John F. Kennedy Quotes 1–30 of 460 Quotes
John Fitzgerald Kennedy (29 May 1917 – 22 November 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and Jack, was the 35th President of the United States (1961–1963) and a United States Senator from Massachusetts (1953–1960). He is the older brother of Robert F. Kennedy and Ted Kennedy, and the first husband of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. He was assassinated in Dallas in November 22, 1963.
Below are 30 of 460 sourced John F. Kennedy quotes. Sources and related information appear under each quote. Use the 'Cite this quote' link to get citation references.
“War will exist until that distant day when the conscientious objector enjoys the same reputation and prestige that the warrior does today.”
— John F. Kennedy
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Quote source: Undated Letter to a Navy friend; also mentioned by William Safire in his "On Language" article "Warrior" in the New York Times rubric Magazines (26 August 2007); also in A Thousand Days : John F. Kennedy in the White House (1965), by Arthur Schlesinger, p. 88
“NAURO NATIVE KNOWS POSIT HE CAN PILOT 11 ALIVE NEED SMALL BOAT KENNEDY”
— John F. Kennedy
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More on this quote: Message carved into a coconut after the wreck of PT-109 (6 August 1943). This has often been misquoted as "11 ALIVE NATIVE KNOWS POSIT & REEF NAURU ISLAND KENNEDY"
• Explorer Finds Kennedy's WWII Boat
“'''Where in the hell have you guys been? I've been at this bus stop for a whole week now."”
— John F. Kennedy
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” Last modified July 30, 2021. https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#3
Quote source: Kennedy upon being rescued.
“After visiting these places, you can easily understand how that within a few years Hitler will emerge from the hatred that surrounds him now as one of the most significant figures who ever lived. He had boundless ambition for his country which rendered him a menace to the peace of the world, but he had a mystery about him in the way that he lived and in the manner of his death that will live and grow after him. He had in him the stuff of which legends are made.”
— John F. Kennedy
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Quote source: After visiting such Nazi strongholds as were found in Berchtesgaden and Kehlsteinhaus; Personal diary (1 August 1945); published in Prelude to Leadership (1995)
“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
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Quote source: Remarks at Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts (14 June 1956); Box 895, Senate Speech Files, John F. Kennedy Papers, Pre-Presidential Papers, John F. Kennedy Presidential Library
“Let us not despair but act. Let us not seek the Republican answer or the Democratic answer but the right answer. Let us not seek to fix the blame for the past — let us accept our own responsibility for the future.”
— John F. Kennedy
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Quote source: Remarks at "Loyola College Alumni Banquet, Baltimore, Maryland (18 February 1958); Box 899, Senate Speech Files, John F. Kennedy Papers, Pre-Presidential Papers, John F. Kennedy Presidential Library
“I have just received the following wire from my generous daddy: "Dear Jack – Don’t buy a single vote more than necessary – I’ll be damned if I am going to pay for a landslide."”
— John F. Kennedy
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Quote source: Remarks at "The Gridiron Club, Washington, D.C. (March 15, 1958); Box 899, Senate Speech Files, John F. Kennedy Papers, Pre-Presidential Papers; Box 29, David F. Powers Personal Papers, John F. Kennedy Speeches File
“In the Chinese language, the word "crisis" is composed of two characters, one representing danger and the other, opportunity.”
