--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Power without principle is barren, but…" description: "\"Power without principle is barren, but principle without power is futile. This is a party of government, and I will lead it as a party of government.\" ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/788/tony-blair-812_barren_power-without-principle-is-barren-but-pr_1120070.jpg" --- # Power without principle is barren, but principle without… ![“Power without principle is barren, but principle without power is futile. This is a party of government, and I will lead it as a party of government.” quote by Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/788/tony-blair-812_barren_power-without-principle-is-barren-but-pr_1120070.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/788/tony-blair-812_barren_power-without-principle-is-barren-but-pr_1120070.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/788/tony-blair-812_barren_power-without-principle-is-barren-but-pr_1120070.jpg) > “Power without principle is barren, but principle without power is futile. This is a party of government, and I will lead it as a party of government.” [Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Power without values is empty; values without power achieve nothing. **In simple terms:** Power and principle must work together. Key Takeaway Balance influence with ethics. Themes politics ethics leadership Mood critical reflective Type political inspirational When to use this quote - policy making - campaigns - legislation - activism Key Concepts governance morality Questions to Reflect On - Can a leader stay ethical under pressure? - What safeguards ensure principle guides power? A Different Perspective Power can be misused even with good principles. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Barren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/barren/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [Party](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/party/) [Party Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/party-government-343085/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Power Futile](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power-futile-3026464/) [Power Principle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power-principle-3026465/) [Principle Barren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/principle-barren-3026463/) [Principle Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/principle-power-414696/) ## Related quotes > [I think that the power is the principle. The principle of moving forward, as though you have the confidence to move forward, eventually gives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-downey-jr/i-think-that-the-power-is-the-principle-the-principle-of-moving/) [Robert Downey, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-downey-jr/) > [I think that the United States has always been most effective when it is leading both from power and principle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/condoleezza-rice/i-think-that-the-united-states-has-always-been-most-effective-when-it/) [Condoleezza Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/condoleezza-rice/) > [I think the Republican Party is supposed to be the party of less government intrusion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-crowley/i-think-the-republican-party-is-supposed-to-be-the-party-of-less/) [Monica Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-crowley/) > [You can give to Americans for Prosperity or something else - a variety of different ways to push back against the party of government.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-mcconnell/you-can-give-to-americans-for-prosperity-or-something-else-a-variety/) [Mitch McConnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-mcconnell/) > [If there is to be responsible party government, the party label must be something more than a mere device for securing office. Unless those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/calvin-coolidge/if-there-is-to-be-responsible-party-government-the-party-label-must/) [Calvin Coolidge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/calvin-coolidge/) > [I was in Australia for many years. And the system there is a two-party system and the government changes from time to time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-lowy/i-was-in-australia-for-many-years-and-the-system-there-is-a-two-party/) [Frank Lowy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-lowy/) > [I think fully, that an independent candidate can't win in this country. The Constitution is structured for basically a two-party government, a two-party race.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bloomberg/i-think-fully-that-an-independent-candidate-can-t-win-in-this-country/) [Michael Bloomberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bloomberg/) > [Our challenge is to restore both trust in Labour as a party of government and trust in democracy as the best means of delivering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jess-phillips/our-challenge-is-to-restore-both-trust-in-labour-as-a-party-of/) [Jess Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jess-phillips/) > [Both the country, and my party, are beset with division. We cannot bring the country back together unless the party of government is united,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-cleverly/both-the-country-and-my-party-are-beset-with-division-we-cannot-bring/) [James Cleverly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-cleverly/) > [The prime minister's job is to captain his team, his party and his government.