--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: George McGovern, for all his mistakes…" description: "\"George McGovern, for all his mistakes... understands what a fantastic monument to all the best instincts of the human race this country might have been..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a27/hunter-s-thompson-278_all-the-best_george-mcgovern-for-all-his-mistakes-und_794259.jpg" --- # George McGovern, for all his mistakes... understands what… ![“George McGovern, for all his mistakes... understands what a fantastic monument to all the best instincts of the human race this country might have been, if we could have kept it out of the hands of greedy little hustlers like Richard Nixon,” quote by Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a27/hunter-s-thompson-278_all-the-best_george-mcgovern-for-all-his-mistakes-und_794259.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a27/hunter-s-thompson-278_all-the-best_george-mcgovern-for-all-his-mistakes-und_794259.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a27/hunter-s-thompson-278_all-the-best_george-mcgovern-for-all-his-mistakes-und_794259.jpg) > “George McGovern, for all his mistakes... understands what a fantastic monument to all the best instincts of the human race this country might have been, if we could have kept it out of the hands of greedy little hustlers like Richard Nixon,” [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A critique of political corruption, lamenting lost potential due to greedy leaders. **In simple terms:** Greedy leaders ruin a nation's promise. Key Takeaway Demand accountability from leaders. Themes politics corruption idealism disillusionment history Mood cynical critical Type political journalistic When to use this quote - voting - activism - public discourse Key Concepts political theory ethics power dynamics Questions to Reflect On - What reforms could prevent exploitation? - How can citizens protect democratic ideals? A Different Perspective Idealism can be naïve without systemic change. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [All the best](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/all-the-best/) [Best Instincts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/best-instincts-1718650/) [Country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/country/) [Fantastic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fantastic/) [Fantastic Monument](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fantastic-monument-6094021/) [George Mcgovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/george-mcgovern-1020251/) [Greedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/greedy/) [Hands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hands/) [Has beens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/has-beens/) [Human race](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-race/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Instinct](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/instinct/) [Littles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/littles/) [Mcgovern Mistakes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mcgovern-mistakes-6094020/) [Might](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/might/) [Might have been](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/might-have-been/) [Mistake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mistake/) [Monument](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/monument/) [Nixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nixon/) [Race](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/race/) [Richard nixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/richard-nixon/) ## Related quotes > [Of all the men that have run for president in the twentieth century, only George McGovern truly understood what a monument America could be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/of-all-the-men-that-have-run-for-president-in-the-twentieth-century/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [Mud-pies gratify one of our first and best instincts. So long as we are dirty, we are pure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dudley-warner/mud-pies-gratify-one-of-our-first-and-best-instincts-so-long-as-we/) [Charles Dudley Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dudley-warner/) > [“Exactly what the powers of hell feed on: the best instincts in man.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/exactly-what-the-powers-of-hell-feed-on-the-best-instincts-in-man/) [Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) > [George McGovern - and I campaigned very hard for his election - was not, in the summer of 1971, a strong feminist ally. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-decrow/george-mcgovern-and-i-campaigned-very-hard-for-his-election-was-not/) [Karen DeCrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-decrow/) > [Reagan is both too fatalistic and too modest to be a crudaser. He doesn't have that darkness around the eyes of a George McGovern.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-f-buckley-jr/reagan-is-both-too-fatalistic-and-too-modest-to-be-a-crudaser-he/) [William F. Buckley, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-f-buckley-jr/) > [A Democrat who had been JFK's Secretary of the Navy, Connally believed that as many as 20 million Democrats would cross over to vote…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-gallagher/a-democrat-who-had-been-jfk-s-secretary-of-the-navy-connally-believed/) [Mike Gallagher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-gallagher/) > [George McGovern and his supporters committed what, in a two-party system, are capital crimes: they did not compromise, they took hard ideological positions, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-abrams/george-mcgovern-and-his-supporters-committed-what-in-a-two-party/) [Elliott Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-abrams/) > [Government is the