— John F. Kennedy
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Quote source: Remarks at the United Negro College Fund, Indianapolis, Indiana (12 April 1959); Box 902, Senate Speech Files, Pre-Presidential Papers, John F. Kennedy Papers, John F. Kennedy Presidential Library; also in Remarks at Valley Forge Country Club, Pennsylvania (29 October 1960), Box 914, Senate Speech Files, Pre-Presidential Papers, John F. Kennedy Papers, John F. Kennedy Presidential Library
“Mr. President, Senate Joint Resolution 31, concerning which there has been little, if any, public interest or knowledge, constitutes one of the most far-reaching — and I believe mistaken — schemes ever proposed to alter the American constitutional system. No one knows with any certainty what will happen if our electoral system is totally revamped as proposed by Senate Joint Resolution 31 and the various amendments which will be offered to it. Today, we have a clearly Federal system of electing our President, under which the States act as units. Today, we have the two-party system, under which third parties and splinter parties are effectively discouraged from playing more than a negligible role. Today, we have a system which in all but one instance throughout our history has given us presidents elected by a plurality of the popular vote. I refer to one instance, because the frequently mentioned situation in 1824, involving Andrew Jackson and John Quincy Adams, in which six States did not have popular votes, can be ignored; and the other frequently mentioned case, that of the Hayes-Tilden contest, involved outright corruption, and the decision of the electoral commission was responsible for the election of Hayes; so in the 175 years of our constitutional system, there is really only one valid example in which the present system produced the election of a candidate who did not receive the largest number of votes. And today we have an electoral vote system which gives both large States and small States certain advantages and disadvantages that offset each other.”
— John F. Kennedy
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Quote source: Debate about the Lodge-Gossett amendment, which would abolish the Electoral College; To Change Election System; Senator Explains the Resolution to Abolish Electoral College Congressional Record, March 20th 1955 Congressional Record, page 5156
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“Only the very courageous will be able to keep alive the spirit of individualism and dissent which gave birth to this nation, nourished it as an infant, and carried it through its severest tests upon the attainment of its maturity.”
— John F. Kennedy
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Quote source: Pre-1960, Profiles in Courage (1956) Profiles in Courage (1956), p. 17
“The true democracy, living and growing and inspiring, puts its faith in the people — faith that the people will not simply elect men who will represent their views ably and faithfully, but will also elect men who will exercise their conscientious judgment — faith that the people will not condemn those whose devotion to principle leads them to unpopular courses, but will reward courage, respect honor, and ultimately recognize right.”
— John F. Kennedy
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Quote source: Pre-1960, Profiles in Courage (1956) 1964 Memorial Edition, p. 264
“For in a democracy, every citizen, regardless of his interest in politics, 'hold office'; everyone of us is in a position of responsibility; and, in the final analysis, the kind of government we get depends upon how we fulfill those responsibilities. 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
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Quote source: Pre-1960, Profiles in Courage (1956) 1964 Memorial Edition, p. 265
“For without belittling the courage with which men have died, we should not forget those acts of courage with which men — such as the subjects of this book — have lived. The courage of life is often a less dramatic spectacle than the courage of a final moment; but it is no less a magnificent mixture of triumph and tragedy. A man does what he must — in spite of personal consequences, in spite of obstacles and dangers, and pressures — and that is the basis of all human morality. In whatever area in life one may meet the challenges of courage, whatever may be the sacrifices he faces if he follows his conscience — the loss of his friends, his fortune, his contentment, even the esteem of his fellow men — each man must decide for himself the course he will follow. The stories of past courage can define that ingredient — they can teach, they can offer hope, they can provide inspiration. But they cannot supply courage itself. For this each man must look into his own soul.”
— John F. Kennedy
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Quote source: Pre-1960, Profiles in Courage (1956) 1964 Memorial Edition, p. 266
“Dick Nixon is the victim of the worst press that ever hit a politician in this country. What they did to him in the Helen Gahagan Douglas race was disgusting.”
— John F. Kennedy
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Quote source: 1960 As quoted in Kennedy and Nixon (1996) by Christopher Matthews, p.123
“We celebrate the past to awaken the future.”
— John F. Kennedy
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Quote source: 1960 "Remarks at the 25th Anniversary of the Signing of the Social Security Act," Hyde Park, New York (14 August 1960); Box 910, Senate Speech Files, John F. Kennedy Papers, Pre-Presidential Papers, John F. Kennedy Presidential Library
“President Roosevelt and President Truman and President Eisenhower had the same experience, they all made the effort to get along with the Russians. But every time, finally it failed. And the reason it failed was because the Communists are determined to destroy us, and regardless of what hand of friendship we may hold out or what arguments we may put up, the only thing that will make that decisive difference is the strength of the United States.”
