---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is a testament to just how far we fell…"
description: "\"“It is a testament to just how far we fell in 2016 that to resist the fever and stand up for conservatism seemed a radical act.”\" — Jeff Flake"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6f/jeff-flake-11986_radical-act_it-is-a-testament-to-just-how-far-we-fel_1183851.png"
---

#  It is a testament to just how far we fell in 2016 that to…

![“It is a testament to just how far we fell in 2016 that to resist the fever and stand up for conservatism seemed a radical act.” quote by Jeff Flake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6f/jeff-flake-11986_radical-act_it-is-a-testament-to-just-how-far-we-fel_1183851.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6f/jeff-flake-11986_radical-act_it-is-a-testament-to-just-how-far-we-fel_1183851.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6f/jeff-flake-11986_radical-act_it-is-a-testament-to-just-how-far-we-fel_1183851.png)

> ““It is a testament to just how far we fell in 2016 that to resist the fever and stand up for conservatism seemed a radical act.””

[Jeff Flake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-flake/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Resisting mainstream pressure and defending conservative values felt radical in a polarized climate.

**In simple terms:** Defending conservatism seemed radical in 2016.

Key Takeaway

Stand firm in principles despite opposition.

Themes

politics courage ideology

Mood

reflective serious

Type

political commentary

When to use this quote

- election campaigns
- public debates
- policy advocacy
- grassroots organizing

Key Concepts

polarization principles radicalism

Questions to Reflect On

- What does it mean to be radical for a cause?
- How can you balance conviction with openness?

A Different Perspective

Radicalism can alienate potential allies and limit dialogue.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

## Related quotes

> [The Americans of 1776 were among the first men in modern society to defend rather than to seek an open society and constitutional liberty……](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clinton-rossiter/the-americans-of-1776-were-among-the-first-men-in-modern-society-to/)

[Clinton Rossiter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clinton-rossiter/)

> [Because it is a radical act of freedom, creative achievement is a heroic process that requires, in all its permutations, specific strengths of character.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-grudin/because-it-is-a-radical-act-of-freedom-creative-achievement-is-a/)

[Robert Grudin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-grudin/)

> [“Deep emotion in this age is a radical act.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-tupitsyn/deep-emotion-in-this-age-is-a-radical-act/)

[Masha Tupitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-tupitsyn/)

> [The most radical act anyone can commit is to be happy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patch-adams/the-most-radical-act-anyone-can-commit-is-to-be-happy/)

[Patch Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patch-adams/)

> [“The most radical act is sometimes to refuse to be hurried.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-nault/the-most-radical-act-is-sometimes-to-refuse-to-be-hurried/)

[Lawrence Nault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-nault/)

> [It is a radical act to believe in and like yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claudia-black/it-is-a-radical-act-to-believe-in-and-like-yourself/)

[Claudia Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claudia-black/)

> [Thinking for yourself is still a radical act](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-kline/thinking-for-yourself-is-still-a-radical-act/)

[Nancy Kline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-kline/)

> [If you're a woman and you've decided to step in front of people on any kind of platform and say that you have feelings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lizz-winstead/if-you-re-a-woman-and-you-ve-decided-to-step-in-front-of-people-on/)

[Lizz Winstead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lizz-winstead/)

> [Perhaps the most radical act we can commit is to stay home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-tempest-williams/perhaps-the-most-radical-act-we-can-commit-is-to-stay-home/)

[Terry Tempest Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-tempest-williams/)

> [I think a major act of leadership right now, call it a radical act, is to create the places and processes so people can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-j-wheatley/i-think-a-major-act-of-leadership-right-now-call-it-a-radical-act-is/)

[Margaret J. Wheatley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-j-wheatley/)

## More by Jeff Flake

> [There are some Republicans who say that any time you raise new revenue, you have to have a tax cut to match it. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-flake/there-are-some-republicans-who-say-that-any-time-you-raise-new/)

[Jeff Flake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-flake/)

> [Many of the earmark request forms are actually filled out by lobbyists and then just turned in by the member's staff to the appropriations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-flake/many-of-the-earmark-request-forms-are-actually-filled-out-by/)

[Jeff Flake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-flake/)

> [If we can't have the courage to tell our constituents, hey, we've got to cut back, then if we can point to something and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-flake/if-we-can-t-have-the-courage-to-tell-our-constituents-hey-we-ve-got/)

[Jeff Flake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-flake/)

> [“Brigham Young himself had sent my great-great-grandfather, William Jordan Flake, and others down from Utah to colonize the area. Legend has it that after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-flake/brigham-young-himself-had-sent-my-great-great-grandfather-william/)

[Jeff Flake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-flake/)

> [“Growing up with migrant workers, I knew that they usually worked harder than we did. Sometimes my dad and my uncles would hire a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-flake/growing-up-with-migrant-workers-i-knew-that-they-usually-worked/)

[Jeff Flake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-flake/)

> [ Just when you think \[Donald Trump\] can stoop no lower, he does. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-flake/just-when-you-think-donald-trump-can-stoop-no-lower-he-does/)

