Dwight D Eisenhower Quotes

A collection of quotes by Dwight D Eisenhower.

Dwight D. Eisenhower, born on October 14, 1890, in Denison, Texas, was an American military general and politician who served as the 34th President of the United States from 1953 to 1961. He was known for his exceptional leadership skills and his key role in World War II.

Eisenhower graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point and served in various military positions, including as Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Force during World War II. He played a crucial role in planning and executing the successful invasion of Normandy on D-Day, June 6, 1944, which led to the eventual defeat of Nazi Germany.

Following his military career, Eisenhower entered politics and was elected as the President of the United States as a Republican candidate. During his presidency, he focused on issues like civil rights, the economy, and foreign policy. He implemented significant infrastructure projects, including the Interstate Highway System, which positively impacted the nation's economic growth.

Eisenhower pursued a policy of nuclear deterrence during the Cold War, promoting peace through strength. He aimed to maintain stable relations with the Soviet Union while ensuring the safety and security of the United States. Eisenhower's presidency was marked by steady economic expansion and a period of relative peace.

After leaving the presidency in 1961, Eisenhower retired to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, where he remained active in public life until his death on March 28, 1969. His leadership, both on the battlefield and in the White House, left a lasting impact on the United States and the world.

The spirit of man is more important than mere physical stren

The spirit of man is more important than mere physical strength, and the spiritual fiber of a nation than its wealth

Dwight D Eisenhower


I feel impelled to speak today in a language that in a sense

I feel impelled to speak today in a language that in a sense is new-one which I, who have spent so much of my life in the military profession, would have preferred never to use. That new language is the language of atomic warfare.

Dwight D Eisenhower


The free world knows, out of the bitter wisdom of experience

The free world knows, out of the bitter wisdom of experience, that vigilance and sacrifice are the price of liberty.

Dwight D Eisenhower


What counts is not necessarily the size of the dog in the fi

What counts is not necessarily the size of the dog in the fight; it's the size of the fight in the dog.

Dwight D Eisenhower


I like to believe that people, in the long run, are going to

I like to believe that people, in the long run, are going to do more to promote peace than our governments. Indeed, I think that people want peace so much that one of these days governments had better get out of the way and let them have it.

Dwight D Eisenhower


When you are in any contest, you should work as if there wer

When you are in any contest, you should work as if there were--to the very last minute--a chance to lose it. This is battle, this is politics, this is anything.

Dwight D Eisenhower


Neither a wise nor a brave man lies down on the tracks of hi

Neither a wise nor a brave man lies down on the tracks of history to wait for the train of the future to run over him.

Dwight D Eisenhower


Our real problem, then, is not our strength today; it is rat

Our real problem, then, is not our strength today; it is rather the vital necessity of action today to ensure our strength tomorrow.

Dwight D Eisenhower


Here in America we are descended in blood and in spirit from

Here in America we are descended in blood and in spirit from revolutionists and rebels -- men and women who dare to dissent from accepted doctrine. As their heirs, may we never confuse honest dissent with disloyal subversion.

Dwight D Eisenhower


I have only one yardstick by which I test every major proble

I have only one yardstick by which I test every major problem -- and that yardstick is: Is it good for America?

Dwight D Eisenhower


Never let yourself be persuaded that any one Great Man, any

Never let yourself be persuaded that any one Great Man, any one leader, is necessary to the salvation of America. When America consists of one leader and 158 million followers, it will no longer be America.

Dwight D Eisenhower

Inspirational Warning

There is, in world affairs, a steady course to be followed b

There is, in world affairs, a steady course to be followed between an assertion of strength that is truculent and a confession of helplessness that is cowardly.

Dwight D Eisenhower

Diplomacy

Things are more like they are now than they have ever been b

Things are more like they are now than they have ever been before.

Dwight D Eisenhower

Truth

So that here we have, really, the compound, the overall phil

So that here we have, really, the compound, the overall philosophy of Lincoln: in all those things which deal with people, be liberal, be human. In all those things which deal with the peoples money or their economy, or their form of government, be conservativeand dont be afraid to use the word. And so today, Republicans come forward with programs in which there are such words as balanced budgets, and cutting expenditures, and all the kind of thing that means this economy must be conservative, it must be solvent. But they also come forward and say we are concerned with every Americans health, with a decent house for him, we are concerned that he will have a chance for health, and his children for education. We are going to see that he has power available to him. We are going to see that everything takes place that will enrich his life and let him as an individual, hard-working American citizen, have full opportunity to do for his children and his family what any decent American should want to do.

Dwight D Eisenhower


There are two kinds of mines; one is the personnel mine and

There are two kinds of mines; one is the personnel mine and the other is the vehicular mine. When we come to a mine field our infantry attacks exactly as if it were not there. The losses we get from personnel mines we consider only equal to those we would have gotten from machine guns and artillery if the Germans had chosen to defend that particular area with strong bodies of troops instead of with mine fields. The attacking infantry does not set off the vehicular mines, so after they have penetrated to the far side of the field they form a bridgehead, after which the engineers come up and dig out channels through which our vehicles can go.

Dwight D Eisenhower


I say when you get into a war, you should win as quick as yo

I say when you get into a war, you should win as quick as you can, because your losses become a function of the duration of the war. I believe when you get in a war, get everything you need and win it.

Dwight D Eisenhower


If all that Americans want is security, they can go to priso

If all that Americans want is security, they can go to prison. Theyll have enough to eat, a bed and a roof over their heads. But if an American wants to preserve his dignity and his equality as a human being, he must not bow his neck to any dictatorial government.

Dwight D Eisenhower


The emergence of this new world poses a vital issue: will ou

The emergence of this new world poses a vital issue: will outer space be preserved for peaceful use and developed for the benefit of all mankind? Or will it become another focus for the arms raceand thus an area of dangerous and sterile competition? The choice is urgent. And it is ours to make. The nations of the world have recently united in declaring the continent of Antarctica off limits to military preparations. We could extend this principle to an even more important sphere. National vested interests have not yet been developed in space or in celestial bodies. Barriers to agreement are now lower than they will ever be again.

Dwight D Eisenhower


I am convinced that the French could not win the war because

I am convinced that the French could not win the war because the internal political situation in Vietnam, weak and confused, badly weakened their military position. I have never talked or corresponded with a person knowledgeable in Indochinese affairs who did not agree that had elections been held as of the time of the fighting, possibly 80 per cent of the population would have voted for the Communist Ho Chi Minh as their leader rather than Chief of State Bao Dai. Indeed, the lack of leadership and drive on the part of Bao Dai was a factor in the feeling prevalent among Vietnamese that they had nothing to fight for. As one Frenchman said to me, What Vietnam needs is another Syngman Rhee, regardless of all the difficulties the presence of such a personality would entail.

Dwight D Eisenhower


Should a nation which attacks and occupies foreign territory

Should a nation which attacks and occupies foreign territory in the face of United Nations disapproval be allowed to impose conditions on its own withdrawal?

Dwight D Eisenhower