--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The American people are doing their job…" description: "\"The American people are doing their job today. They should be given a chance to show whether they wish to preserve the principles of individual and loc..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ab1/herbert-hoover-1115_american-people_the-american-people-are-doing-their-job_316681.jpg" --- # The American people are doing their job today. They should… ![“The American people are doing their job today. They should be given a chance to show whether they wish to preserve the principles of individual and local responsibility and mutual self-help before they embark on what I believe to be a disastrous system. I feel sure they will succeed if given the…” quote by Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ab1/herbert-hoover-1115_american-people_the-american-people-are-doing-their-job_316681.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ab1/herbert-hoover-1115_american-people_the-american-people-are-doing-their-job_316681.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ab1/herbert-hoover-1115_american-people_the-american-people-are-doing-their-job_316681.jpg) > “The American people are doing their job today. They should be given a chance to show whether they wish to preserve the principles of individual and local responsibility and mutual self-help before they embark on what I believe to be a disastrous system. I feel sure they will succeed if given the opportunity.” [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Hoover argues that citizens should be trusted to manage their own affairs and test their commitment to personal responsibility before imposing a large centralized system. **In simple terms:** People should prove their responsibility before big government takes over. Key Takeaway Let citizens decide, not the state. Themes individualism responsibility government self‑reliance Mood cautious optimistic Type political persuasive When to use this quote - local elections - community projects - grassroots initiatives - policy debates Key Concepts political philosophy civil society public policy Questions to Reflect On - Do citizens truly prefer self‑help over government aid? - How can we measure success of local responsibility? A Different Perspective Large systems may still fail despite local effort. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [American people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-people/) [Chance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance/) [Given a chance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/given-a-chance/) [Given opportunity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/given-opportunity/) [Individual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual/) [Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jobs/) [Opportunity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opportunity/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Principles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/principles/) [Responsibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/responsibility/) [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) [Self help](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self-help/) [Today](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/today/) [Wish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wish/) ## Related quotes > [Not yesterday, not tomorrow, only today can be given form. Only this architecture creates.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-mies-van-der-rohe/not-yesterday-not-tomorrow-only-today-can-be-given-form-only-this/) [Ludwig Mies van der Rohe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-mies-van-der-rohe/) > [If you're given a chance, and you're driven and obsessed and consumed when given the opportunity to prove people right, the sky is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-nagy/if-you-re-given-a-chance-and-you-re-driven-and-obsessed-and-consumed/) [Matt Nagy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-nagy/) > [“The first job that we have today is putting yesterday aside to be remembered later.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-knight/the-first-job-that-we-have-today-is-putting-yesterday-aside-to-be/) Bob Knight > [I have called the co-host job at the 'Today Show' my dream job, and I would be lying if I said it was easy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-curry/i-have-called-the-co-host-job-at-the-today-show-my-dream-job-and-i/) [Ann Curry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-curry/) > [Your job today tells me nothing of your future--your use of your leisure today tells me just what your tomorrow will be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-h-jackson/your-job-today-tells-me-nothing-of-your-future-your-use-of-your/) [Robert H. Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-h-jackson/) > [“Start the good job today by your self and let the generation end it tomorrow by them selves.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/issah-awal/start-the-good-job-today-by-your-self-and-let-the-generation-end-it/) Issah Awal > [“Each and every day, someone, somewhere in my city, needs my services. My job TODAY is to find that person.’ Internalize this and you’ll…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-maher/each-and-every-day-someone-somewhere-in-my-city-needs-my-services-my/) Michael J. Maher > [Whatever you may be thinking when you apply for a job today, you can be sure the employer is asking this: Can this person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/whatever-you-may-be-thinking-when-you-apply-for-a-job-today-you-can/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [Your job today is to pass gas. You do that and we can start feeding you liquids. No fart, no food.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/your-job-today-is-to-pass-gas-you-do-that-and-we-can-start-feeding/) [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) > [The priceless treasure of boyhood is his endless enthusiasm, his high store of idealism, his affections and his hopes. When we preserve these, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/the-priceless-treasure-of-boyhood-is-his-endless-enthusiasm-his-high/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [If America is to be run by the people, it is the people who must think. And we do not need to put on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/if-america-is-to-be-run-by-the-people-it-is-the-people-who-must-think/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [It's hard for an up and coming player who has the eyes of Manchester United on them to take that opportunity and then sort…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-phelan/it-s-hard-for-an-up-and-coming-player-who-has-the-eyes-of-manchester/) [Mike Phelan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-phelan/) > [If given an opportunity I would act in regional films.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dino-morea/if-given-an-opportunity-i-would-act-in-regional-films/) [Dino Morea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dino-morea/) > [I do not believe we are all created equal. Physical and emotional differences, parental guidance, varying environments, being in the right place at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-do-not-believe-we-are-all-created-equal-physical-and-emotional/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [My father was an air officer in the Second World War. My brother was a marine in Vietnam. When I was given this opportunity,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-plame/my-father-was-an-air-officer-in-the-second-world-war-my-brother-was-a/) [Valerie Plame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-plame/) ## More by Herbert Hoover > [While the crash only took place six months ago, I am convinced we have now passed the worst, and with continued unity of effort,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/while-the-crash-only-took-place-six-months-ago-i-am-convinced-we-have/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [Fishing is a constant reminder of the democracy of life, of humility, and of human frailty. The forces of nature discriminate for no man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/fishing-is-a-constant-reminder-of-the-democracy-of-life-of-humility/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [It is a great profession. There is the fascination of watching a figment of the imagination emerge through the aid of science to a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/it-is-a-great-profession-there-is-the-fascination-of-watching-a/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [The human animal originally came from out-of-doors. When spring begins to move in his bones, he just must get out again. Moreover, as civilization,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/the-human-animal-originally-came-from-out-of-doors-when-spring-begins/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [“No one ever listened themselves out of a job.