--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In a president, character is everything…" description: "\"In a president, character is everything. A president doesn't have to be brilliant... He doesn't have to be clever; you can hire clever... You can hire ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11a/peggy-noonan-4902_ambition_in-a-president-character-is-everything-a_1359835.jpg" --- # In a president, character is everything. A president… ![“In a president, character is everything. A president doesn't have to be brilliant... He doesn't have to be clever; you can hire clever... You can hire pragmatic, and you can buy and bring in policy wonks. But you cant buy courage and decency, you cant rent a strong moral sense. A president must…” quote by Peggy Noonan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11a/peggy-noonan-4902_ambition_in-a-president-character-is-everything-a_1359835.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11a/peggy-noonan-4902_ambition_in-a-president-character-is-everything-a_1359835.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11a/peggy-noonan-4902_ambition_in-a-president-character-is-everything-a_1359835.jpg) > “In a president, character is everything. A president doesn't have to be brilliant... He doesn't have to be clever; you can hire clever... You can hire pragmatic, and you can buy and bring in policy wonks. But you cant buy courage and decency, you cant rent a strong moral sense. A president must bring those things with him. He needs to have, in that much maligned word, but a good one nonetheless, a vision of the future he wishes to create.. But a vision is worth little if a president doesn't have the character - the courage and heart - to see it through.” [Peggy Noonan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-noonan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A president's character—courage, decency, moral sense—is essential and cannot be outsourced; vision alone is insufficient without integrity. **In simple terms:** Character matters more than brilliance for leaders. Key Takeaway Prioritize integrity over expertise. Themes leadership character integrity vision politics Mood serious reflective Type advice political When to use this quote - campaigns - policy formulation - crisis management - team building Key Concepts moral psychology ethical leadership political theory Questions to Reflect On - Can a leader succeed without personal integrity? - How do you assess character in candidates? A Different Perspective Charisma can mask lack of character, but without it, leadership fails. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ambition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambition/) [Brilliant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brilliant/) [Cant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cant/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Character President](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character-president-1990699/) [Clever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clever/) [Courage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courage/) [Decency](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decency/) [Dreams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dreams/) [Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Littles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/littles/) [Moral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral/) [Needs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needs/) [Policy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/policy/) [Pragmatic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pragmatic/) [President](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/president/) [President Bring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/president-bring-397627/) [President Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/president-character-2533601/) [President Doesn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/president-doesn-289724/) [Strong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strong/) [Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trump/) [Vision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vision/) [Visions of the future](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/visions-of-the-future/) [Wish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wish/) ## Related quotes > [White House cultures inevitably reflect the president's character. Jimmy Carter is a thoroughly honest, good person. So was his White House.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-drayton/white-house-cultures-inevitably-reflect-the-president-s-character/) [Bill Drayton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-drayton/) > [And it would be a bit out of character. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan may have started out as a reformer, but he really enjoys…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-kenyon/and-it-would-be-a-bit-out-of-character-president-recep-tayyip-erdogan/) [Peter Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-kenyon/) > [I'd been concerned all along that the character of the president in the West Wing pilot would throw the ensemble out of whack, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-sorkin/i-d-been-concerned-all-along-that-the-character-of-the-president-in/) [Aaron Sorkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-sorkin/) > [I'm going to be honest, I would love for Flava Flav to be president. It would bring a lot of excitement to the country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dj-khaled/i-m-going-to-be-honest-i-would-love-for-flava-flav-to-be-president-it/) [DJ Khaled](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dj-khaled/) > [But I was thinking about this, the Obamas want to adopt a stray dog from the pound. And I think that is admirable. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/but-i-was-thinking-about-this-the-obamas-want-to-adopt-a-stray-dog/) [David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) > [As president, I will bring all the parties and stakeholders together. I am going to come up with a solution that respects the environment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-gore/as-president-i-will-bring-all-the-parties-and-stakeholders-together-i/) [Al Gore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-gore/) > [an the president bring out the voters who were so enthusiastic about him in 2008 and seem a little disenchanted now? Can he bring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/an-the-president-bring-out-the-voters-who-were-so-enthusiastic-about/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [Five years ago, when I was elected, I had the feeling that the president doesn't have much to do. I've realized, though, that this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pratibha-patil/five-years-ago-when-i-was-elected-i-had-the-feeling-that-the/) [Pratibha Patil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pratibha-patil/) > [“Have you surpassed the rest? Are you the president? It doesn't matter. They will more than arrive there, every one, and still pass on.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/have-you-surpassed-the-rest-are-you-the-president-it-doesn-t-matter/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [War should always be the absolute last resort. That's why these crippling sanctions, which Bibi Netanyahu says we should continue, which, if I'm not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-biden/war-should-always-be-the-absolute-last-resort-that-s-why-these/) [Joe Biden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-biden/) > [Democracy means that anyone can grow up to be president, and anyone who doesn't grow up can be vice president.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-carson/democracy-means-that-anyone-can-grow-up-to-be-president-and-anyone/) [Johnny Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-carson/) > [ \[On Ronald Reagan:\] The President doesn't want yes-men around. When he says no, we all say no. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-dole/on-ronald-reagan-the-president-doesn-t-want-yes-men-around-when-he/) [Elizabeth Dole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-dole/) > [The President doesn't ring people out of the blue, so you know you've done something well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-howard/the-president-doesn-t-ring-people-out-of-the-blue-so-you-know-you-ve/) [Tim Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-howard/) > [I've seen firsthand that being president doesn't change who you are. It reveals who you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-obama/i-ve-seen-firsthand-that-being-president-doesn-t-change-who-you-are/) [Michelle Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-obama/) > [They've got a Jobs Council that never meets. A Democratic Senate that doesn't act. A President who doesn't believe and a Vice President who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-g-stemberg/they-ve-got-a-jobs-council-that-never-meets-a-democratic-senate-that/) [Thomas G. Stemberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-g-stemberg/) ## More by Peggy Noonan > [Politicians, please, think of yourselves! Move to help Terri Schiavo, and no one will be mad at you, and you'll keep a human being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peggy-noonan/politicians-please-think-of-yourselves-move-to-help-terri-schiavo-and/) [Peggy Noonan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-noonan/) > [What we need most right now, at this moment, is a kind of patriotic grace - a grace that takes the long view, apprehends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peggy-noonan/what-we-need-most-right-now-at-this-moment-is-a-kind-of-patriotic/) [Peggy Noonan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-noonan/) > [I love eulogies. They are the most moving kind of speech because they attempt to pluck meaning from the fog, and on short order,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peggy-noonan/i-love-eulogies-they-are-the-most-moving-kind-of-speech-because-they/) [Peggy Noonan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-noonan/) > [But one immediate thing can be done right now, and that is: lower the temperature. Any way you can, and everybody. Just lower it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peggy-noonan/but-one-immediate-thing-can-be-done-right-now-and-that-is-lower-the/) [Peggy Noonan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-noonan/) > [Most people aren't appreciated enough, and the bravest things we do in our lives are usually known only to ourselves. No one throws ticker…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peggy-noonan/most-people-aren-t-appreciated-enough-and-the-bravest-things-we-do-in/) [Peggy Noonan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-noonan/) > [Let's cause some senators distress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peggy-noonan/let-s-cause-some-senators-distress/) [Peggy Noonan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-noonan/) > [Boundaries aren't all bad. That's why there are walls around mental institutions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peggy-noonan/boundaries-aren-t-all-bad-that-s-why-there-are-walls-around-mental/) [Peggy Noonan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-noonan/) > [TV gives everyone an image, but radio gives birth to a million images in a million brains.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peggy-noonan/tv-gives-everyone-an-image-but-radio-gives-birth-to-a-million-images/) [Peggy Noonan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-noonan/) > [When everyone in America knows you're in a dreadful position, admit you're in a dreadful position. Don't lie about it and make them roll…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peggy-noonan/when-everyone-in-america-knows-you-re-in-a-dreadful-position-admit/) [Peggy Noonan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-noonan/) > [Beware the politically obsessed. They are often bright and interesting, but they have something missing in their natures; there is a hole, an empty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peggy-noonan/beware-the-politically-obsessed-they-are-often-bright-and-interesting/) [Peggy Noonan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-noonan/) > [Loyalty consists of many things, including being truthful with our friends. When you really disagree, you have to say so.