Government Quote by Thomas Jefferson

The legitimate powers of government extend to such acts only as are injurious to others.

— Thomas Jefferson

Government can have no more than two legitimate purposes - the suppression of injustice against individuals within the community, and the common defense against…

— William Godwin

Government has within it a tendency to abuse its powers.

— John C. Calhoun

Limitation is essential to authority. A government is legitimate only if it is effectively limited.

— Lord Acton

“The pretense that the workings of the mind, like the actions of the body, are subject to the control of laws, does not seem…

— Thomas Jefferson

The people cannot delegate to government the power to do anything which would be unlawful for them to do themselves.

— John Locke

That all power of suspending laws, or the execution of laws, by any authority, without consent of the representatives of the people, is injurious…

— George Mason

“All governments, even these precious “democracies,” derive all their power by force. Do something the government doesn’t want, like, say, cross the street against…

— S. Evan Townsend

If government is to serve any purpose it is to do for others what they are unable to do for themselves.

— Lyndon B. Johnson

You can't give the government the power to do good without also giving it the power to do bad - in fact, to do…

— Harry Browne

Government has a rightful role, but not an excessive role, to play.

— Jeff Fortenberry

The people are the best guardians of their own rights and it is the duty of their executive to abstain from interfering in or…

— William Henry Harrison