reimplementation of the public good. - George McGovern ( On Charlie Rose, Jan 6, 2011 telecast Charlotte NC)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/government-is-the-reimplementation-of-the-public-good-george-mcgovern/) [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) > [“I cannot believe we want our great nation to become a land where our personal privacy and our personal freedom are jeopardized by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-summers/i-cannot-believe-we-want-our-great-nation-to-become-a-land-where-our/) [Anthony Summers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-summers/) > [I don't listen to the news or read newspapers. I don't know what's going on in this world, or why I should vote for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-cassidy/i-don-t-listen-to-the-news-or-read-newspapers-i-don-t-know-what-s/) [David Cassidy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-cassidy/) > [“I’ve spent enough time in jackrabbit country to know that most of them lead pretty dull lives . . . No wonder some of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/i-ve-spent-enough-time-in-jackrabbit-country-to-know-that-most-of/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [Richard Nixon was a criminally insane Monster - Bill Clinton is a black-hearted Swine of a friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/richard-nixon-was-a-criminally-insane-monster-bill-clinton-is-a-black/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [ I'd almost prefer \[Richard\] Nixon. I'd say \[Bill\] Clinton is every bit as corrupt as Nixon, but a lot smoother. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/i-d-almost-prefer-richard-nixon-i-d-say-bill-clinton-is-every-bit-as/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [“Richard Nixon has never been one of my favorite people, anyway. For years I've regarded his very existence as a monument to all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/richard-nixon-has-never-been-one-of-my-favorite-people-anyway-for/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [By disgracing and degrading the presidency of the United States, by fleeing the White House like a diseased cur, Richard Nixon broke the heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/by-disgracing-and-degrading-the-presidency-of-the-united-states-by/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) ## More by Hunter S. Thompson > [“There was also the fact that sending a penniless writer to get $135 worth of beer was — as Khrushchev said of Nixon —…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/there-was-also-the-fact-that-sending-a-penniless-writer-to-get-135/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [“Cases of champagne and scotch lay broken in the street, and everyone I saw had a bottle. They were screaming and dancing, and in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/cases-of-champagne-and-scotch-lay-broken-in-the-street-and-everyone-i/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [No music + Bad TV = Bad mood & no pages.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/no-music-bad-tv-bad-mood-no-pages/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [By disgracing and degrading the presidency of the United States, by fleeing the White House like a diseased cur, Richard Nixon broke the heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/by-disgracing-and-degrading-the-presidency-of-the-united-states-by/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [No one holds command over me. No man. No god. No Prince. What is a claim of age for ones who are immortal? What…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/no-one-holds-command-over-me-no-man-no-god-no-prince-what-is-a-claim/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [“The person who doesn't scatter the morning dew will not comb grey hairs”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/the-person-who-doesn-t-scatter-the-morning-dew-will-not-comb-grey/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [Hope rises and dreams flicker and die. Love plans for tomorrow and loneliness thinks of yesterday. Life is beautiful and living is pain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/hope-rises-and-dreams-flicker-and-die-love-plans-for-tomorrow-and/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [If we get chased out of Iraq with our tail between our legs, that will be the fifth consecutive Third-world country with no hint…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/if-we-get-chased-out-of-iraq-with-our-tail-between-our-legs-that-will/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [At age 22 I set what I insist is an all-time record for distance hitchhiking in Bermuda shorts: 3,700 miles in three weeks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/at-age-22-i-set-what-i-insist-is-an-all-time-record-for-distance/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [Paranoia is just another mask for ignorance. The truth, when you finally chase it down is almost always far worse than your darkest visions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/paranoia-is-just-another-mask-for-ignorance-the-truth-when-you/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [“No doubt they all Got What Was Coming To Them. All those pathetically eager acid freaks who thought they could buy Peace and Understanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/no-doubt-they-all-got-what-was-coming-to-them-all-those-pathetically/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [“For several months they'd been drifting toward political involvement, but the picture was hazy and one of the most confusing elements was their geographical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/for-several-months-they-d-been-drifting-toward-political-involvement/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [He wandered into the Newsroom and asked for a job the same way he’d walk into a barbershop and ask for a haircut, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/he-wandered-into-the-newsroom-and-asked-for-a-job-the-same-way-he-d/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [There's no point in getting into politics at all unless you plan to lash things around.