--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If the present Congress errs in too much…" description: "\"If the present Congress errs in too much talking, how can it be otherwise in a body to which the people send one hundred and fifty lawyers, whose trade..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd1/thomas-jefferson-43_body_if-the-present-congress-errs-in-too-much_1964617.jpg" --- # If the present Congress errs in too much talking, how can… ![“If the present Congress errs in too much talking, how can it be otherwise in a body to which the people send one hundred and fifty lawyers, whose trade it is to question everything, yield nothing, and talk by the hour?” quote by Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd1/thomas-jefferson-43_body_if-the-present-congress-errs-in-too-much_1964617.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd1/thomas-jefferson-43_body_if-the-present-congress-errs-in-too-much_1964617.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd1/thomas-jefferson-43_body_if-the-present-congress-errs-in-too-much_1964617.jpg) > “If the present Congress errs in too much talking, how can it be otherwise in a body to which the people send one hundred and fifty lawyers, whose trade it is to question everything, yield nothing, and talk by the hour?” [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Excessive debate and legal obstruction can cripple effective governance, especially when representatives are overly litigious. **In simple terms:** Too much talk and lawsuits hinder government. Key Takeaway Balance debate with decisive action. Themes government law efficiency Mood critical analytical Type political historical When to use this quote - policy making - law reform - public administration Key Concepts political theory legislative process Questions to Reflect On - How can a legislature stay accountable without stalling? - What limits should be placed on legal challenges? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on questioning can stall progress. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Body](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) [Congress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/congress/) [Congress Errs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/congress-errs-2082818/) [Fifty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fifty/) [Hundred](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hundred/) [Lawyers Trade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lawyers-trade-2082819/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Present Congress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/present-congress-3262425/) [Send Lawyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/send-lawyers-835416/) [Talking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/talking/) [Too much](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/too-much/) [Trade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trade/) [Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trump/) [Yield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/yield/) ## Related quotes > [Congress errs in too much talking, how can it be otherwise, in a body to which the people send one hundred and fifty lawyers,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/congress-errs-in-too-much-talking-how-can-it-be-otherwise-in-a-body/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [“If the present Congress errs in too much talking, how can it be otherwise in a body to which the people send 150 lawyers,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/if-the-present-congress-errs-in-too-much-talking-how-can-it-be/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [The Lawyers' trade is a trade built entirely on words. And so long as the lawyers carefully keep to themselves the key to what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-rodell/the-lawyers-trade-is-a-trade-built-entirely-on-words-and-so-long-as/) [Fred Rodell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-rodell/) > [Send lawyers, guns, and money. Dad, get me out of this.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-zevon/send-lawyers-guns-and-money-dad-get-me-out-of-this/) [Warren Zevon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-zevon/) > [Send lawyers, guns and money, the shit has hit the fan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-zevon/send-lawyers-guns-and-money-the-shit-has-hit-the-fan/) [Warren Zevon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-zevon/) > [There is on the globe one single spot, the possessor of which is our natural and habitual enemy. It is New Orleans, through which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/there-is-on-the-globe-one-single-spot-the-possessor-of-which-is-our/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [A democracy is nothing more than mob rule, where fifty-one percent of the people may take away the rights of the other forty-nine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/a-democracy-is-nothing-more-than-mob-rule-where-fifty-one-percent-of/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [It is between fifty and sixty years since I read it (i.e. the Book of Revelations), and I then considered it merely the ravings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/it-is-between-fifty-and-sixty-years-since-i-read-it-i-e-the-book-of/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [That one hundred and fifty lawyers should do business together ought not to be expected.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/that-one-hundred-and-fifty-lawyers-should-do-business-together-ought/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Pain held no terror for him. Pain was, if not friend, then family, something he had grown up with in his crèche, learning to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paolo-bacigalupi/pain-held-no-terror-for-him-pain-was-if-not-friend-then-family/) [Paolo Bacigalupi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paolo-bacigalupi/) > [In our own time the whole of Greece has been subject to a low birth rate and a general decrease of the population, owing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/polybius/in-our-own-time-the-whole-of-greece-has-been-subject-to-a-low-birth/) [Polybius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/polybius/) > [Like the sea itself, the unconscious yields an endless and self-replenishing abundance of creatures, a wealth beyond our fathoming.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/like-the-sea-itself-the-unconscious-yields-an-endless-and-self/) [Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/) > [Parents should have perfect control over their own spirits, and with mildness and yet firmness bend the will of the child until it shall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-g-white/parents-should-have-perfect-control-over-their-own-spirits-and-with/) [Ellen G. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-g-white/) > [Suffering in life can uncover untold depths of character and unknown strength for service. People who go through life unscathed by sorrow and untouched…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-graham/suffering-in-life-can-uncover-untold-depths-of-character-and-unknown/) [Billy Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-graham/) > [We need to discover all over again that worship is natural to the Christian, as it was to the godly Israelites who wrote the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-i-packer/we-need-to-discover-all-over-again-that-worship-is-natural-to-the/) [J. I. Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-i-packer/) ## More by Thomas Jefferson > [A man has a right to use a saw, an axe, a plane, separately; may he not combine their uses on the same piece…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/a-man-has-a-right-to-use-a-saw-an-axe-a-plane-separately-may-he-not/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/believing-with-you-that-religion-is-a-matter-which-lies-solely/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [ \[States and the Federal government are\] coordinate departments of one simple and integral whole... The one is the domestic, the other the foreign branch… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/states-and-the-federal-government-are-coordinate-departments-of-one/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [I am for freedom of religion, and against all maneuvers to bring about a legal ascendency of one sect over another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/i-am-for-freedom-of-religion-and-against-all-maneuvers-to-bring-about/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Single acts of tyranny may be ascribed to the accidental opinion of a day; but a series of oppressions, begun at a distinguished period…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/single-acts-of-tyranny-may-be-ascribed-to-the-accidental-opinion-of-a/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [“Perceiving the order of nature to be that individual happiness shall be inseparable from the practice of virtue, I am willing to hope it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/perceiving-the-order-of-nature-to-be-that-individual-happiness-shall/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Free government is founded in jealousy, and not in confidence; it is jealousy, and not confidence, which prescribes limited constitutions, to bind down those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/free-government-is-founded-in-jealousy-and-not-in-confidence-it-is/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Though you cannot see, when you take one step, what will be the next, yet follow truth, justice, and plain dealing, and never fear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/though-you-cannot-see-when-you-take-one-step-what-will-be-the-next/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [A well informed citizenry is the best defense against tyranny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/a-well-informed-citizenry-is-the-best-defense-against-tyranny/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [The two principles on which our conduct towards the Indians should be founded are justice and fear. After the injuries we have done them,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/the-two-principles-on-which-our-conduct-towards-the-indians-should-be/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Knowledge is power...knowled ge is safety...knowle dge is happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/knowledge-is-power-knowled-ge-is-safety-knowle-dge-is-happiness/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [There is... an artificial aristocracy founded on wealth and birth, without either virtue or talents... The artificial aristocracy is a mischievous ingredient in government,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/there-is-an-artificial-aristocracy-founded-on-wealth-and-birth/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Nothing but free argument, raillery and even ridicule will preserve the purity of religion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/nothing-but-free-argument-raillery-and-even-ridicule-will-preserve/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [When the people are afraid of the government, that's tyranny. But when the government is afraid of the people, that's liberty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/when-the-people-are-afraid-of-the-government-that-s-tyranny-but-when/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed, by their Creator, with certain unalienable Rights,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/we-hold-these-truths-to-be-self-evident-that-all-men-are-created/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) [Explore all 2,098 Thomas Jefferson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) ## More Body quotes > [Most of us are convinced that we are our egos, which is who we think we are. The ego is part of our incarnation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/most-of-us-are-convinced-that-we-are-our-egos-which-is-who-we-think/) [Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/) > [The very purpose for being in this body, for every one of us, is to live and rejoice in that virgin area, that untouched,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-sri-ravi-shankar/the-very-purpose-for-being-in-this-body-for-every-one-of-us-is-to/) [Sri Sri Ravi Shankar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-sri-ravi-shankar/) > [Because of the womb being a central phenomenon in the feminine body, the whole psychology of woman differs: she is non-aggressive, non-inquiring, non-questioning, non-doubting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/because-of-the-womb-being-a-central-phenomenon-in-the-feminine-body/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) > [I've used the Phoenix Centrifuge to replicate what the body's going to go through on the flight up. I've also done some gravity tests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-branson/i-ve-used-the-phoenix-centrifuge-to-replicate-what-the-body-s-going/) [Richard Branson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-branson/) > [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/) [Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/) > [If the media is sending girls the message that their value lies in their bodies, this can only leave them feeling disempowered and distract…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-siebel-newsom/if-the-media-is-sending-girls-the-message-that-their-value-lies-in/) [Jennifer Siebel Newsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-siebel-newsom/) > [Boys and boys' body image and clothes have become just as important an issue for boys as for girls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosalind-wiseman/boys-and-boys-body-image-and-clothes-have-become-just-as-important-an/) [Rosalind Wiseman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosalind-wiseman/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Racism is a cancer. You cannot ignore it and it'll go away. If you ignore cancer, it simply metastasizes and consumes the whole body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daryl-davis/racism-is-a-cancer-you-cannot-ignore-it-and-it-ll-go-away-if-you/) [Daryl Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daryl-davis/) > [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/) [Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/) > [I read a couple of books about neuroscience and the relationship between the mind and the body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-kinnaman/i-read-a-couple-of-books-about-neuroscience-and-the-relationship/) [Joel Kinnaman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-kinnaman/) > [If japa is maintained, no useless talk during work will be possible. The mind will always remain peaceful. Modern day diseases are mostly psychosomatic.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mata-amritanandamayi/if-japa-is-maintained-no-useless-talk-during-work-will-be-possible/) [Mata Amritanandamayi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mata-amritanandamayi/) > [It is the incongruous thing in my entire life, this isolation.. ... My work requires it - but I myself have no need or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marsden-hartley/it-is-the-incongruous-thing-in-my-entire-life-this-isolation-my-work/) [Marsden Hartley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marsden-hartley/) > [My friends, this body - perhaps more than any other gathering in human history - now faces that difficult task.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/my-friends-this-body-perhaps-more-than-any-other-gathering-in-human/) [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/) [Browse all 20,814 Body quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If the present Congress errs in too much talking, how can it be otherwise in a body to which the people send one hundred and fifty lawyers, whose trade it is to question everything, yield nothing, and talk by the hour?", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Thomas Jefferson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/if-the-present-congress-errs-in-too-much-talking-how-can-it-be-2/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Body" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/if-the-present-congress-errs-in-too-much-talking-how-can-it-be-2/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd1/thomas-jefferson-43_body_if-the-present-congress-errs-in-too-much_1964617.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd1/thomas-jefferson-43_body_if-the-present-congress-errs-in-too-much_1964617.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd1/thomas-jefferson-43_body_if-the-present-congress-errs-in-too-much_1964617.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If the present Congress errs in too much talking, how can it be otherwise in a body to which the people send…” — Thomas Jefferson", "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": "Thomas Jefferson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If the present Congress errs in...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/if-the-present-congress-errs-in-too-much-talking-how-can-it-be-2/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/if-the-present-congress-errs-in-too-much-talking-how-can-it-be-2/#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 } } ] } ```