[Jeff Flake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-flake/)

> [This Congress is out of control and in desperate need of adult supervision.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-flake/this-congress-is-out-of-control-and-in-desperate-need-of-adult/)

[Jeff Flake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-flake/)

> [I do think that the Republican Party is in a crisis right now, a crisis of confidence about who we are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-flake/i-do-think-that-the-republican-party-is-in-a-crisis-right-now-a/)

[Jeff Flake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-flake/)

> [Unfortunately there are too many examples of members of Congress and other elected officials using language, referring to your opponents in ways that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-flake/unfortunately-there-are-too-many-examples-of-members-of-congress-and/)

[Jeff Flake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-flake/)

> [Certainly the policy is right and good politics usually follow good policy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-flake/certainly-the-policy-is-right-and-good-politics-usually-follow-good/)

[Jeff Flake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-flake/)

> [I think the Respublican party's lost its way. We have given into nativism and protectionism. And I think that, if we're going to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-flake/i-think-the-respublican-party-s-lost-its-way-we-have-given-into/)

[Jeff Flake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-flake/)

> [“In the late 1990s, the conservative gadfly Roger Stone began to observe, not disapprovingly, that popular culture had become more influential than politics.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-flake/in-the-late-1990s-the-conservative-gadfly-roger-stone-began-to/)

[Jeff Flake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-flake/)

> [The country is facing a fiscal crisis, and the United States Senate is at the center of the debate about how to bring federal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-flake/the-country-is-facing-a-fiscal-crisis-and-the-united-states-senate-is/)

[Jeff Flake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-flake/)

> [For one, I think as a missionary you gotta be stubborn. And you gotta try to be persuasive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-flake/for-one-i-think-as-a-missionary-you-gotta-be-stubborn-and-you-gotta/)

[Jeff Flake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-flake/)

> [These are people who wanted to provide for their family and wanted a better life. We've got to have a secure border. But we've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-flake/these-are-people-who-wanted-to-provide-for-their-family-and-wanted-a/)

[Jeff Flake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-flake/)

[Explore all 57 Jeff Flake quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-flake/)

## More Radical Act quotes

> [I think a major act of leadership right now, call it a radical act, is to create the places and processes so people can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-j-wheatley/i-think-a-major-act-of-leadership-right-now-call-it-a-radical-act-is/)

[Margaret J. Wheatley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-j-wheatley/)

> [Perhaps the most radical act we can commit is to stay home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-tempest-williams/perhaps-the-most-radical-act-we-can-commit-is-to-stay-home/)

[Terry Tempest Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-tempest-williams/)

> [If you're a woman and you've decided to step in front of people on any kind of platform and say that you have feelings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lizz-winstead/if-you-re-a-woman-and-you-ve-decided-to-step-in-front-of-people-on/)

[Lizz Winstead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lizz-winstead/)

> [Thinking for yourself is still a radical act](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-kline/thinking-for-yourself-is-still-a-radical-act/)

[Nancy Kline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-kline/)

> [It is a radical act to believe in and like yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claudia-black/it-is-a-radical-act-to-believe-in-and-like-yourself/)

[Claudia Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claudia-black/)

> [“The most radical act is sometimes to refuse to be hurried.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-nault/the-most-radical-act-is-sometimes-to-refuse-to-be-hurried/)

[Lawrence Nault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-nault/)

> [The most radical act anyone can commit is to be happy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patch-adams/the-most-radical-act-anyone-can-commit-is-to-be-happy/)

[Patch Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patch-adams/)

> [“Deep emotion in this age is a radical act.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-tupitsyn/deep-emotion-in-this-age-is-a-radical-act/)

[Masha Tupitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-tupitsyn/)

> [Because it is a radical act of freedom, creative achievement is a heroic process that requires, in all its permutations, specific strengths of character.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-grudin/because-it-is-a-radical-act-of-freedom-creative-achievement-is-a/)

[Robert Grudin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-grudin/)

Browse all 10 Radical Act quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“It is a testament to just how far we fell in 2016 that to resist the fever and stand up for conservatism seemed a radical act.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Jeff Flake"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-flake/it-is-a-testament-to-just-how-far-we-fell-in-2016-that-to-resist-the/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Radical Act"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-flake/it-is-a-testament-to-just-how-far-we-fell-in-2016-that-to-resist-the/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6f/jeff-flake-11986_radical-act_it-is-a-testament-to-just-how-far-we-fel_1183851.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6f/jeff-flake-11986_radical-act_it-is-a-testament-to-just-how-far-we-fel_1183851.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6f/jeff-flake-11986_radical-act_it-is-a-testament-to-just-how-far-we-fel_1183851.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“It is a testament to just how far we fell in 2016 that to resist the fever and stand up for conservatism…” — Jeff Flake",
                "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": "Jeff Flake",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-flake/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“It is a testament to just...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-flake/it-is-a-testament-to-just-how-far-we-fell-in-2016-that-to-resist-the/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-flake/it-is-a-testament-to-just-how-far-we-fell-in-2016-that-to-resist-the/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```