Top 500 John F. Kennedy Quotes (2025 Update)
Page 3 of 10

101. “Never before has man had such a great capacity to control his own environment, to end hunger, poverty and disease, to banish illiteracy and human misery. We have the power to make the best generation of mankind in the history of the world.”

— John F. Kennedy

102. “Automation does not need to be our enemy. I think machines can make life easier for men, if men do not let the machines dominate them.”

— John F. Kennedy

103. “Just because we cannot see clearly te end of the road, that is no reason for not setting out on the essential journey.”

— John F. Kennedy

104. “The only unchangable certainty in life is that nothing is unchangable or certain.”

— John F. Kennedy

105. “The Greeks understood that mind and body must develop in harmounious proportions to produce a creative intelligence.”

— John F. Kennedy

106. “A nation reveals itself not only by the men it produces but also by the men it honors, the men it remembers.”

— John F. Kennedy

107. “Democracy may not be perfect, but at least I don’t have to build a wall to keep my people in.”

— John F. Kennedy

108. “Be strong and of good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed.”

— John F. Kennedy

109. “Geography has made us neighbors. History has made us friends. Economics has made us partners, and necessity has made us allies. Those whom God has so joined together, let no man put asunder.”

— John F. Kennedy

110. “We want to be first; not first if, not first but; but first!”

— John F. Kennedy

111. “There will always be dissident voices heard in the land, expressing opposition without alternatives, finding fault but never favor, perceiving gloom on every side and seeking influence without responsibility.”

— John F. Kennedy

112. “We, the people, are the boss, and we will get the kind of political leadership, be it good or bad, that we demand and deserve.”

— John F. Kennedy

113. “We are under exercised as a nation. We look instead of play. We ride instead of walk. Our existence deprives us of the minimum of physical activity essential for healthy living.”

— John F. Kennedy

114. “As they say on my own Cape Cod, a rising tide lifts all the boats. And a partnership, by definition, serves both partners, without domination or unfair advantage. Together we have been partners in adversitylet us also be partners in prosperity.”

— John F. Kennedy

115. “Economic growth without social progress lets the great majority of the people remain in poverty, while a privileged few reap the benefits of rising abundance.”

— John F. Kennedy

116. “We need men who can dream of things that never were.”

— John F. Kennedy

117. “Justice delayed is democracy denied.”

— John F. Kennedy

118. “The very word ‘secrecy’ is repugnant in a free and open society; and we are as a people inherently and historically opposed to secret societies, to secret oaths, and to secret proceedings.”

— John F. Kennedy

119. “But why, some say, the moon? Why choose this as our goal? And they may well ask; why climb the highest mountain? Why, 35 years ago, fly the Atlantic? Why does Rice play Texas?”

— John F. Kennedy

120. “The rights of man come not from the generosity of the state but from the hand of God.”

— John F. Kennedy

121. “In a time of turbulence and change, it is more true than ever that knowledge is power.”

— John F. Kennedy

122. “A nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people.”

— John F. Kennedy

123. “Freedom is indivisible, and when one man is enslaved, all are not free.”

— John F. Kennedy

124. “The great enemy of the truth is very often not the lie, deliberate, contrived and dishonest, but the myth, persistent, persuasive and unrealistic.”

— John F. Kennedy

125. “Communism has never come to power in a country that was not disrupted by war or corruption, or both.”

— John F. Kennedy

126. “If more politicians knew poetry, and more poets knew politics, I am convinced the world would be a little better place in which to live.”

— John F. Kennedy

127. “When asked what I am most proud of, I stick out my chest, hold my head high and state proudly, ‘I served in the United States Navy!’”

— John F. Kennedy

128. “In a time of domestic crisis, men of goodwill and generosity should be able to unite regardless of party or politics.”

— John F. Kennedy

129. “The great revolution in the history of man, past, present and future, is the revolution of those determined to be free.”

— John F. Kennedy

130. “Not every child has an equal talent or an equal ability or equal motivation, but they should have the equal right to develop their talent and their ability and their motivation, to make something of themselves.”

— John F. Kennedy

131. “It is time for a new generation of leadership.”

— John F. Kennedy

132. “Our problems are man-made, therefore they may be solved by man.”

— John F. Kennedy

133. “History is a relentless master. It has no present, only the past rushing into the future. To try to hold fast is to be swept aside.”

— John F. Kennedy

134. “Divided, there is little we can do. Together, there is little we cannot do.”

— John F. Kennedy

135. “Harvard gave me an education, but Junior Chamber gave me an education for life.”

— John F. Kennedy

136. “Hold fast to the best of the past and move fast to the best of the future.”

— John F. Kennedy

137. “We dare not forget that we are the heirs of that first revolution.”

— John F. Kennedy

138. “All free men, wherever they may live, are citizens of Berlin. And therefore, as a free man, I take pride in the words ‘Ich bin ein Berliner!’”

— John F. Kennedy

139. “The unity of freedom has never relied on uniformity of opinion.”

— John F. Kennedy

140. “Politics is a jungle-torn between doing the right thing and staying in office.”

— John F. Kennedy

141. “For to save mankind’s future freedom, we must face up to any risk that is necessary. We will always seek peace – but we will never surrender.”

— John F. Kennedy

142. “The United States has to move very fast to even stand still.”

— John F. Kennedy

143. “There is nothing, I think, more unfortunate than having soft, chubby, fat-looking children who go to watch their school play basketball every Saturday and regard that as their week's exercise.”

— John F. Kennedy

144. “The freedom of the city is not negotiable. We cannot negotiate with those who say, ‘What’s mine is mine and what’s yours is negotiable.’”

— John F. Kennedy

145. “The American, by nature, is optimistic. He is experimental, an inventor and a builder who builds best when called upon to build greatly.”

— John F. Kennedy

146. “Certain other societies may respect the rule of force – we respect the rule of law.”

— John F. Kennedy

147. “Our alliance is born, not of fear, but of hope. It is an alliance that advances what we are for, as well as opposes what we are against.”

— John F. Kennedy

148. “Let us think of education as the means of developing our greatest abilities, because in each of us there is a private hope and dream which, fulfilled, can be translated into benefit for everyone and greater strength of the nation.”

— John F. Kennedy

149. “With a good conscience our only sure reward, with history the final judge of our deeds, let us go forth to lead the land we love, asking his blessing and his help, but knowing that here on earth God’s work must truly be our own.”

— John F. Kennedy

150. “Democracy is never a final achievement. It is a call to an untiring effort.”

— John F. Kennedy