Bipartisanship Quotes

• History has shown that a country most effectively speaks with one voice. When nationally elected officials work together, build consensus, and provide leadership, the American people will follow.

  Chuck Hagel

  Country, Voice, People

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• Our predecessors understood that the ties that bind America are far stronger than disagreements over any particular policy and far more durable and profound than any party affiliation.

  Madeleine Albright

  Party, America, Ties

  Remarks and Question and Answer Session at the Chamber of Commerce Dinner, 1997-2001.state.gov. June 8, 1997.

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• The American spirit wears no political label. In service to others and yes, in sacrifice for our country, there are no Republicans; there are no Democrats; there are only Americans.

  John F. Kerry

  Country, Sacrifice, Political

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• Bipartisanship helps to avoid extremes and imbalances. It causes compromises and accommodations. So let's cooperate.

  Zbigniew Brzezinski

  Two Extremes, Imbalance, Causes

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• America's leaders have to find a way to work together, rise to the challenge, and come up with solutions as bold and visionary as the people of this nation.

  Joe Biden

  America, People, Leader

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• The best way to begin genuine bipartisanship to make America stronger is to work together on the real crises facing our country, not to manufacture an artificial crisis to serve a special interest agenda out of touch with the needs of Americans.

  John F. Kerry

  Country, Real, America

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• If America is to succeed in responding to these 21st Century challenges, our political system cannot continue to bog down in the mire of partisan gamesmanship.

  Chuck Hagel

  America, Political, Challenges

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• Bipartisanship is nice, but it cannot be a substitute for action, not having it cannot prevent us from going forward.

  Nancy Pelosi

  Nice, Action, Substitutes

  "What's Next: Finance Bill?". Interview with Guy Raz, www.npr.org. March 27, 2010.

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• The only bipartisanship you ever see is when they finally sign a bill and everybody says, 'Gee, isn't that wonderful?'

  Colin Powell

  Bills, Wonderful

  "White House Unveils Health Care Plan Amid Republican Resistance" by Jake Tapper, abcnews.go.com. February 22, 2010.

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• Bipartisanship isn't an option anymore; it is a requirement. The American people have divided responsibility for leadership right down the middle.

  Tom Daschle

  Responsibility, People, Requirements

  "Democratic Sen. Tom Daschle, Rep. Dick Gephardt Extend Hand of Bipartisanship to President-Elect George W. Bush". www.cnn.com. December 14, 2000.

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• This country cannot afford to tear itself apart on a partisan basis on issues so vital to our national security.

  Henry A. Kissinger

  Country, Issues, Tears

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• Our greatest foreign policy problem is our divisions at home. Our greatest foreign policy need is national cohesion and a return to the awareness that in foreign policy we are all engaged in a common national endeavor.

  Henry A. Kissinger

  Home, Needs, Division

  Speech to Boston World Affairs Council, Boston, Massachusetts, March 11, 1976.

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• We also think this is a reminder of the long tradition of bipartisan foreign policy that has been the hallmark of America at moments of greatest need, and that's the kind of spirit that we hope will be reflected in our administration.

  Barack Obama

  Thinking, America, Long

  "Cnn Newsroom" with Kyra Phillips, www.cnn.com. May 19, 2009.

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• We have the responsibility to ensure that our first impulse in foreign affairs is one of bipartisanship.

  Richard Lugar

  Responsibility, Firsts, Affair

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• If ever there was a time for true bipartisanship, it is today.

  Brad Henry

  Today, Bipartisan, Ifs

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• Foreign policy always has more force and punch when the nation speaks with one voice. To remain secure, prosperous, and free, the United States must continue to lead. That leadership requires a president and Congress working together to fashion a foreign policy with broad, bipartisan support. A foreign policy of unity is essential if the United States is to promote its values and interests effectively and help to build a safer, freer, and more prosperous world.

  Lee H. Hamilton

  Fashion, Voice, Support

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• I think people forget that bipartisanship is really the burden of the victor, not the loser.

  Mike Huckabee

  Thinking, People, Loser

  "Mr ‘Total Conservative’". Interview with Bill Steigerwald, themoderatevoice.com. March 3, 2009.

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• Bipartisanship on behalf of an imprudent policy can be folly, just as partisanship on behalf of a just cause can be wise. What is clear is that politics will not stop at the water's edge simply because presidents plead for it. American foreign policy will return to the tradition of Truman and Vandenberg only when the American public demands it.

  James M. Lindsay

  Wise, Water, President

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• Foreign policy of a pluralistic democracy like the United States should be based on bipartisanship because bipartisanship is the means and the framework for formulating policies based on moderation and on the recognition of the complexity of the human condition. That has been the tradition since the days of Truman and Vandenberg all the way until recent times.

  Zbigniew Brzezinski

  Mean, Democracy, United States

  Address to the New American Strategies Conference, October 28, 2003.

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• I sure tried to help deliver compromise, consensus, bipartisanship.

  Stephanie Herseth Sandlin

  Helping, Compromise, Consensus

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• First, we must continually reaffirm the principle that the security of the United States is not, and should never be, a partisan matter. The United States can best defend its national security interests abroad by uniting behind a bipartisan security policy at home.

  William Cohen

  Home, Principles, United States

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• For more than a half a century, we know that we prospered because of a bipartisan consensus on defense and foreign policy. We must do more than return to that sensible, cooperative approach.

  Hillary Clinton

  Defense, Half, Return

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• The word bipartisan usually means some larger-than-usual deception is being carried out.

  George Carlin

  Mean, Deception, Usual

  George Carlin (1998). “Brain Droppings”, Hyperion

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• Two truths are all too often overshadowed in today's political discourse: Public service is a most honorable pursuit, and so is bipartisanship.

  Olympia Snowe

  Two, Political, Today

  "Olympia Snowe: Why I’m Leaving The Senate" by Olympia Snowe, www.washingtonpost.com. March 1, 2012.

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• Bipartisanship is not what is missing in Washington. Common sense is.

  Rand Paul

  Common Sense, Missing, Common

  Rand Paul's Speech, www.politico.com. February 2, 2013.

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