--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Nothing could be a more serious violation…" description: "\"Nothing could be a more serious violation of public trust than to consciously make a war based on false claims.\" — Wesley Clark" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/714/wesley-clark-7521_claims_nothing-could-be-a-more-serious-violatio_1763285.jpg" --- # Nothing could be a more serious violation of public trust… ![“Nothing could be a more serious violation of public trust than to consciously make a war based on false claims.” quote by Wesley Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/714/wesley-clark-7521_claims_nothing-could-be-a-more-serious-violatio_1763285.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/714/wesley-clark-7521_claims_nothing-could-be-a-more-serious-violatio_1763285.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/714/wesley-clark-7521_claims_nothing-could-be-a-more-serious-violatio_1763285.jpg) > “Nothing could be a more serious violation of public trust than to consciously make a war based on false claims.” [Wesley Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wesley-clark/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Deliberately starting a war on false pretenses is the gravest breach of public trust. **In simple terms:** False war motives betray trust Key Takeaway Demand truth before conflict Themes ethics trust politics Mood critical serious Type political ethical When to use this quote - government decision making - media reporting - international diplomacy Key Concepts war justification public accountability Questions to Reflect On - What safeguards can prevent false war claims? - How should citizens respond to deceptive leaders? A Different Perspective Complex realities may blur truth and intent ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Public trust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/public-trust/) [Trust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trust/) [Violation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/violation/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) ## Related quotes > [ The prosecution \[of impeachments\], will seldom fail to agitate the passions of the whole community, and to divide it into parties more or less… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/the-prosecution-of-impeachments-will-seldom-fail-to-agitate-the/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [ \[Imeachable conduct is\] misconduct by public men, or, in other words, from the abuse or violation of some public trust. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/imeachable-conduct-is-misconduct-by-public-men-or-in-other-words-from/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [I don't give false claims any due.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-carr/i-don-t-give-false-claims-any-due/) [Derek Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-carr/) > [Unfortunately, several companies are attempting to deceive consumers through the unauthorized use of my image or my name, and my attorneys are pursuing those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-oz/unfortunately-several-companies-are-attempting-to-deceive-consumers/) [Mehmet Oz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-oz/) > [Even amid the heated political rhetoric that dominates the news media and social media, resurrected false claims about the shooting of Michael Brown in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharyl-attkisson/even-amid-the-heated-political-rhetoric-that-dominates-the-news-media/) [Sharyl Attkisson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharyl-attkisson/) > [Making false claims about somebody before you know them, and about a group of guys, that has no business in our world. If we're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-carr/making-false-claims-about-somebody-before-you-know-them-and-about-a/) [Derek Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-carr/) > [The trumpeting of false claims that are beneficial to Biden and other Democrats while ignoring the achievements of Trump and Republicans is typical for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mollie-hemingway/the-trumpeting-of-false-claims-that-are-beneficial-to-biden-and-other/) [Mollie Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mollie-hemingway/) > [While claiming advocacy, what hoaxers really exhibit is self-interest. Often, this is because there is only the self to support their false claims; any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-young/while-claiming-advocacy-what-hoaxers-really-exhibit-is-self-interest/) [Kevin Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-young/) > [My actions constituted pure hacking that resulted in relatively trivial expenses for the companies involved, despite the government's false claims.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-mitnick/my-actions-constituted-pure-hacking-that-resulted-in-relatively-2/) [Kevin Mitnick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-mitnick/) > [War is based on deception.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sun-tzu/war-is-based-on-deception/) [Sun Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sun-tzu/) > [Once we got hit by - on 9/11 and lost 3,000 people that day, we recognized, and it was one of the key decisions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-cheney/once-we-got-hit-by-on-9-11-and-lost-3-000-people-that-day-we/) [Dick Cheney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-cheney/) > [All war is based on deception.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sun-tzu/all-war-is-based-on-deception/) [Sun Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sun-tzu/) > [My opposition to war is not based upon pacifist or non-resistant principles. It may be that the present state of civilization is such that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ford/my-opposition-to-war-is-not-based-upon-pacifist-or-non-resistant/) [Henry Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ford/) > [All of man's wars are based upon TAKING. There could be no war based upon GIVING.