--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Even if you assume presidents were…" description: "\"Even if you assume presidents were democratically elected they still have no right to keep secrets from the American people.\" — Howard Zinn" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/458/howard-zinn-576_american-people_even-if-you-assume-presidents-were-democ_166358.jpg" --- # Even if you assume presidents were democratically elected… ![“Even if you assume presidents were democratically elected they still have no right to keep secrets from the American people.” quote by Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/458/howard-zinn-576_american-people_even-if-you-assume-presidents-were-democ_166358.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/458/howard-zinn-576_american-people_even-if-you-assume-presidents-were-democ_166358.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/458/howard-zinn-576_american-people_even-if-you-assume-presidents-were-democ_166358.jpg) > “Even if you assume presidents were democratically elected they still have no right to keep secrets from the American people.” [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Democratic elections do not grant leaders the right to conceal information from citizens. **In simple terms:** Elected leaders must be transparent. Key Takeaway Demand openness from elected officials. Themes transparency democracy accountability Mood critical concerned Type political ethical When to use this quote - government oversight - public discourse - media analysis Key Concepts political ethics civic duty Questions to Reflect On - Should secrecy ever be allowed in democracy? - How can citizens enforce transparency? A Different Perspective Secrecy may be justified for national security. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [American people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-people/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [President](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/president/) [Secret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secret/) ## Related quotes > [Good or bad people can be democratically elected, but it is always easy to fight for human rights under this system.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/asma-jahangir/good-or-bad-people-can-be-democratically-elected-but-it-is-always/) [Asma Jahangir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/asma-jahangir/) > [My critics always forget to mention that I was democratically elected, the others were not. Everyone in Uganda can challenge me, everyone can vote,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoweri-museveni/my-critics-always-forget-to-mention-that-i-was-democratically-elected/) [Yoweri Museveni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yoweri-museveni/) > [Whatever and whoever you care about depend on freedom, on democratically elected and accountable people working to further your interests.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penny-mordaunt/whatever-and-whoever-you-care-about-depend-on-freedom-on/) [Penny Mordaunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penny-mordaunt/) > [“This was supposedly an Honors American History class, for seniors only. What deep, dark secrets of American History needed to be kept from younger…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melodie-starkey/this-was-supposedly-an-honors-american-history-class-for-seniors-only/) Melodie Starkey > [If you attack our democratically elected representatives, you attack our institutions, all our people and our sovereignty, and we will never allow that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jordi-cuixart/if-you-attack-our-democratically-elected-representatives-you-attack/) [Jordi Cuixart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jordi-cuixart/) > [Of course, I am the first democratically elected woman president in Africa, and that raises a lot of expectations. Because I represent the aspirations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-johnson-sirleaf/of-course-i-am-the-first-democratically-elected-woman-president-in/) [Ellen Johnson Sirleaf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-johnson-sirleaf/) > [I was democratically elected leader of our party for a new kind of politics by 60% of Labour members and supporters, and I will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-corbyn/i-was-democratically-elected-leader-of-our-party-for-a-new-kind-of/) [Jeremy Corbyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-corbyn/) > [We, the people, gave the marching orders to our democratically-elected officials and instructed them. We wanted out of Vietnam and we got out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-stein/we-the-people-gave-the-marching-orders-to-our-democratically-elected/) [Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-stein/) > [When you have a democratically elected president of Iran you don't topple him for the Shah. You don't help topple Arbenz in Guatemala. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-gonzalez/when-you-have-a-democratically-elected-president-of-iran-you-don-t/) [Matt Gonzalez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-gonzalez/) > [Venezuela is a democratically elected government. These people who keep protesting are sore losers,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-stone/venezuela-is-a-democratically-elected-government-these-people-who/) [Oliver Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-stone/) > [The good Lord didn't see fit to put oil and gas only where there are democratically elected regimes friendly to the United States. Occasionally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-cheney/the-good-lord-didn-t-see-fit-to-put-oil-and-gas-only-where-there-are/) [Dick Cheney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-cheney/) > [Moreover, as we live in an era of the ascendancy of democracy and human rights, we must see that Taiwan has been a vibrant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-lampson/moreover-as-we-live-in-an-era-of-the-ascendancy-of-democracy-and/) [Nick Lampson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-lampson/) > [Those communal areas have got elected municipalities, which have got to do their work as, as fully, democratically elected municipal councils.