Impressed with a conviction that the due administration of justice is the firmest pillar of good Government, I have considered the first arrangement of the Judicial department as essential to the happiness of our Country, and to the stability of its political system; hence the selection of the fittest characters to expound the law, and dispense justice, has been an invariable object of my anxious concern. — Letter to U.S. Attorney General Edmund Randolph (September 28,61 1789). Source: The Writings of George Washington from the Original Manuscript Sources, 1745-1799. John C. Fitzpatrick, Editor.

To be prepared for war is one of the most effectual means of preserving peace. — First Annual Address, to both Houses of Congress (8 January 1790).

A free people ought not only to be armed, but disciplined; to which end a uniform and well-digested plan is requisite; and their safety and interest require that they should promote such manufactories as tend to render them independent of others for essential, particularly military, supplies. — First Annual Address, to both House of Congress (8 January 1790).

No punishment in my opinion is too great for the Man who can build his greatness upon his Country’s ruin. — George Washington to President of Congress Joseph Reed, 12/12/1778, The Writings of George Washington, 13:383).

Don’t interfere with anything in the Constitution. That must be maintained, for it is the only safeguard of our liberties. — Abraham Lincoln

“Be sure you put your feet in the right place, then stand firm.” ― Abraham Lincoln