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-russell/all-of-man-s-wars-are-based-upon-taking-there-could-be-no-war-based/) [Walter Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-russell/) > [What I could not support was a dumb war, a rash war, a war based not on reason but on passion, not on principle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/what-i-could-not-support-was-a-dumb-war-a-rash-war-a-war-based-not-on/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) ## More by Wesley Clark > [I like Hilary Clinton. I think she's - she's a fantastic leader.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wesley-clark/i-like-hilary-clinton-i-think-she-s-she-s-a-fantastic-leader/) [Wesley Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wesley-clark/) > [Maybe it's because I've never been in politics, but I don't believe that America is run by politicians in Washington. I believe it's run…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wesley-clark/maybe-it-s-because-i-ve-never-been-in-politics-but-i-don-t-believe/) [Wesley Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wesley-clark/) > [When we started after Osama bin Laden, we really decided to go after the Taliban. And we seemed to be content to kick the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wesley-clark/when-we-started-after-osama-bin-laden-we-really-decided-to-go-after/) [Wesley Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wesley-clark/) > [There's no question that Saddam Hussein is a threat Yes, he has chemical and biological weapons. He's had those for a long time. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wesley-clark/there-s-no-question-that-saddam-hussein-is-a-threat-yes-he-has/) [Wesley Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wesley-clark/) > [I always said I would vote for a resolution that gave the president the leverage to go to the United Nations, and then come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wesley-clark/i-always-said-i-would-vote-for-a-resolution-that-gave-the-president/) [Wesley Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wesley-clark/) > [The campaign in Iraq illustrates the continuing progress of military technology and tactics, but if there is a single overriding lesson it must be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wesley-clark/the-campaign-in-iraq-illustrates-the-continuing-progress-of-military/) [Wesley Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wesley-clark/) > [Turkey's a NATO member. If Turkey gets attacked, we have to help defend Turkey.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wesley-clark/turkey-s-a-nato-member-if-turkey-gets-attacked-we-have-to-help-defend/) [Wesley Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wesley-clark/) > [What I did warn about when I testified in front of Congress in 2002, I said if you want to worry about a state,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wesley-clark/what-i-did-warn-about-when-i-testified-in-front-of-congress-in-2002-i/) [Wesley Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wesley-clark/) > [It's important. One of the principles in the United States is civilian control of the military.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wesley-clark/it-s-important-one-of-the-principles-in-the-united-states-is-civilian/) [Wesley Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wesley-clark/) > [President George Bush had the courage and the vision and we will always be grateful to President George Bush for that tremendous leadership and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wesley-clark/president-george-bush-had-the-courage-and-the-vision-and-we-will/) [Wesley Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wesley-clark/) > [Once I started first grade, I started going to Emmanuel Baptist Church regularly. I went to Sunday school. We had Bible readings and things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wesley-clark/once-i-started-first-grade-i-started-going-to-emmanuel-baptist-church/) [Wesley Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wesley-clark/) > [I think there are some mass destruction capabilities that are still inside Iraq. I think there's some weapons that have been shipped over the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wesley-clark/i-think-there-are-some-mass-destruction-capabilities-that-are-still/) [Wesley Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wesley-clark/) > [Well we always need brave, capable young men and women who can run a tactical operation and take risks on the battlefield but you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wesley-clark/well-we-always-need-brave-capable-young-men-and-women-who-can-run-a/) [Wesley Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wesley-clark/) > [In my experience, in bringing coercive diplomacy to bear against Slobodan Milosevic, no bomb strike was more important than maintaining NATO's cohesion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wesley-clark/in-my-experience-in-bringing-coercive-diplomacy-to-bear-against/) [Wesley Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wesley-clark/) > [As president of the United States, my top priority will be to keep America safe. We're going to go after the terrorist networks. We're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wesley-clark/as-president-of-the-united-states-my-top-priority-will-be-to-keep/) [Wesley Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wesley-clark/) [Explore all 90 Wesley Clark quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wesley-clark/) ## More Claims quotes > [One of the worst things to come out of the Consumer Protection Board's misleading claims is the impression that government resources are to hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-lesko/one-of-the-worst-things-to-come-out-of-the-consumer-protection-board/) [Matthew Lesko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-lesko/) > [Now I am in the place I call this wide wide Heaven because it includes all my simplest desires but