Politics Quotes

"The state may not use its coercive apparatus for the purpose of getting some citizens to aid others."

"The minimal state is the most extensive state that can be justified."

"The question is not whether redistribution occurs, but how it is justified."

"One cannot simply assume everyone has agreed to the basic rules governing society."

"Why must we accept that society is responsible for providing for all?"

"One might argue for a state but never justify violating fundamental rights."

"Belief in rights is compatible with diverse political systems."

"The state exists to protect rights, not to reshape society."

"Consent cannot justify what violates fundamental rights."

"State power must be limited by individual rights."

"Legitimacy cannot be established by appeals to welfare alone."

"The state must justify its powers to each person."

"We cannot assume benevolent authority justifies control."

"Legitimacy is a question distinct from effectiveness."

"The state cannot be justified through appeal to distribution alone."

"State power requires philosophical justification."

"The legitimacy of institutions depends on their principles."

"The friend-enemy distinction is the highest intensity of a union and separation."

"Political concepts all have a polemical meaning; they are focused on a concrete adversary."

"Liberalism has never solved the problem of how one should deal with the enemy."

"The political is the most intense and intimate of all associations."

"Every genuine political theory presupposes the reality of the enemy."

"The concept of the state presupposes the concept of the political."

"Normality and abnormality are both within the province of political decision."

"The enemy is not merely someone with different opinions; he is an existential threat."

"Constitutions are not merely legal documents; they are products of political will."

"Liberalism cannot account for its own existence because it denies the political."

"Myth is more politically powerful than rational argument."

"The modern state's claim to monopolize force is its defining characteristic."

"Enemies can be recognized but rarely transformed into friends through argument."