--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Most governments lie to each other…" description: "\"Most governments lie to each other. That's the way business gets done.\" — Robert M. Gates" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4f/robert-m-gates-2972_business_most-governments-lie-to-each-other-that_3102404.png" --- # Most governments lie to each other. That's the way… ![“Most governments lie to each other. That's the way business gets done.” quote by Robert M. Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4f/robert-m-gates-2972_business_most-governments-lie-to-each-other-that_3102404.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4f/robert-m-gates-2972_business_most-governments-lie-to-each-other-that_3102404.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4f/robert-m-gates-2972_business_most-governments-lie-to-each-other-that_3102404.png) > “Most governments lie to each other. That's the way business gets done.” [Robert M. Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-gates/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Powerful nations often deceive one another, and such deception fuels commercial transactions. **In simple terms:** Governments deceive, enabling business. Key Takeaway Recognize hidden agendas in negotiations. Themes politics business trust deception Mood cautious critical Type analytical political When to use this quote - international trade - diplomatic talks - corporate negotiations Key Concepts realpolitik information asymmetry Questions to Reflect On - How do you verify information in high‑stakes deals? - When is secrecy justified? A Different Perspective Deception can erode long‑term relationships. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [Governments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/governments/) [Lying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lying/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) ## Related quotes > [All governments lie, but disaster lies in wait for countries whose officials smoke the same hashish they give out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/all-governments-lie-but-disaster-lies-in-wait-for-countries-whose/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Bad governments always lie because telling the truth requires honour and courage!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/bad-governments-always-lie-because-telling-the-truth-requires-honour/) [Mehmet Murat ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [“All governments lie; those that lie the best are those we trust the most”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-patrick-clark/all-governments-lie-those-that-lie-the-best-are-those-we-trust-the/) Michael Patrick Clark > [If you want to know about governments, all you need to know is two words: Governments lie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i-f-stone/if-you-want-to-know-about-governments-all-you-need-to-know-is-two/) [I. F. Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/i-f-stone/) > [“Among my father’s most important messages were that governments lie to protect themselves and they make incredibly stupid decisions. Years after the publication of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/among-my-father-s-most-important-messages-were-that-governments-lie/) [Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/) > [I've tended to work at fast-growing companies that improve the way business gets done.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-ve-tended-to-work-at-fast-growing-companies-that-improve-the-way/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you get a no, your best bet is to find out why. The more concrete your business gets, the more you'll get yeses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-wainwright/if-you-get-a-no-your-best-bet-is-to-find-out-why-the-more-concrete/) [Julie Wainwright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-wainwright/) > [Look, all administrations, all governments lie, all officials lie and nothing they say is to be believed. That's a pretty good rule.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-ellsberg/look-all-administrations-all-governments-lie-all-officials-lie-and/) [Daniel Ellsberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-ellsberg/) > [There has to be something about your business that gets you excited. Otherwise, you probably wouldn't have spent your precious - irreplaceable - time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-holiday/there-has-to-be-something-about-your-business-that-gets-you-excited/) [Ryan Holiday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-holiday/) > [The business always gets in the way of basketball.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-kidd/the-business-always-gets-in-the-way-of-basketball/) [Jason Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-kidd/) > [“When a business gets branded, its value increases.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/utibe-samuel-mbom/when-a-business-gets-branded-its-value-increases/) [Utibe Samuel Mbom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/utibe-samuel-mbom/) > [Governments lie; bankers lie; even auditors sometimes lie: gold tells the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-rees-mogg/governments-lie-bankers-lie-even-auditors-sometimes-lie-gold-tells/) [William Rees-Mogg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-rees-mogg/) > [Everyone in the entertainment business gets crappy contracts when we start out, and into the middle of our careers. It's the nature of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-michael-straczynski/everyone-in-the-entertainment-business-gets-crappy-contracts-when-we/) [J. Michael Straczynski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-michael-straczynski/) > [The more business gets involved, the less fun it is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-stanhope/the-more-business-gets-involved-the-less-fun-it-is/) [Doug Stanhope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-stanhope/) > [One of the hardest things a person who is new to the way of business thinking has to go through is the countless number…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kiyosaki/one-of-the-hardest-things-a-person-who-is-new-to-the-way-of-business/) [Robert Kiyosaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kiyosaki/) ## More by Robert M. Gates > [And so the greatest of American triumphs... became a peculiarly joyless victory. We had won the Cold War, but there would be no parades.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-gates/and-so-the-greatest-of-american-triumphs-became-a-peculiarly-joyless/) [Robert M. Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-gates/) > [“Obama answered, “Yes. I’m no peacenik.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-gates/obama-answered-yes-i-m-no-peacenik/) [Robert M. Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-gates/) > [“I was seething. I told him that “the clock is ticking” and that our patience with their lack of political progress was running out.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-gates/i-was-seething-i-told-him-that-the-clock-is-ticking-and-that-our/) [Robert M. Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-gates/) > [Some people have said, in so many words, that I'm kind of wooly-headed in believing that the Iranians would see not having nuclear weapons…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-gates/some-people-have-said-in-so-many-words-that-i-m-kind-of-wooly-headed/) [Robert M. Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-gates/) > [“Obama was the fourth president I had worked for who said outright that he wanted to eliminate all nuclear weapons (Carter, Reagan, and Bush…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-gates/obama-was-the-fourth-president-i-had-worked-for-who-said-outright/) [Robert M. Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-gates/) > [I had no concerns - I had no reason to have concerns based on what was available to me about North's contacts with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-gates/i-had-no-concerns-i-had-no-reason-to-have-concerns-based-on-what-was/) [Robert M. Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-gates/) > [Health care costs are eating the Defense Department alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-gates/health-care-costs-are-eating-the-defense-department-alive/) [Robert M. Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-gates/) > [“The passage of fourteen years had led to another significant change in the international environment. As I told Bush 43 and Condi Rice on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-gates/the-passage-of-fourteen-years-had-led-to-another-significant-change/) [Robert M. Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-gates/) > [I've been very sensitive for a long time to the repeated pattern, during economic hard times or after a war, of the United States'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-gates/i-ve-been-very-sensitive-for-a-long-time-to-the-repeated-pattern/) [Robert M. Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-gates/) > [I don't know General Michael Flynn well, but it's hard for me to believe anybody would allow themselves to be blackmailed by the Russians…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-gates/i-don-t-know-general-michael-flynn-well-but-it-s-hard-for-me-to/) [Robert M. Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-gates/) > [I had no difficulty as Secretary of Defense moving from the Bush administration to the Obama administration.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-gates/i-had-no-difficulty-as-secretary-of-defense-moving-from-the-bush/) [Robert M. Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-gates/) > [The United States has been a global power since late in the 19th century.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-gates/the-united-states-has-been-a-global-power-since-late-in-the-19th/) [Robert M. Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-gates/) > [My one concern is that Hu Jintao may overestimate how much power China has in Pyongyang. They have - they do have influence, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-gates/my-one-concern-is-that-hu-jintao-may-overestimate-how-much-power/) [Robert M. Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-gates/) > [“I thought you were my friend.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-gates/i-thought-you-were-my-friend/) [Robert M. Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-gates/) > [“Soon after the raid was over, the White House released the now-famous photo of all of us watching the video in that small conference…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-gates/soon-after-the-raid-was-over-the-white-house-released-the-now-famous/) [Robert M. Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-gates/) [Explore all 143 Robert M. Gates quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-gates/) ## More Business quotes > [Companies with cultures that celebrate diverse opinions and encourage the exchange of ideas have an advantage when solving difficult problems. A company that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-mcmillon/companies-with-cultures-that-celebrate-diverse-opinions-and-encourage/) [Doug McMillon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-mcmillon/) > [You can laugh at me, but I understand show business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ksenia-sobchak/you-can-laugh-at-me-but-i-understand-show-business/) [Ksenia Sobchak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ksenia-sobchak/) > [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [I'm a business first and foremost so whatever my business is, it's separate from my personal. It's like whatever I do business wise, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/snoop-dogg/i-m-a-business-first-and-foremost-so-whatever-my-business-is-it-s/) [Snoop Dogg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/snoop-dogg/) > [Many early-stage entrepreneurs make one simple mistake: Describing this 'big picture' in vague concepts and words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunil-nagaraj/many-early-stage-entrepreneurs-make-one-simple-mistake-describing/) [Sunil Nagaraj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunil-nagaraj/) > [Nobody has a crystal ball, and part of evolving a business plan is to say, 'I might have said we're going left, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-kavanaugh/nobody-has-a-crystal-ball-and-part-of-evolving-a-business-plan-is-to/) [Ryan Kavanaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-kavanaugh/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [ “\[S\]ometimes, when you are a food person, the possible irrelevance of what you are doing doesn’t cross your mind until it’s too late. (Once,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-ephron/s-ometimes-when-you-are-a-food-person-the-possible-irrelevance-of/) [Nora Ephron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-ephron/) > [If you have a different mindset, you will have a different outcome: if you make different choices from your peers, your life will then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-ma/if-you-have-a-different-mindset-you-will-have-a-different-outcome-if/) [Jack Ma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-ma/) > [“Some say the Earth is angry Because he wants no company; I say the Earth is angry Because he lives alone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/some-say-the-earth-is-angry-because-he-wants-no-company-i-say-the/) [N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/) > [ If the State does not acquire supremacy over \[vast private\] enterprises, it becomes their puppet, and they become the real State. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/if-the-state-does-not-acquire-supremacy-over-vast-private-enterprises/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [It's not just that families can't buy a home or start a business without some savings tucked away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cooper/it-s-not-just-that-families-can-t-buy-a-home-or-start-a-business/) [Jim Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cooper/) > [I'm not into business at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freddie-mercury/i-m-not-into-business-at-all/) [Freddie Mercury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freddie-mercury/) > [I've long believed one of the mainsprings of our own liberty has been the widespread ownership of property among our people and the expectation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/i-ve-long-believed-one-of-the-mainsprings-of-our-own-liberty-has-been/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) [Browse all 39,016 Business quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Most governments lie to each other. That's the way business gets done.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Robert M. Gates" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-gates/most-governments-lie-to-each-other-that-s-the-way-business-gets-done/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Business" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-gates/most-governments-lie-to-each-other-that-s-the-way-business-gets-done/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4f/robert-m-gates-2972_business_most-governments-lie-to-each-other-that_3102404.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4f/robert-m-gates-2972_business_most-governments-lie-to-each-other-that_3102404.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4f/robert-m-gates-2972_business_most-governments-lie-to-each-other-that_3102404.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Most governments lie to each other. That's the way business gets done.” — Robert M. Gates", "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": "Robert M. Gates", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-gates/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Most governments lie to each other....", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-gates/most-governments-lie-to-each-other-that-s-the-way-business-gets-done/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-gates/most-governments-lie-to-each-other-that-s-the-way-business-gets-done/#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 } } ] } ```