America recently celebrated its 250th birthday, but the journey to independence was long and arduous. The Declaration of Independence was signed in 1776, but the war did not end until October 19, 1781, when General Lord Cornwallis surrendered his army to George Washington at Yorktown, Virginia.

Presidential Wisdom

In the book ‘The Soul of America,’ Jon Meachum chronicles the wisdom of the men who have led our country. For example, George Washington’s farewell address emphasized the importance of unity, saying it was ‘a main pillar in the edifice of your real independence, the support of your tranquility at home, your peace abroad, of your safety, of your prosperity, of that very liberty which you so highly prize.’

Other notable quotes from past presidents include:

• George Washington: ‘99% of failures come from people who make excuses.’
• John Adams: ‘If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.’
• James Monroe: ‘We must support our rights or lose our character, and with it, perhaps, our liberties.’
• Thomas Jefferson: ‘Whenever you do a thing, act as if the whole world is watching.’
• Andrew Jackson: ‘Any man worth his salt will stick up for what he believes right, but it takes a slightly better man to acknowledge instantly and without reservation that he is in error.’
• Martin Van Buren: ‘It is easier to do a job right than to explain why you didn’t.’
• Abraham Lincoln: ‘Leave nothing for tomorrow that can be done today.’
• Theodore Roosevelt: ‘It is hard to fail, but it is worse never to have tried to succeed.’
• Franklin D. Roosevelt: ‘We have faith that future generations will know here, in the middle of the twentieth century, there came a time when men of good will found a way to unite, and produce, and fight to destroy the forces of ignorance, and intolerance, and slavery and war.’
• Harry S. Truman: ‘It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.’
• Dwight D. Eisenhower: ‘A people that values its privileges above its principles soon loses both.’
• John F. Kennedy: ‘And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country.’

This year, one of the best things we can do for our country is to be informed voters and participate in the midterm elections on Tuesday, November 3, 2026.

Original reporting: Positively Naperville (Aurora area) — read the source article.