Cynical View on Democracy and Presidency by H. L. Mencken

„All the odds are on the man who is, intrinsically, the most devious and mediocre — the man who can most adeptly disperse the notion that his mind is a virtual vacuum. The Presidency tends, year by year, to go to such men. As democracy is perfected, the office represents, more and more closely, the inner soul of the people. We move toward a lofty ideal. On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their heart's desire at last, and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron.“

H. L. MenckenH. L. Mencken criticizes modern democracy and the occupancy of the presidency by mediocre individuals.
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Henry Louis Mencken, commonly known as H. L. Mencken in America, was an American writer, journalist, literary critic, columnist, satirist, and cultural critic of German descent.

A critical reflection on democracy and political leadership, contrasting reality with ideals.


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H. L. Mencken quote about democracy, mediocrity, and the presidency

Henry Louis Mencken (1880–1956) was an influential American writer, journalist, and critic of German heritage. Known for his sharp social commentary and satire, he addressed issues of culture, politics, and society.

Quote by Henry Louis Mencken about democracy and the presidencyCopyright © yoice.net – Quote Artwork
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"As democracy is perfected, the office of president represents, more and more closely, the inner soul of the people. On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their heart's desire at last and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron." Henry Louis Mencken
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Political quote by Henry Louis Mencken about voters and candidatesCopyright © yoice.net – Quote Artwork
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"When a candidate for public office faces the voters he does not face men of sense; he faces a mob of men whose chief distinguishing mark is the fact that they are quite incapable of weighing ideas, or even of comprehending any save the most elemental - men whose whole thinking is done in terms of emotion, and whose dominant emotion is dread of what they cannot understand. So confronted, the candidate must either bark with the pack or be lost... All the odds are on the man who is, intrinsically, the most devious and mediocre." Henry Louis Mencken
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Gore Vidal quote about political influence, presidential elections, and moneyed interestsCopyright © yoice.net – Quote Artwork
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"Every four years the naive half who vote are encouraged to believe that if we can elect a really nice man or woman President everything will be all right. But it won't be. Any individual who is able to raise ? million to be considered presidential is not going to be much use to the people at large. He will represent oil, or aerospace, or banking, or whatever moneyed entities are paying for him. Certainly he will never represent the people of the country, and they know it. Hence, the sense of despair throughout the land as incomes fall, businesses fail and there is no redress." Gore Vidal
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Quote about democracy and political parties in the United States by H. L. MenckenCopyright © yoice.net – Quote Artwork
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"Under democracy one party always devotes its chief energies to trying to prove that the other party is unfit to rule—and both commonly succeed, and are right... The United States has never developed an aristocracy really disinterested or an intelligentsia really intelligent. Its history is simply a record of vacillations between two gangs of frauds." H. L. Mencken
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Charles Wright Mills quote about the power elite and social responsibilityCopyright © yoice.net – Quote Artwork
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"The men of the higher circles are not representative men; their high position is not a result of moral virtue; their fabulous success is not firmly connected with meritorious ability. Those who sit in the seats of the high and the mighty are selected and formed by the means of power, the sources of wealth, the mechanics of celebrity, which prevail in their society. They are not men selected and formed by a civil service that is linked with the world of knowledge and sensibility. They are not men shaped by nationally responsible parties that debate openly and clearly the issues this nation now so unintelligently confronts. They are not men held in responsible check by a plurality of voluntary associations which connect debating publics with the pinnacles of decision. Commanders of power unequaled in human history, they have succeeded within the American system of organized irresponsibility." Charles Wright Mills
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