--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Most presidents come to Washington bright…" description: "\"Most presidents come to Washington bright as freshly minted dimes and leave much diminished.\" — George Will" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc3/george-will-1177_dimes_most-presidents-come-to-washington-brigh_872473.png" --- # Most presidents come to Washington bright as freshly… ![“Most presidents come to Washington bright as freshly minted dimes and leave much diminished.” quote by George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc3/george-will-1177_dimes_most-presidents-come-to-washington-brigh_872473.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc3/george-will-1177_dimes_most-presidents-come-to-washington-brigh_872473.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc3/george-will-1177_dimes_most-presidents-come-to-washington-brigh_872473.png) > “Most presidents come to Washington bright as freshly minted dimes and leave much diminished.” [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Presidents often start with idealism but become constrained by the political system, losing their original vigor. **In simple terms:** Power dulls idealism. Key Takeaway Guard integrity in leadership. Themes politics power idealism corruption Mood critical analytical Type political observational When to use this quote - election campaigns - policy drafting - public service Key Concepts institutional inertia personal integrity Questions to Reflect On - How can leaders stay true to ideals? - What safeguards exist? 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They come and go, but politics stay the same at all times. Do you know why?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/i-have-already-spoken-to-three-us-presidents-they-come-and-go-but/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) > [If you look at where presidents come from, they're former governors or senators.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eleanor-clift/if-you-look-at-where-presidents-come-from-they-re-former-governors-or/) [Eleanor Clift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eleanor-clift/) > [All of our presidents come into office looking so vigorous ... 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I want to lead on issues that are important.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-martinez/i-don-t-want-to-come-to-washington-to-be-just-another-vote-i-want-to/) [Mel Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-martinez/) > [We are past the stage in our relations that you come to Washington with an empty goody bag and then you go back with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kersti-kaljulaid/we-are-past-the-stage-in-our-relations-that-you-come-to-washington/) [Kersti Kaljulaid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kersti-kaljulaid/) > [At some point, the government expands into the private sphere so far that you live in a place with a whole lot less freedom.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-pompeo/at-some-point-the-government-expands-into-the-private-sphere-so-far/) [Mike Pompeo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-pompeo/) > [I do not believe that the best ideas come from Washington.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-messam/i-do-not-believe-that-the-best-ideas-come-from-washington/) [Wayne Messam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-messam/) > [Now, look, it's true, Americans do want leaders that will come to Washington, D.C. and work together to get things done, but that comes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-rubio/now-look-it-s-true-americans-do-want-leaders-that-will-come-to/) [Marco Rubio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-rubio/) ## More by George Will > [The average American expends more time becoming informed about choosing a car than choosing a candidate. But, then, the consequences of the former choice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/the-average-american-expends-more-time-becoming-informed-about/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [Pettiness is the tendency of people without large purposes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/pettiness-is-the-tendency-of-people-without-large-purposes/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [A politician's words reveal less about what he thinks about his subject than what he thinks about his audience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/a-politician-s-words-reveal-less-about-what-he-thinks-about-his/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [As has been said, standards are always out of date - that is why we call them standards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/as-has-been-said-standards-are-always-out-of-date-that-is-why-we-call/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [Hart is still like that little tub of vaguely milklike gunk that comes with airline coffee. It is labeled a "nondairy" product. Fine: we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/hart-is-still-like-that-little-tub-of-vaguely-milklike-gunk-that/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [The realistic way to reduce the amount of money in politics is to reduce the amount of politics in money -- the importance of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/the-realistic-way-to-reduce-the-amount-of-money-in-politics-is-to/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [It is important that Miers not be confirmed unless, in her 61st year, she suddenly and unexpectedly is found to have hitherto undisclosed interests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/it-is-important-that-miers-not-be-confirmed-unless-in-her-61st-year/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [Greek philosophers considered sport a religious and civic-in a word, moral-undertaking. 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Their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/just-as-the-common-law-derives-from-ancient-precedents-judges/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [“Football combines two of the worst things in American life. It is violence punctuated by committee meetings.