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/there-s-no-point-in-getting-into-politics-at-all-unless-you-plan-to/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [There’s a lot of things wrong with this country, but one of the few things still right with it is that a man can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/there-s-a-lot-of-things-wrong-with-this-country-but-one-of-the-few/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) [Explore all 765 Hunter S. Thompson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) ## More All the best quotes > [This is my philosophy on all life, not just when it comes to love. All the best things are terrifying, but that's why they're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-s-monson/this-is-my-philosophy-on-all-life-not-just-when-it-comes-to-love-all/) [Thomas S. Monson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-s-monson/) > [Avant-garde means never having to say you're sorry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-ribot/avant-garde-means-never-having-to-say-you-re-sorry/) [Marc Ribot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marc-ribot/) > [You can never take too much care over the choice of your shoes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-dior/you-can-never-take-too-much-care-over-the-choice-of-your-shoes/) [Christian Dior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-dior/) > [All the best songs are, I think, the easiest write because they just come out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benji-madden/all-the-best-songs-are-i-think-the-easiest-write-because-they-just/) [Benji Madden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benji-madden/) > [All the best human impulses can be traced back to adolescence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helene-deutsch/all-the-best-human-impulses-can-be-traced-back-to-adolescence/) [Helene Deutsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helene-deutsch/) > [All the best have something in common, a regard for reality, an agreement to its primacy over the imagination. Even the richest, most surprising…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wislawa-szymborska/all-the-best-have-something-in-common-a-regard-for-reality-an/) [Wislawa Szymborska](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wislawa-szymborska/) > [On a ruinous wall I came upon a poster dating from the previous year and announcing that ‘six handsome bulls’ would be killed in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/on-a-ruinous-wall-i-came-upon-a-poster-dating-from-the-previous-year/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [I pictured a low timber house with a shingled roof, caulked against storms, with blazing log fires inside and the walls lined with all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-chatwin/i-pictured-a-low-timber-house-with-a-shingled-roof-caulked-against/) [Bruce Chatwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-chatwin/) > [All the best of the monsters played for sympathy. That goes for my father, Karloff, myself and all the others. They all won the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lon-chaney-jr/all-the-best-of-the-monsters-played-for-sympathy-that-goes-for-my/) [Lon Chaney, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lon-chaney-jr/) > [I think all good drama is funny. All the best drama is ultimately very funny. Life is funny. You can't have any honest treatise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jane/i-think-all-good-drama-is-funny-all-the-best-drama-is-ultimately-very/) [Thomas Jane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jane/) > [As long as the people who kinda wanna go kill other people are going to go kill other people who kinda wanna go kill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-stanhope/as-long-as-the-people-who-kinda-wanna-go-kill-other-people-are-going/) [Doug Stanhope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-stanhope/) > [Because only slow food can teach us the things that really matter - care, beauty, concentration, discernment, sensuality, all the best that humans are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-waters/because-only-slow-food-can-teach-us-the-things-that-really-matter/) [Alice Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-waters/) > [They may take our lives, but they'll never take our freedom!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-gibson/they-may-take-our-lives-but-they-ll-never-take-our-freedom/) [Mel Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-gibson/) > [All the best bands have a language, and what they say within that language makes it is what it is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erol-alkan/all-the-best-bands-have-a-language-and-what-they-say-within-that/) [Erol Alkan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erol-alkan/) > [All the best ideas come out of the process; they come out of the work itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-close/all-the-best-ideas-come-out-of-the-process-they-come-out-of-the-work/) [Chuck Close](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-close/) [Browse all 122 All the best quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/all-the-best/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "George McGovern, for all his mistakes... understands what a fantastic monument to all the best instincts of the human race this country might have been, if we could have kept it out of the hands of greedy little hustlers like Richard Nixon,", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Hunter S. 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