12 quotes from Alf Landon to help you know better one of the biggest rivals of Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
1. “It should be a land in which equal opportunity shall prevail and special privilege shall have no place.” – Alf Landon
2. “American initiative is not a commodity to be delivered in pound packages through a Governmental bureau. It is a vital force in the life of our nation and it must be freed!” – Alf Landon
3. “I would say practical progressive, which means that the Republican party or any political party has got to recognize the problems of a growing and complex industrial civilization. And I don’t think the Republican party is really wide awake to that.” – Alf Landon
4. “A lot of the money spent in the name of relief has nothing to do with relief.” – Alf Landon
5. “The price of economic planning is the loss of economic freedom. And economic freedom and personal liberty go hand in hand.” – Alf Landon
6. “Should China recover from her present insanity and join in responsible interaction with the Soviet Union and the United States – a new era in international relations would commence that would shape the destiny of this world by creating stability on which peace with security is ultimately based.” – Alf Landon
7. “Wherever I have gone in this country, I have found Americans.” – Alf Landon
8. “That is why I say, in all earnestness, that the time has come to unshackle initiative and free the spirit of American enterprise.” – Alf Landon
9. “The destruction of human values by this depression has been far greater than the American people suffered during the World War.” – Alf Landon
10. “We shall take every opportunity to promote among the nations a peace based upon justice and human rights.” – Alf Landon
11. “social security is a fraud on the workingman…The saving it forces on our workers is a cruel hoax. “- Alf Landon
12. “A government is free in proportion to the rights it guarantees to the minority.” – Alf Landon
A few words about Alf Landon
Alf Landon served as the 26 Governor of the state of Kansas between the years 1932-1934.
In 1936, due to his popularity and competent management skills, the Republicans elected Alf Landon to become the Party Nominee for the Presidential Elections.
Alf Landon represented the progressive wing of the Republican party.
He was Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s biggest rival. Though Landon gathered around 17 million votes, he lost the elections in a landslide.
After his defeat, Landon returned to his oil business and never sought to be elected again in another political office.
During his lifetime Landon will also support the Marshall Plan and the “Great Society” plan of President Lyndon B. Johnson.