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bercow/the-prime-minister-s-job-is-to-captain-his-team-his-party-and-his/) [John Bercow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bercow/) > [You cannot choose between party government and Parliamentary government. I say you can have no Parliamentary government if you have no party government; and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-disraeli/you-cannot-choose-between-party-government-and-parliamentary/) [Benjamin Disraeli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-disraeli/) > [John Prescott has made the government look greedy and ridiculous. Labour is seen as the corrupt party. The government has been fulfilling the old…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-rees-mogg/john-prescott-has-made-the-government-look-greedy-and-ridiculous/) [William Rees-Mogg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-rees-mogg/) > [But I believe this: by and large, the United States ought to be able to choose for its President anybody that it wants, regardless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/but-i-believe-this-by-and-large-the-united-states-ought-to-be-able-to/) [Dwight D. Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-d-eisenhower/) > [I am leading this government but this is a three-party government and even the independents are with us. More importantly, the public is with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/uddhav-thackeray/i-am-leading-this-government-but-this-is-a-three-party-government-and/) [Uddhav Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/uddhav-thackeray/) > [Our two-party system is a fraud, a sham, a delusion. On foreign policy, trade, immigration, Big Government, we have one-party government, one party press;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-buchanan/our-two-party-system-is-a-fraud-a-sham-a-delusion-on-foreign-policy/) [Pat Buchanan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-buchanan/) ## More by Tony Blair > [I happen to think it's the politics that makes you electable, but the reason for that is politicians sometimes talk about electability as if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-blair/i-happen-to-think-it-s-the-politics-that-makes-you-electable-but-the/) [Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/) > [I have absolutely no doubt at all that we will find evidence of weapons of mass destruction programmes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-blair/i-have-absolutely-no-doubt-at-all-that-we-will-find-evidence-of/) [Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/) > [I mean, you can agree or disagree with Iraq or Afghanistan, but by the way, now the great campaigning cause out there is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-blair/i-mean-you-can-agree-or-disagree-with-iraq-or-afghanistan-but-by-the/) [Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/) > [My dad was a militant atheist, or is a militant atheist. My mum was sort of bought up in a religious family because she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-blair/my-dad-was-a-militant-atheist-or-is-a-militant-atheist-my-mum-was/) [Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/) > [Politics may be the art of the possible, but at least in life, give the impossible a go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-blair/politics-may-be-the-art-of-the-possible-but-at-least-in-life-give-the/) [Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/) > [I also, as I think most people do, have a healthy instinct that if we upset the balance of nature, we are in all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-blair/i-also-as-i-think-most-people-do-have-a-healthy-instinct-that-if-we/) [Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/) > [It is not a sensible or intelligent response for us in Europe to ridicule American arguments and parody their political leadership.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-blair/it-is-not-a-sensible-or-intelligent-response-for-us-in-europe-to/) [Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/) > [I am absolutely delighted to give my full support to Gordon as the next leader of the Labour Party and as prime minister and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-blair/i-am-absolutely-delighted-to-give-my-full-support-to-gordon-as-the/) [Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/) > [Society works by putting opportunity and responsibility together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-blair/society-works-by-putting-opportunity-and-responsibility-together/) [Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/) > [The great advantage of the Lib Dems is precisely that no-one knows what they stand for](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-blair/the-great-advantage-of-the-lib-dems-is-precisely-that-no-one-knows/) [Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/) > [People know where I stand in the Labour party and what I believe in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-blair/people-know-where-i-stand-in-the-labour-party-and-what-i-believe-in/) [Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/) > [The only society that works today is also one founded on mutual respect, on a recognition that we have a responsibility collectively and individually,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-blair/the-only-society-that-works-today-is-also-one-founded-on-mutual/) [Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/) > [How do we deal with not just the acts of violence, but the extremist ideology that lies behind them? Because though the numbers of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-blair/how-do-we-deal-with-not-just-the-acts-of-violence-but-the-extremist/) [Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/) > [The public think the politicians don't know or care about