James K. Polk Quotes

With me it is exceptionally true that the Presidency is no bed of roses.

There are four great measures for my administration – a reduction of tariff, an independent treasury, settlement of the Oregon boundary and acquisition of California.

General Taylor is, I have no doubt, a well-meaning old man. He is, however, uneducated, exceedingly ignorant of public affairs, and I should judge, of very ordinary capacity.

There is more selfishness and less principle among members of Congress than I had any conception of, before I became President of the U.S.

Under the benignant providence of Almighty God the representatives of the States and of the people are again brought together to deliberate for the public good. The gratitude of the nation to the sovereign arbiter of all human events should be commensurate with the boundless blessings which we enjoy. Peace, plenty, and contentment reign throughout our borders, and our beloved country presents a sublime moral spectacle to the world.

I am heartily rejoiced that my term is so near its close. I will soon cease to be a servant and will become a sovereign.

The Presidency is not a bed of roses.

The gratitude … should be commensurate with the boundless blessings which we enjoy.

When I observed a strong man approaching I generally took advantage of him by being a little quicker than he was and seizing him by the tip of the fingers, giving him a hearty shake, and thus preventing him from getting a full grip upon me.

I love you Sarah. For all eternity, I love you.

No union exists between church and state, and perfect freedom of opinion is guaranteed to all sects and creeds.

The Constitution itself, plainly written as it is, the safeguard of our federative compact, the offspring of concession and compromise, binding together in the bonds of peace and union this great and increasing family of free and independent States, will be the chart by which I shall be directed.