COMMENTARY: Presidential pearls of wisdom

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RAF MILDENHALL, England --  In honor of Presidents' Day, here are some quotes from each of our U.S. presidents. These men left an indelible mark on our country and contributed to its legacy as the greatest nation in the world, and it is only right that Americans remember and honor them with the utmost dignity and respect.

1) George Washington (1789-1797): It is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favors.

2) John Adams (1797-1801): Let us tenderly and kindly cherish, therefore, the means of knowledge. Let us dare to read, think, speak and write.

3) Thomas Jefferson (1801-1809): The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.

4) James Madison (1809-1817): The problem to be solved is not what form of government is perfect, but which of the forms is least imperfect.

5) James Monroe (1817-1825): A little flattery will support a man through great fatigue.

6) John Quincy Adams (1825-1829): If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.

7) Andrew Jackson (1829-1837): As long as our government is administered for the good of the people, and is regulated by their will; as long as it secures to us the rights of persons and of property, liberty of conscience and of the press, it will be worth defending.

8) Martin Van Buren (1837-1841): It is easier to do a job right than to explain why you didn't.

9) William Henry Harrison (1841): But I contend that the strongest of all governments is that which is most free.

10) John Tyler (1841-1845): Wealth can only be accumulated by the earnings of industry and the savings of frugality.

11) James K. Polk (1845-1849): Peace, plenty and contentment reign throughout our borders, and our beloved country presents a sublime moral spectacle to the world.

12) Zachary Taylor (1849-1850): For more than half a century, during which kingdoms and empires have fallen, this Union has stood unshaken. The patriots who formed it have long since descended to the grave; yet still it remains, the proudest monument to their memory.

13) Millard Fillmore (1850-1853): An honorable defeat is better than a dishonorable victory.

14) Franklin Pierce (1853-1857): We have nothing in our history or position to invite aggression; we have everything to beckon us to the cultivation of relations of peace and amity with all nations.

15) James Buchanan (1857-1861): The ballot box is the surest arbiter of disputes among free men.

16) Abraham Lincoln (1861-1865): You can fool all of the people some of the time, and some of the people all of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all of the time.

17) Andrew Johnson (1865-1869): Outside of the Constitution we have no legal authority more than private citizens, and within it we have only so much as that instrument gives us. This broad principle limits all our functions and applies to all subjects.

18) Ulysses S. Grant (1869-1877): I have never advocated war except as a means of peace.

19) Rutherford B. Hayes (1877-1881): It is now true that this is God's Country, if equal rights - a fair start and an equal chance in the race of life - are everywhere secured to all.

20) James Garfield (1881): We cannot overestimate the fervent love of liberty, the intelligent courage, and the sum of common sense with which our fathers made the great experiment of self-government.

21) Chester A. Arthur (1881-1885): There are very many characteristics which go into making a model civil servant. Prominent among them are probity, industry, good sense, good habits, good temper, patience, order, courtesy, tact, self-reliance, many deference to superior officers and many consideration for inferiors.

22 & 24) Grover Cleveland (1885-1889 & 1893-1897): It is the responsibility of the citizens to support their government. It is not the responsibility of the government to support its citizens.

23) Benjamin Harrison (1889-1893): Great lives never go out; they go on.

25) William McKinley (1897-1901): That's all a man can hope for during his lifetime - to set an example - and when he is dead, to be an inspiration for history.

26) Theodore Roosevelt (1901-1909): The only man who makes no mistake is the man who does nothing.

27) William Howard Taft (1909-1913): Don't write so that you can be understood; write so that you can't be misunderstood.

28) Woodrow Wilson (1913-1921): Some people call me an idealist. Well, that is the way I know I am an American. America is the only idealistic nation in the world.

29) Warren G. Harding (1921-1923): Ambition is a commendable attribute without which no man succeeds. Only inconsiderate ambition imperils.

30) Calvin Coolidge (1923-1929): Don't expect to build up the weak by pulling down the strong.

31) Herbert Hoover (1929-1933): Above all, we know that although Americans can be led to make great sacrifices, they do not like to be driven.

32) Franklin D. Roosevelt (1933-1945): The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.

33) Harry S. Truman (1945-1953): It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.

34) Dwight D. Eisenhower (1953-1961): You don't lead by hitting people over the head - that's assault, not leadership.

35) John F. Kennedy (1961-1963): And so my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.

36) Lyndon B. Johnson (1963-1969): For this is what America is all about. It is the uncrossed desert and the unclimbed ridge. It is the star that is not reached and the harvest that is sleeping in the unplowed ground.

37) Richard M. Nixon (1969-1974): A man is not finished when he is defeated. He is finished when he quits.

38) Gerald R. Ford (1974-1977): A government big enough to give you everything you want is a government big enough to take from you everything you have.

39) James Carter (1977-1981): We have a tendency to condemn people who are different from us, to define their sins as paramount and our own sinfulness as being insignificant.

40) Ronald Reagan (1981-1989): Within the covers of the Bible are the answers for all the problems men face.

41) George H. W. Bush (1989-1993): America is never wholly herself unless she is engaged in high moral principle. We as a people have such a purpose today. It is to make kinder the face of the nation and gentler the face of the world.

42) William J. Clinton (1993-2001): If you live long enough, you'll make mistakes. But if you learn from them, you'll be a better person. It's how you handle adversity, not how it affects you. The main thing is never quit, never quit, never quit.

43) George W. Bush (2001-2009): America is a nation with a mission - and that mission comes from our most basic beliefs. We have no desire to dominate, no ambitions of empire. Our aim is a democratic peace - a peace founded upon the dignity and rights of every man and woman.

44) Barack Obama (2009-present): We did not come to fear the future. We came here to shape it.


Note: The quotes were gathered from the following websites: http://www.infoplease.com/spot/presquotes1.html, http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/category/american_president.html, http://quotations.about.com/od/stillmorefamouspeople/a/famouspresidentsquotes.htm, http://www.memorablequotations.com/presidents.htm and http://www.entrepreneur.com/slideshow/225769