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thabo-mbeki/those-communal-areas-have-got-elected-municipalities-which-have-got/) [Thabo Mbeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thabo-mbeki/) > [Democratically, we have the ability to return accountability and sovereignty to U.K. decision-makers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suella-braverman/democratically-we-have-the-ability-to-return-accountability-and/) [Suella Braverman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suella-braverman/) > [I often say that in making dances I can make a world where I think things are done morally, done democratically, done honestly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/twyla-tharp/i-often-say-that-in-making-dances-i-can-make-a-world-where-i-think/) [Twyla Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/twyla-tharp/) ## More by Howard Zinn > [“A black man, Benjamin Banneker, who taught himself mathematics and astronomy, predicted accurately a solar eclipse, and was appointed to plan the new city…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/a-black-man-benjamin-banneker-who-taught-himself-mathematics-and/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [There is no flag large enough to cover the shame of killing innocent people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/there-is-no-flag-large-enough-to-cover-the-shame-of-killing-innocent/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“a good education is a synthesis of book learning and involvement in social action, because each enrich the other. The accumulation of knowledge, while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/a-good-education-is-a-synthesis-of-book-learning-and-involvement-in/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [The mountain of history books under which we all stand leans so heavily in the other direction-so tremblingly respectful of states and statesmen and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/the-mountain-of-history-books-under-which-we-all-stand-leans-so/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Let's face a historical truth: we have never had a "free market", we have always had government intervention in the economy, and indeed that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/let-s-face-a-historical-truth-we-have-never-had-a-free-market-we-have/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [I can UNDERSTAND pessimism, but I don't BELIEVE in it. It's not simply a matter of faith, but of historical EVIDENCE. Not overwhelming evidence,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/i-can-understand-pessimism-but-i-don-t-believe-in-it-it-s-not-simply/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Protest beyond the law is not a departure from democracy; it is absolutely essential to it. It is a corrective to the sluggishness of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/protest-beyond-the-law-is-not-a-departure-from-democracy-it-is/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Now I have been studying very closely what happens every day in the courts in Boston, Massachusetts. You would be astounded--maybe you wouldn't, maybe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/now-i-have-been-studying-very-closely-what-happens-every-day-in-the/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [They were not mentioned in the Declaration of Independence, they were absent in the Constitution and they were invisible in the new political democracy.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/they-were-not-mentioned-in-the-declaration-of-independence-they-were/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“Sexual purity was to be the special virtue of a woman. It was assumed that men, as a matter of biological nature, would sin,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/sexual-purity-was-to-be-the-special-virtue-of-a-woman-it-was-assumed/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“Middle-class Americans might be invited to join a new elite by attacks against the corruption of the established rich. The New Yorker Cadwallader Colden,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/middle-class-americans-might-be-invited-to-join-a-new-elite-by/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [If those in charge of our society - politicians, corporate executives, and owners of press and television - can dominate our ideas, they will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/if-those-in-charge-of-our-society-politicians-corporate-executives/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [We were not born critical of existing society. There was a moment in our lives (or a month, or a year) when certain facts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/we-were-not-born-critical-of-existing-society-there-was-a-moment-in/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Behind the deceptive words designed to entice people into supporting violence -- words like democracy, freedom, self-defense, national security -- there is the reality…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/behind-the-deceptive-words-designed-to-entice-people-into-supporting/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“George Washington had turned down the requests of blacks, seeking freedom, to fight in the Revolutionary army. So when the British military commander in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/george-washington-had-turned-down-the-requests-of-blacks-seeking/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) [Explore all 461 Howard Zinn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) ## 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": "Even if you assume presidents were democratically elected they still have no right to keep secrets from the American people.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Howard Zinn" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/even-if-you-assume-presidents-were-democratically-elected-they-still/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "American people" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/even-if-you-assume-presidents-were-democratically-elected-they-still/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/458/howard-zinn-576_american-people_even-if-you-assume-presidents-were-democ_166358.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/458/howard-zinn-576_american-people_even-if-you-assume-presidents-were-democ_166358.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/458/howard-zinn-576_american-people_even-if-you-assume-presidents-were-democ_166358.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Even if you assume presidents were democratically elected they still have no right to keep secrets from the…” — Howard Zinn", "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": "Howard Zinn", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Even if you assume presidents were...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/even-if-you-assume-presidents-were-democratically-elected-they-still/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/even-if-you-assume-presidents-were-democratically-elected-they-still/#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 } } ] } ```