their lives; and the politicians feel misunderstood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-blair/the-public-think-the-politicians-don-t-know-or-care-about-their-lives/) [Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/) > [I think it's important for people like me to evaluate and reevaluate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-blair/i-think-it-s-important-for-people-like-me-to-evaluate-and-reevaluate/) [Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/) [Explore all 363 Tony Blair quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/) ## More Barren quotes > [“This book is written in a barren period of loss with an attempt to move forward towards substance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phindiwe-nkosi/this-book-is-written-in-a-barren-period-of-loss-with-an-attempt-to/) [Phindiwe Nkosi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phindiwe-nkosi/) > [Virtue is as little to be acquired by learning as genius; nay, the idea is barren, and is only to be employed as an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/virtue-is-as-little-to-be-acquired-by-learning-as-genius-nay-the-idea/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) > [I stayed in L.A. long enough to get on my feet, and then I moved back to New York. The reason I moved here…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iggy-pop/i-stayed-in-l-a-long-enough-to-get-on-my-feet-and-then-i-moved-back/) [Iggy Pop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iggy-pop/) > [You may boldly say, you did not plough Or trust the barren and ungrateful sands With the fruitful grain of your religious counsels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-massinger/you-may-boldly-say-you-did-not-plough-or-trust-the-barren-and/) [Philip Massinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-massinger/) > [T is liberty crowns Britannia's Isle, And makes her barren rocks and her bleak mountains smile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/t-is-liberty-crowns-britannia-s-isle-and-makes-her-barren-rocks-and/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [My icons do not raise up the blessed savior in elaborate cathedrals. They are constructed concentrations celebrating barren rooms. They bring a limited light.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-flavin/my-icons-do-not-raise-up-the-blessed-savior-in-elaborate-cathedrals/) [Dan Flavin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-flavin/) > [“Just when normal life felt almost possible--when the world held some kind of order, meaning, even loveliness (prismatic spray of light through an icicle;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wroblewski/just-when-normal-life-felt-almost-possible-when-the-world-held-some/) [David Wroblewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wroblewski/) > [The apparition of an evil, sick unconscious wild city rose before me in visible semblance, and about the dead buildings in the barren air,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-ginsberg/the-apparition-of-an-evil-sick-unconscious-wild-city-rose-before-me/) [Allen Ginsberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-ginsberg/) > [Please don't settle for happiness. It's not good enough. Of course you deserve it, but if that's all you have in mind - happiness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/please-don-t-settle-for-happiness-it-s-not-good-enough-of-course-you/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [All men who live only according to their five senses, and seek nothing beyond the gratification of their natural appetites for pleasure and reputation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/all-men-who-live-only-according-to-their-five-senses-and-seek-nothing/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [I find the aesthetics of the 20th century hopelessly barren.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/twyla-tharp/i-find-the-aesthetics-of-the-20th-century-hopelessly-barren/) [Twyla Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/twyla-tharp/) > [Perseverance gives power to weakness, and opens to poverty the world's wealth. It spreads fertility over the barren landscape, and buds the choicest flowers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-griswold-goodrich/perseverance-gives-power-to-weakness-and-opens-to-poverty-the-world-s/) [Samuel Griswold Goodrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-griswold-goodrich/) > [“Life without love is nothing but a barren piece of land.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-ashok-anand/life-without-love-is-nothing-but-a-barren-piece-of-land/) [Dr. Ashok Anand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-ashok-anand/) > [Fruits fail and love dies and time ranges;Thou art fed with perpetual breath, and alive after infinite changes,And fresh from the kisses of death,Of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/algernon-charles-swinburne/fruits-fail-and-love-dies-and-time-ranges-thou-art-fed-with-perpetual/) [Algernon Charles Swinburne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/algernon-charles-swinburne/) > [By the deficiency or absence of one necessary constituent, all the others being present, the soil is rendered barren for all those crops to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justus-von-liebig/by-the-deficiency-or-absence-of-one-necessary-constituent-all-the/) [Justus von Liebig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justus-von-liebig/) [Browse all 324 Barren quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/barren/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Power without principle is barren, but principle without power is futile. 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