism has suffered a stunning defeat in Indochina. But the same forces are engaged In another war against a much less resilient enemy,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/american-imperialism-has-suffered-a-stunning-defeat-in-indochina-but/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [A wide and vague impression exists that so-called Eastern religion is more contemplative, innocuous, and humane than the proselytizing monotheisms of the West. Don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/a-wide-and-vague-impression-exists-that-so-called-eastern-religion-is/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [There are people who cannot forget, as neither do I, the lesson of the years of the Indochina War. 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This is because territorial development can only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-grant-ross/in-the-absence-of-centralized-decision-making-hebrard-s-town-plans/) Helen Grant Ross > [Even in a largely depoliticized society such as the United States, with no political parties or opposition press beyond the narrow spectrum of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/even-in-a-largely-depoliticized-society-such-as-the-united-states/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [“The truth was that history—and in Indochina we were on the wrong side of it—was a hard taskmaster and from the early to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-halberstam/the-truth-was-that-history-and-in-indochina-we-were-on-the-wrong-side/) [David Halberstam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-halberstam/) > [Indochina gets into your blood and once you have a taste you'll find it's impossible to stay away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-rice/indochina-gets-into-your-blood-and-once-you-have-a-taste-you-ll-find/) [Doug Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-rice/) > [ From the outset, when \[Ho Chi Minh\] became a member of the French Communist Party in 1920, he was an independent thinker who adjusted… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-duiker/from-the-outset-when-ho-chi-minh-became-a-member-of-the-french/) [William J. Duiker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-duiker/) > [Until we go through it ourselves, until our people cower in the shelters of New York, Washington, Chicago, Los Angeles and elsewhere while the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-l-shirer/until-we-go-through-it-ourselves-until-our-people-cower-in-the/) [William L. Shirer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-l-shirer/) ## More by George McGovern > [Every Senator in this Chamber is partly responsible for sending 50,000 young Americans to an early grave. This Chamber reeks of blood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/every-senator-in-this-chamber-is-partly-responsible-for-sending-50/) [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) > [I always thought of myself as a moderate liberal, a fighter for peace and justice. 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My dad was a Methodist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/i-always-thought-of-myself-as-a-good-old-south-dakota-boy-who-grew-up-2/) [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) > [Above all, being a Democrat means having compassion for others. ... It means standing up for people who have been kept down ...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/above-all-being-a-democrat-means-having-compassion-for-others-it/) [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) > [I am fed up with a system which busts the pot smoker and lets the big dope racketeer go free.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/i-am-fed-up-with-a-system-which-busts-the-pot-smoker-and-lets-the-big/) [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) > [When I was a youngster growing up in South Dakota, we never referred to the national debt, it was always referred to as the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/when-i-was-a-youngster-growing-up-in-south-dakota-we-never-referred/) [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) > [ I still love to go back to Mitchell \[his home town\] and wander up and down those streets. It just kind of reassures me… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/i-still-love-to-go-back-to-mitchell-his-home-town-and-wander-up-and/) [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) > [Truth is a habit of integrity, not a strategy of politics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/truth-is-a-habit-of-integrity-not-a-strategy-of-politics/) [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) > [Now, I simply do what I want.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/now-i-simply-do-what-i-want/) [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) [Explore all 118 George McGovern quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) ## More Answers quotes > [The one thing that I keep learning over and over again is that I don't know nothing. I mean, that's my life lesson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwayne-johnson/the-one-thing-that-i-keep-learning-over-and-over-again-is-that-i-don/) [Dwayne Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwayne-johnson/) > [Sometimes a question can hurt more than an answer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/sometimes-a-question-can-hurt-more-than-an-answer/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [You feed yourself. Make sure you have all the information, whether it's aesthetic, scientific, mathematical, I don't care what it is. Then you walk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/you-feed-yourself-make-sure-you-have-all-the-information-whether-it-s/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [I have long felt that the way to keep children out of trouble is to keep them interested in things. 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