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/no-one-ever-listened-themselves-out-of-a-job/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [Somebody has inquired as to whether I will be going to the opening baseball game. I hope to have that pleasure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/somebody-has-inquired-as-to-whether-i-will-be-going-to-the-opening/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [It is always possible that occasional individuals may have overstepped the law and humanity in treatment of criminals and those charged with crime, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/it-is-always-possible-that-occasional-individuals-may-have/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [One of the primary necessities of the world for the maintenance of peace is the elimination of the frictions which arise from competitive armament.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/one-of-the-primary-necessities-of-the-world-for-the-maintenance-of/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [Man is still by instinct a predatory animal given to devilish aggression. The discoveries of science have immensely increased productivity of material things. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/man-is-still-by-instinct-a-predatory-animal-given-to-devilish/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [You convey too great a compliment when you say that I have earned the right to the presidential nomination. No man can establish such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/you-convey-too-great-a-compliment-when-you-say-that-i-have-earned-the/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [“Leadership cannot be created synthetically. Men must be what they were made by the Almighty or the American people will find them out in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/leadership-cannot-be-created-synthetically-men-must-be-what-they-were/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [When we are sick, we want an uncommon doctor; when we have a construction job to do, we want an uncommon engineer, and when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/when-we-are-sick-we-want-an-uncommon-doctor-when-we-have-a/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [My boyhood ambition was to be able to earn my own living, without the help of anybody, anywhere,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/my-boyhood-ambition-was-to-be-able-to-earn-my-own-living-without-the/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [If America is to be run by the people, it is the people who must think. And we do not need to put on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/if-america-is-to-be-run-by-the-people-it-is-the-people-who-must-think/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [The New Deal repudiation of democracy has left the Republican Party alone the guardian of the Ark of the Covenant with its charter of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/the-new-deal-repudiation-of-democracy-has-left-the-republican-party/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) [Explore all 290 Herbert Hoover quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) ## More American people quotes > [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/) > [Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/believing-with-you-that-religion-is-a-matter-which-lies-solely/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/for-as-much-as-government-can-do-and-must-do-it-is-ultimately-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Given a choice between two bald political candidates, the American people will vote for the less bald of the two.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-gold/given-a-choice-between-two-bald-political-candidates-the-american/) Victor Gold > [When the American people saw the LA riots and crowds of Blacks cheering O.J. Simpson (who was acquitted by the almost all Black jury),…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-duke/when-the-american-people-saw-the-la-riots-and-crowds-of-blacks/) [David Duke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-duke/) > [In any event, it is one thing to assert, then or now, that the Iraq war was ill-advised. It is quite another to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-silberman/in-any-event-it-is-one-thing-to-assert-then-or-now-that-the-iraq-war/) [Laurence Silberman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-silberman/) > [Well look, CIA is an agency that has to collect intelligence, do operations. We have to take risks and it's important that we take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-panetta/well-look-cia-is-an-agency-that-has-to-collect-intelligence-do/) [Leon Panetta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-panetta/) > [I don't know a politician who enjoys fundraising. The system is such that the American people have lost faith.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mccain/i-don-t-know-a-politician-who-enjoys-fundraising-the-system-is-such/) [John McCain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mccain/) > [Probably the greatest single obstacle to the progress and happiness of the American people lies in the willingness of so many men to invest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-rockefeller/probably-the-greatest-single-obstacle-to-the-progress-and-happiness/) [John D. Rockefeller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-rockefeller/) > [If a financial institution has business operations in the United States, hires people in the United States, if they are clogged with illiquid assets,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-paulson/if-a-financial-institution-has-business-operations-in-the-united/) [Henry Paulson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-paulson/) > [The American people reject the idea of giving Washington a blank check to increase the debt limit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-roby/the-american-people-reject-the-idea-of-giving-washington-a-blank/) [Martha Roby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-roby/) > [The coronavirus has yet again exposed the strong contrast between President Trump - who is working ardently for the American people - and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kayleigh-mcenany/the-coronavirus-has-yet-again-exposed-the-strong-contrast-between/) [Kayleigh McEnany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kayleigh-mcenany/) > [The American people demand results, not rhetoric, especially when it comes to national security issues.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-hayworth/the-american-people-demand-results-not-rhetoric-especially-when-it/) [J. D. Hayworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-hayworth/) > [Hillary Clinton truly is sincere, but she has to connect more with the American people in terms of what she believes in and how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-pelosi/hillary-clinton-truly-is-sincere-but-she-has-to-connect-more-with-the/) [Nancy Pelosi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-pelosi/) > [The American people are incredibly generous and even playful when you open yourself up and feed the media beast until it goes away satisfied.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krystal-ball/the-american-people-are-incredibly-generous-and-even-playful-when-you/) [Krystal Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krystal-ball/) [Browse all 2,233 American people quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-people/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The American people are doing their job today. 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