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/football-combines-two-of-the-worst-things-in-american-life-it-is/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [I've lived in Washington now for 44 years, and that's a lot of folly to witness up close. Whatever confidence and optimism I felt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/i-ve-lived-in-washington-now-for-44-years-and-that-s-a-lot-of-folly/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [The business of America is not business. Neither is it war. The business of america is justice and securing the blessings of liberty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/the-business-of-america-is-not-business-neither-is-it-war-the/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [Freedom is not only the absence of external restraints. It is also the absence of irresistible internal compulsions, unmanageable passion, and uncensorable highlights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/freedom-is-not-only-the-absence-of-external-restraints-it-is-also-the/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) [Explore all 279 George Will quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) ## More Dimes quotes > [Because hate's just the flip side of love. Like heads and tails on a dime. If you don't know what it feels like to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/because-hate-s-just-the-flip-side-of-love-like-heads-and-tails-on-a/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [I wasn't paid a dime for my track career. But participating in the Olympics gave me the opportunity to learn about different cultures; it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyomia-tyus/i-wasn-t-paid-a-dime-for-my-track-career-but-participating-in-the/) [Wyomia Tyus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyomia-tyus/) > [You are only as invincible as your smallest weakness, and those are tiny indeed - the length of a sleeping baby's eyelash, the span…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/you-are-only-as-invincible-as-your-smallest-weakness-and-those-are/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [Excuses cost a dime and that's why the poor could afford a lot of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kiyosaki/excuses-cost-a-dime-and-that-s-why-the-poor-could-afford-a-lot-of-it/) [Robert Kiyosaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kiyosaki/) > [I can spare a dime, brother, but in these morally inflationary times, a dime goes a lot farther if it's demanding work rather than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-ochs/i-can-spare-a-dime-brother-but-in-these-morally-inflationary-times-a/) [Phil Ochs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-ochs/) > [So somebody has talent? So what? Dime a dozen. And we're overpopulated. Actually we have more food than we have people and more art.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cage/so-somebody-has-talent-so-what-dime-a-dozen-and-we-re-overpopulated/) [John Cage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cage/) > [Life turns on a dime.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/life-turns-on-a-dime/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [But actors with political views are a dime a dozen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hanks/but-actors-with-political-views-are-a-dime-a-dozen/) [Tom Hanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hanks/) > [Ministers who do not spend two hours a day in prayer are not worth a dime a dozen - degrees or no degrees.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-ravenhill/ministers-who-do-not-spend-two-hours-a-day-in-prayer-are-not-worth-a/) [Leonard Ravenhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-ravenhill/) > [Keep close count of your nickels and dimes, stay away from whiskey, and never concede a putt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-snead/keep-close-count-of-your-nickels-and-dimes-stay-away-from-whiskey-and/) [Sam Snead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-snead/) > [I love rock and roll, so put another dime in the juke box, baby.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-jett/i-love-rock-and-roll-so-put-another-dime-in-the-juke-box-baby/) [Joan Jett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-jett/) > [From the onset of the 'Live-Read' series, we wanted to hit all the major writers and Woody Allen is simply one of the greatest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-reitman/from-the-onset-of-the-live-read-series-we-wanted-to-hit-all-the-major/) [Jason Reitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-reitman/) > [ I don't take a dime of their \[lobbyist\] money, and when I am president, they won't find a job in my White House. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/i-don-t-take-a-dime-of-their-lobbyist-money-and-when-i-am-president/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [We're building an independent political program that can run electoral politics and then turn on a dime to hold our leaders to task, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-trumka/we-re-building-an-independent-political-program-that-can-run/) [Richard Trumka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-trumka/) > [After the last shovel of dirt was patted in place, I sat down and let my mind drift back through the years. I thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilson-rawls/after-the-last-shovel-of-dirt-was-patted-in-place-i-sat-down-and-let/) [Wilson Rawls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilson-rawls/) [Browse all 224 Dimes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dimes/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Most presidents come to Washington bright as freshly minted dimes and leave much diminished.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "George Will" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/most-presidents-come-to-washington-bright-as-freshly-minted-dimes-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Dimes" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/most-presidents-come-to-washington-bright-as-freshly-minted-dimes-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc3/george-will-1177_dimes_most-presidents-come-to-washington-brigh_872473.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc3/george-will-1177_dimes_most-presidents-come-to-washington-brigh_872473.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc3/george-will-1177_dimes_most-presidents-come-to-washington-brigh_872473.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Most presidents come to Washington bright as freshly minted dimes and leave much diminished.” — George Will", "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": "George Will", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Most presidents come to Washington bright...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/most-presidents-come-to-washington-bright-as-freshly-minted-dimes-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/most-presidents-come-to-washington-bright-as-freshly-minted-dimes-and/#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 } } ] } ```