also the most humble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/now-i-am-in-the-place-i-call-this-wide-wide-heaven-because-it/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [A common fallacy in much of the adverse criticism to which science is subjected today is that it claims certainty, infallibility and complete emotional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/a-common-fallacy-in-much-of-the-adverse-criticism-to-which-science-is/) [Cyril Norman Hinshelwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/) > [We do not claim that punning is legitimate wit. Wit consists in combination of ideas, punning in combination of words only. We wonder at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-hosmer/we-do-not-claim-that-punning-is-legitimate-wit-wit-consists-in/) [Harriet Hosmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-hosmer/) > [It is popular to call it a crisis of the Western world. It is in fact a crisis of the whole world. Communism, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whittaker-chambers/it-is-popular-to-call-it-a-crisis-of-the-western-world-it-is-in-fact/) [Whittaker Chambers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whittaker-chambers/) > [One argument goes that recessions are good for female artists because when money flies out the window, women are allowed in the house. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-saltz/one-argument-goes-that-recessions-are-good-for-female-artists-because/) [Jerry Saltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-saltz/) > [Atheist’s denial of God’s existence needs just as much substantiation as does the theist’s claim; the atheist must give plausible reasons for rejecting God’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-copan/atheist-s-denial-of-god-s-existence-needs-just-as-much-substantiation/) [Paul Copan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-copan/) > [In luggage claim at the Minneapolis airport, the guy came up to me and said, "Maybe you're wrong, maybe stories do matter." I wrote…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/in-luggage-claim-at-the-minneapolis-airport-the-guy-came-up-to-me-and/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [The rights essential to happiness. . . . We claim them from a higher source - from the King of kings and Lord of all the earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dickinson/the-rights-essential-to-happiness-we-claim-them-from-a-higher-source/) [John Dickinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dickinson/) > [Those who do not know what love is likens it to beauty Those who claim to know what love is likens it to ugliness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tite-kubo/those-who-do-not-know-what-love-is-likens-it-to-beauty-those-who/) [Tite Kubo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tite-kubo/) > [If ever my life can be of any use to you, come and claim it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-chekhov/if-ever-my-life-can-be-of-any-use-to-you-come-and-claim-it/) [Anton Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-chekhov/) > [Religions do make claims about the universe--the same kinds of claims that scientists make, except they're usually false.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/religions-do-make-claims-about-the-universe-the-same-kinds-of-claims/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [How can I set free anyone who doesn't have the guts to stand up alone and declare his own freedom? I think it's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-morrison/how-can-i-set-free-anyone-who-doesn-t-have-the-guts-to-stand-up-alone/) [Jim Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-morrison/) > [The Chinese describe themselves as political refugees. Many base that claim on China's strict population laws, which allow them to have only one child.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-koch/the-chinese-describe-themselves-as-political-refugees-many-base-that/) [Ed Koch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-koch/) > [Life is so full of meaning and of purpose, so full of beauty - beneath its covering - that you will find that earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giovanni-giocondo/life-is-so-full-of-meaning-and-of-purpose-so-full-of-beauty-beneath/) [Giovanni Giocondo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giovanni-giocondo/) Browse all 2,762 Claims quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Nothing could be a more serious violation of public trust than to consciously make a war based on false claims.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Wesley Clark" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wesley-clark/nothing-could-be-a-more-serious-violation-of-public-trust-than-to/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Claims" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wesley-clark/nothing-could-be-a-more-serious-violation-of-public-trust-than-to/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/714/wesley-clark-7521_claims_nothing-could-be-a-more-serious-violatio_1763285.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/714/wesley-clark-7521_claims_nothing-could-be-a-more-serious-violatio_1763285.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/714/wesley-clark-7521_claims_nothing-could-be-a-more-serious-violatio_1763285.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Nothing could be a more serious violation of public trust than to consciously make a war based on false…” — Wesley Clark", "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": "Wesley Clark", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wesley-clark/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Nothing could be a more serious...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wesley-clark/nothing-could-be-a-more-serious-violation-of-public-trust-than-to/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wesley-clark/nothing-could-be-a-more-serious-violation-of-public-trust-than-to/#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 } } ] } ```