I never had a policy

I never had a policy; I have just tried to do my very best each and every day.

place will be proud of him

I like to see a man proud of the place in which he lives. I like to see a man live so that his place will be proud of him.

I hope to stand firm

I hope to stand firm enough to not go backward, and yet not go forward fast enough to wreck the country's cause.

mercy bears richer fruits

I have always found that mercy bears richer fruits than strict justice.

I don't like that man

I don't like that man. I must get to know him better.

I don't know who my grandfather was

I don't know who my grandfather was; I am much more concerned to know what his grandson will be.

I do the very best

I do the very best I know how - the very best I can; and I mean to keep on doing so until the end.

who is not wiser today

I do not think much of a man who is not wiser today than he was yesterday.

I desire so to conduct the affairs

I desire so to conduct the affairs of this administration that if at the end... I have lost every other friend on earth, I shall at least have one friend left, and that friend shall be down inside of me.

man's religion

I care not much for a man's religion whose dog and cat are not the better for it.

horses cost money

I can make more generals, but horses cost money.

I am bound to be true

I am not bound to win, but I am bound to be true. I am not bound to succeed, but I am bound to live by the light that I have. I must stand with anybody that stands right, and stand with him while he is right, and part with him when he goes wrong.

I am a firm believer

I am a firm believer in the people. If given the truth, they can be depended upon to meet any national crisis. The great point is to bring them the real facts.

call the tail a leg

How many legs does a dog have if you call the tail a leg? Four. Calling a tail a leg doesn't make it a leg.

Hold on with a bulldog grip

Hold on with a bulldog grip, and chew and choke as much as possible.

molds the public sentiment

He who molds the public sentiment... makes statutes and decisions possible or impossible to make.

a heart to help

He has a right to criticize, who has a heart to help.

Government of the people

Government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the Earth.

love the common man

God must love the common man, he made so many of them.

sharpening the axe

Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.