— John F. Kennedy
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Quote source: 1960 Speech at Democratic Rally, George Washington High School Stadium, Alexandria, Virginia (24 August 1960)
“Now let me make it clear that I believe there can only be one defense policy for the United States and that is summed up in the word 'first.' I do not mean 'first, but'. I do not mean 'first, when'. I do not mean 'first, if'. I mean 'first — period'.”
— John F. Kennedy
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald (2021, July 30) John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes. Retrieved from https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#18
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” QuotesCosmos.com, edited by QuotesCosmos, 30 July 2021, https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#18
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” Last modified July 30, 2021. https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#18
“In a world of danger and trial, peace is our deepest aspiration, and when peace comes we will gladly convert not our swords into plowshares, but our bombs into peaceful reactors, and our planes into space vessels. "Pursue peace," the Bible tells us, and we shall pursue it with every effort and every energy that we possess. But it is an unfortunate fact that we can secure peace only by preparing for war.”
— John F. Kennedy
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” QuotesCosmos.com, Last modified July 30, 2021. https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#19
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald (2021, July 30) John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes. Retrieved from https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#19
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” QuotesCosmos.com, edited by QuotesCosmos, 30 July 2021, https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#19
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” Last modified July 30, 2021. https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#19
Quote source: 1960 Speech at Civic Auditorium, Seattle, Washington (6 September 1960)
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“My call is not to those who believe they belong to the past. My call is to those who believe in the future.”
— John F. Kennedy
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” QuotesCosmos.com, Last modified July 30, 2021. https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#21
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald (2021, July 30) John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes. Retrieved from https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#21
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” QuotesCosmos.com, edited by QuotesCosmos, 30 July 2021, https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#21
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” Last modified July 30, 2021. https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#21
Quote source: 1960 Speech at Civic Auditorium, Seattle, Washington (6 September 1960)
“We are a great and strong country — perhaps the greatest and strongest in the history of the world. But greatness and strength are not our natural right. They are not gifts which are automatically ours forever. It took toil and courage and determination to build this country — and it will take those same qualities if we are to maintain it. For, although a country may stand still, history never stands still. Thus, if we do not soon begin to move forward again, we will inevitably be left behind. And I know that Americans today are tired of standing still — and that we do not intend to be left behind. But effort and courage are not enough without purpose and direction. For, as Socrates told us, "If a man does not know to what port he is sailing, no wind is favorable."”
— John F. Kennedy
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald (2021, July 30) John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes. Retrieved from https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#22
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” QuotesCosmos.com, edited by QuotesCosmos, 30 July 2021, https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#22
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Quote source: 1960 Speech at the Coliseum, Raleigh, North Carolina" (17 September 1960)
“There is a connection, hard to explain logically but easy to feel, between achievement in public life and progress in the arts. The age of Pericles was also the age of Phidias. The age of Lorenzo de Medici was also the age of Leonardo da Vinci. The age of Elizabeth was also the age of Shakespeare. And the New Frontier for which I campaign in public life, can also be a New Frontier for American art.”
— John F. Kennedy
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” QuotesCosmos.com, Last modified July 30, 2021. https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#23
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald (2021, July 30) John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes. Retrieved from https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#23
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” QuotesCosmos.com, edited by QuotesCosmos, 30 July 2021, https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#23
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” Last modified July 30, 2021. https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#23
Quote source: 1960 [http://www.jfklibrary.org/Research/Research-Aids/Ready-Reference/JFK-Quotations.aspx Response to letter sent by Miss Theodate Johnson, Publisher of Musical America to the two presidential candidates requesting their views on music in relation to the Federal Government and domestic world affairs (13 September 1960); published in Musical America (October 1960), p. 11; later inscribed on the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Washington, D.C.
“If by a "Liberal" they mean someone who looks ahead and not behind, someone who welcomes new ideas without rigid reactions, someone who cares about the welfare of the people — their health, their housing, their schools, their jobs, their civil rights, and their civil liberties — someone who believes we can break through the stalemate and suspicions that grip us in our policies abroad, if that is what they mean by a "Liberal," then I'm proud to say I'm a "Liberal."”