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peggy-noonan/loyalty-consists-of-many-things-including-being-truthful-with-our/) [Peggy Noonan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-noonan/) > [Our patriotic fervor was the result of the old and widespread belief in the idea of American exceptionalism, the idea that America was a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peggy-noonan/our-patriotic-fervor-was-the-result-of-the-old-and-widespread-belief/) [Peggy Noonan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-noonan/) > [Democracy involves that old-fashioned thing called working it out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peggy-noonan/democracy-involves-that-old-fashioned-thing-called-working-it-out/) [Peggy Noonan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-noonan/) > [The Irish are often nervous about having the appropriate face for the occasion. They have to be happy at weddings, which is a strain,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peggy-noonan/the-irish-are-often-nervous-about-having-the-appropriate-face-for-the/) [Peggy Noonan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-noonan/) > [Wit penetrates; humor envelops. Wit is a function of verbal intelligence; humor is imagination operating on good nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peggy-noonan/wit-penetrates-humor-envelops-wit-is-a-function-of-verbal/) [Peggy Noonan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-noonan/) [Explore all 105 Peggy Noonan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-noonan/) ## More Ambition quotes > [Ambition drives you on, ability certainly helps, but the fickle finger of fate and luck are great things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fergus-henderson/ambition-drives-you-on-ability-certainly-helps-but-the-fickle-finger/) [Fergus Henderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fergus-henderson/) > [One needs more than ambition and talent to make a success of anything, really. There must be love and a vocation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessye-norman/one-needs-more-than-ambition-and-talent-to-make-a-success-of-anything/) [Jessye Norman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessye-norman/) > [I just think my own ambition would not allow me to sit on the gifts that my creator had given me. And so that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janelle-monae/i-just-think-my-own-ambition-would-not-allow-me-to-sit-on-the-gifts/) [Janelle Monae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janelle-monae/) > [A man's worth is no greater than the worth of his ambitions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-man-s-worth-is-no-greater-than-the-worth-of-his-ambitions/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm hungry and ambitious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julen-lopetegui/i-m-hungry-and-ambitious/) [Julen Lopetegui](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julen-lopetegui/) > [“I was ambitious and desperate to direct my first film, so I capitulated and blew it. Never again. Never fucking again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-ferguson/i-was-ambitious-and-desperate-to-direct-my-first-film-so-i/) [Craig Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-ferguson/) > [I was always attracted most to joining City, and I am pleased to be at such a good club with such a big ambition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edin-dzeko/i-was-always-attracted-most-to-joining-city-and-i-am-pleased-to-be-at/) [Edin Dzeko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edin-dzeko/) > [Work towards your goal and dont watch the post size,its either they hate,or like you.there is no room for both sides.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-buabeng/work-towards-your-goal-and-dont-watch-the-post-size-its-either-they/) [Isaac Buabeng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-buabeng/) > [“But young men have not only this frivolous ambition of being thought masters of execution, inciting them on the one hand, but also their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/but-young-men-have-not-only-this-frivolous-ambition-of-being-thought/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I almost never have a plan for myself... I'm not ambitious in that way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-plimpton/i-almost-never-have-a-plan-for-myself-i-m-not-ambitious-in-that-way/) [Martha Plimpton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-plimpton/) > [I play for high stakes and given an audience - there is no act too daring or too noble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/i-play-for-high-stakes-and-given-an-audience-there-is-no-act-too/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [There's nothing worse than a leader who lacks ambition.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-s-nothing-worse-than-a-leader-who-lacks-ambition/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If i can't even protect my captain's dream, then whatever ambition i have is nothing but talk..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zoro/if-i-can-t-even-protect-my-captain-s-dream-then-whatever-ambition-i/) [Zoro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zoro/) > [It may seem unattainable but if you put actions, your heart and your mind into it, you will prevail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/london-mond/it-may-seem-unattainable-but-if-you-put-actions-your-heart-and-your/) [London Mond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/london-mond/) > [Obligation is what's leading us to toward successful, and what keeps us moving towards the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wazim-shaw/obligation-is-what-s-leading-us-to-toward-successful-and-what-keeps/) [Wazim Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wazim-shaw/) [Browse all 4,601 Ambition quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambition/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In a president, character is everything. A president doesn't have to be brilliant... He doesn't have to be clever; you can hire clever... You can hire pragmatic, and you can buy and bring in policy wonks. But you cant buy courage and decency, you cant rent a strong moral sense. A president must bring those things with him. He needs to have, in that much maligned word, but a good one nonetheless, a vision of the future he wishes to create.. 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