An army of asses led by a lion is better than an army of lions led by an ass.
- George Washington


Because our military power dwarfs that of other countries - we spend more on defense than the rest of the world combined - this Administration believes that alliances and international institutions are more of a burden than a benefit. They allow the Lilliputians to tie down Gulliver.
- Joe Biden


Discipline is the soul of an army. It makes small numbers formidable; procures success to the weak, and esteem to all.
- George Washington


Every citizen should be a soldier. This was the case with the Greeks and Romans, and must be that of every free state.
- Thomas Jefferson


Facing the possibility of a 9/11, you had to give some -- some flexibility to the CIA ... It's easy now in the cold light of day to look back and say, you shouldn't have done any of that.
- Colin Powell


Firearms are second only to the Constitution in importance; they are the peoples' liberty's teeth.
- George Washington


For a people who are free, and who mean to remain so, a well-organized and armed militia is their best security.
- Thomas Jefferson


Have fun in your command. Don't always run at a breakneck pace. Take leave when you've earned it, spend time with your families.
- Colin Powell


Hundreds of thousands of American servicemen and women are deployed across the world in the war on terror. By bringing hope to the oppressed, and delivering justice to the violent, they are making America more secure.
- George_W Bush


I can make more generals, but horses cost money.
- Abraham Lincoln


I think with the Romans, that the general of today should be a soldier tomorrow if necessary.
- Thomas Jefferson


I want to scare the hell out of the rest of the world.
- Colin Powell


I was born in Harlem, raised in the South Bronx, went to public school, got out of public college, went into the Army, and then I just stuck with it.
- Colin Powell


I would like to speak in terms of praise due to the many brave officers and soldiers who have fought in the cause of the war.
- Abraham Lincoln


If it ain't broke, don't fix it' is the slogan of the complacent, the arrogant or the scared. It's an excuse for inaction, a call to non-arms.
- Colin Powell


Many of my generation, the career captains, majors, and lieutenant colonels seasoned in that war [Vietnam], vowed that when our turn came to call the shots, we would not quietly acquiesce in halfhearted warfare for half-baked reasons that the American people could not understand.
- Colin Powell


No battle plan survives contact with the enemy.
- Colin Powell


No matter what you think about the Iraq war, there is one thing we can all agree on for the next days - we have to salute the courage and bravery of those who are risking their lives to vote and those brave Iraqi and American soldiers fighting to protect their right to vote.
- Hillary Clinton


Nothing can be more hurtful to the service, than the neglect of discipline; for that discipline, more than numbers, gives one army the superiority over another.
- George Washington


Our armed forces will fight for peace in Iraq, a peace built on more secure foundations than are found today in the Middle East. Even more important, they will fight for two human conditions of even greater value than peace: liberty and justice.
- John McCain


Over grown military establishments are under any form of government inauspicious to liberty, and are to be regarded as particularly hostile to republican liberty.
- George Washington


The commander in the field is always right and the rear echelon is wrong, unless proved otherwise.
- Colin Powell


The Second Amendment says we have the right to bear arms, not to bear artillery.
- Robin Williams


The spirit of this country is totally adverse to a large military force.
- Thomas Jefferson


The Swiss have an interesting army. Five hundred years without a war. Pretty impressive. Also pretty lucky for them. Ever see that little Swiss Army knife they have to fight with? Not much of a weapon there. Corkscrews, Bottle openers. 'Come on, buddy, let's go. You get past me, the guy in back of me, he's got a spoon. Back off. I've got the toe clippers right here.
- Jerry Seinfeld


The very atmosphere of firearms anywhere and everywhere restrains evil interference - they deserve a place of honor with all that's good.
- George Washington


Think hard about it: I'm running out of demons. I'm running out of villains. I'm down to Castro and Kim II Sung.
- Colin Powell


To ensure prosperity here at home and peace abroad, we all share the belief we have to maintain the strongest military on the planet.
- Barack Obama
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We cannot continue to rely only on our military in order to achieve the national security objectives that we've set. We've got to have a civilian national security force that's just as powerful, just as strong, just as well-funded.
- Barack Obama
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We did not raise armies for glory or for conquest.
- Thomas Jefferson


When we assumed the Soldier, we did not lay aside the Citizen.
- George Washington


You break it, you own it.
- Colin Powell