Football strategy does not originate in a scrimmage: it is useless to expect solutions in a political campaign.
Walter LippmannRead
If all power is in the people, if there is no higher law than their will, and if by counting their votes, their will may be ascertained - then the people may entrust all their power to anyone, and the power of the pretender and the usurper is then legitimate. It is not to be challenged since it came originally from the sovereign people.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes that political power derives from the will of the people, and thus, their choices can legitimize even those who might misuse that power.
Walter Lippmann's quote addresses the nature of political power and its foundation in the consent of the governed. It suggests that if all authority is derived from the collective will of the people, then the acts of those they choose to empower—including those who may be illegitimate or deceptive—are seen as valid. This raises important questions about responsibility, the vigilance of citizens in a democracy, and the potential for abuse when power is unchallenged.
Themes
PowerPeopleDemocracyAuthorityLegitimacy
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about democratic governance, one might say, 'As Walter Lippmann pointed out, if our power is derived from the people, we must remain vigilant about who we empower.'
More from Walter Lippmann
All quotes →The simple opposition between the people and big business has disappeared because the people themselves have become so deeply involved in big business.
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There is nothing so bad but it can masquerade as moral.
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The tendency of the casual mind is to pick out or stumble upon a sample which supports or defies its prejudices, and then to make it the representative of a whole class.
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The private citizen, beset by partisan appeals for the loan of his Public Opinion, will soon see, perhaps, that these appeals are not a compliment to his intelligence, but an imposition on his good nature and an insult to his sense of evidence.
Walter LippmannRead
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