John Kerry quotes: the politician’s popular soundbites.
“John Kerry believes in an America where hard work is rewarded.”
“You can’t let concerns stop you; they drive you and they motivate you.”
“We have amazing ways of being able to dig down and dig deep.”
“Our success is not going to happen by accident. It won’t happen without sustained commitment, without cooperation and creative thinking. And it won’t happen without confident investors and innovative entrepreneurs. And it certainly won’t happen without leadership.”
“Optimism requires leadership; it requires cutting-edge ideas; it requires taking risks in the right direction.”
“Everyone needs to make smarter choices—with the long game, not the short game, in mind.”
“Values spoken without actions taken are merely slogans.”
“Values are not just words, values are what we live by.”
“You have to figure out how to get your interest served in a way that meets the interests and needs of these other folks.”
“When you have four or five flare-ups at the same time, you’ve still got to talk to people; you’ve got to sit down with them face-to-face, look in their eyes, grab the problem, and work through it.”
“You have to figure out where the balance is.”
“Make no mistake, the task is a difficult one.”
“Do your own due diligence before making irrevocable choices.”
“What we do right now, today, matters.”
“We should focus more on the things we’ve accomplished.”
“You can’t play sports without losing sometimes and, in losing, you learn something about grace and how to act under pressure.”
“The measure of our character is our willingness to give of ourselves for others.”
“It’s one thing to be certain, but you can be certain and you can be wrong.”
“I’m a person who has always believed that you tell people the truth, and they’ll make reasonable decisions. Truth is powerful.”
“Democracy relies on free speech. Yes, say anything you want, but it relies even more on the speech being truthful. It is the truth, after all, that sets us free.”
“I feel like I made a few mistakes, but I didn’t blow it. The one thing I kick myself about back then is not listening to myself a few times… not letting it all out.”
“You know, obviously, losing the presidency is not the option of first choice. But you can’t get lost in it. I am not going to make this the defining moment of a life of involvement in public service and caring about things. I was a senator and had a lot I was interested in; I have a great family, a great life, and I have nothing to complain about. So I went right back in and started kicking.”
“It requires determination and toughness to get back up on the horse.”
“I would rather get caught trying than never try at all.”
“This is not an end. This is a beginning. It’s a new beginning. It’s a new chapter.”
“I don’t think about a legacy. I think about getting the job done as well as I can, and you and history and other people will take care of the rest of it.”
“America’s highest goal should be for every child to grow up to be a successful young adult: healthy, educated, free, secure, and a good citizen.”
“Education: if you make the most of it and you study hard and you do your homework and you make an effort to be smart, you can do well. If you don’t, you get stuck.”
“Young people have so much more power than they tend to think to be able to affect politics. And if people will organize and get involved and go out and knock on doors and hand out leaflets and make a change, then they can determine the future.”
“America now stands as the world’s foremost power. We should be proud. Not since the age of the Romans have one people achieved such preeminence. But we are not Romans; we do not seek an empire. We are Americans, trustees of a vision and a heritage that commit us to the values of democracy and the universal cause of human rights.”
“It’s time we framed every question, every issue, not in terms of ‘what’s in it for me,’ but ‘what’s in it for all of us?'”
“What we Americans need to do is respect that incredible blessing that we have as a nation and make sure that we are leading in the best ways possible.”
“I still believe Americas destiny is to become a living testament to what free human beings can accomplish by acting in unity.”
“That is what Americans do. We face a challenge—no matter how great—because we know that on the other side there is always hope.”
“Americans have a responsibility to each other—that America is still in the process of becoming—and that we are privileged to serve here to make that dream real for all Americans.”
“The future belongs to freedom, not to fear.”
“I love to play guitar and hack around. I was in a band when I was in high school. I never learned to play very well, but I enjoyed it.”
“I’m fascinated by rap and by hip-hop. I think there’s a lot of poetry in it. There’s a lot of anger, a lot of social energy in it. And I think you’d better listen to it pretty carefully, ’cause it’s important.”
“I’m motivated by my passion for our basic values, protecting our interests, and for protecting the future.”
“Years ago when I left college, I went to war. And I learned in war the price that is paid when diplomacy fails. And I made a decision that if I ever was lucky enough to be in a position to make a difference, I would try to do so.”
“I loved what I learned. I loved the Navy. I loved the leadership skills I learned. You learn hierarchy. You learn leadership. You learn accountability. You learn responsibility for people.”
“I went into the Navy because I love the ocean, and I am still privileged to have a place that I can go to that’s by the water.”
“I’m going to continue to fight.”
“I’m John Kerry and I’m reporting for duty.”
“You can never say never. If I said no to whatever possibility, I don’t know what those possibilities will be.”
“I am not finished.”
“Let us stand firm in support of the goals that we set and recommit ourselves to double our efforts to meet them. Let us say… we will commit not just to doing our best, but as Winston Churchill admonished, ‘It’s not always enough that we do our best; sometimes we have to do what is required.'”
“Remember what Nelson Mandela said. He said, ‘It always seems impossible until it is done.’ Pretty simple. So let’s get it done.”
“My profound gratitude to every single one of you for the difference you make here every single day.”
“The hope is there. The sun is rising. Our best days are yet to come.”
Related: Donald Trump quotes.