— John F. Kennedy
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald (2021, July 30) John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes. Retrieved from https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#24
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” QuotesCosmos.com, edited by QuotesCosmos, 30 July 2021, https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#24
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” Last modified July 30, 2021. https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#24
Quote source: 1960 Acceptance of the New York Liberal Party nomination (14 September 1960) · Address of John F. Kennedy upon Accepting the Liberal Party Nomination for President
“Their platform, made up of left-over Democratic planks, has the courage of our old convictions. Their pledge is a pledge to the status quo — and today there can be no status quo.”
— John F. Kennedy
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald (2021, July 30) John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes. Retrieved from https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#25
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” QuotesCosmos.com, edited by QuotesCosmos, 30 July 2021, https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#25
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” Last modified July 30, 2021. https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#25
Quote source: 1960 Address Accepting the Democratic Party Nomination for the Presidency of the United States — Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles (15 July 1960)
“If this nation is to be wise as well as strong, if we are to achieve our destiny, then we need more new ideas for more wise men reading more good books in more public libraries. These libraries should be open to all — except the censor. We must know all the facts and hear all the alternatives and listen to all the criticisms. Let us welcome controversial books and controversial authors. For the Bill of Rights is the guardian of our security as well as our liberty.”
— John F. Kennedy
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald (2021, July 30) John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes. Retrieved from https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#26
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” QuotesCosmos.com, edited by QuotesCosmos, 30 July 2021, https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#26
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” Last modified July 30, 2021. https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#26
Quote source: 1960 Saturday Review (29 October 1960), p. 44
“There are indications because of new inventions, that 10, 15, or 20 nations will have a nuclear capacity, including Red China, by the end of the Presidential office in 1964. This is extremely serious. . . I think the fate not only of our own civilization, but I think the fate of world and the future of the human race, is involved in preventing a nuclear war.”
— John F. Kennedy
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” QuotesCosmos.com, Last modified July 30, 2021. https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#27
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald (2021, July 30) John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes. Retrieved from https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#27
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” QuotesCosmos.com, edited by QuotesCosmos, 30 July 2021, https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#27
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” Last modified July 30, 2021. https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#27
Quote source: 1960 Third Nixon-Kennedy Presidential Debate (13 October 1960)
“We have all seen these circus elephants complete with tusks, ivory in their head and thick skins, who move around the circus ring and grab the tail of the elephant ahead of them."”
— John F. Kennedy
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” QuotesCosmos.com, Last modified July 30, 2021. https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#28
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald (2021, July 30) John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes. Retrieved from https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#28
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” QuotesCosmos.com, edited by QuotesCosmos, 30 July 2021, https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#28
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” Last modified July 30, 2021. https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#28
Quote source: 1960 Comments on members of the Republican party, in Remarks at the Cow Palace, San Francisco, California (2 November 1960); Box 914, Senate Speech Files, John F. Kennedy Papers, Pre-Presidential Papers, John F. Kennedy Presidential Library
“I can assure you that every degree of mind and spirit that I possess will be devoted to the long-range interests of the United States and to the cause of freedom around the world.”
— John F. Kennedy
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald (2021, July 30) John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes. Retrieved from https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#29
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” QuotesCosmos.com, edited by QuotesCosmos, 30 July 2021, https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#29
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” Last modified July 30, 2021. https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html#29
Quote source: 1960 Acceptance speech (9 November 1960)
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald (2021, July 30) John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes. Retrieved from https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html
Use Chicago style for business, fine arts, and history.
Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” QuotesCosmos.com, edited by QuotesCosmos, 30 July 2021, https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html
MLA Citation: Use MLA (Modern Language Association) style for the humanities, especially language and literature.
Kennedy, John Fitzgerald. “John F. Kennedy Quotes: 1–30 of 460 Quotes.” Last modified July 30, 2021. https://www.quotescosmos.com/people/John-F.-Kennedy-quotes.html