George Pataki Quotations

On that terrible day, a nation became a neighborhood. All Americans became New Yorkers.

We know that when people are safe in their homes, they are free to pursue their dream for a brighter economic future for themselves and their families.

After the tragedy, New Yorkers are more united than ever in their vision, as well as in appreciation what living in freedom means - and that if we stand together, we can accomplish anything.

I'm thinking about governing as the governor of this state, and that's what I'm going to do.

This Budget reflects a choice - not an easy choice, but the right choice. And when you think about it, the only choice. The choice to take the responsible, prudent path to fiscal stability, economic growth and opportunity.

When government accepts responsibility for people, then people no longer take responsibility for themselves.

And one of the frustrating parts, but it's an inherent part of our democracy, is we have separation of powers.

Israel is a country that respects freedom - freedom of assembly, freedom of speech and freedom of worship.

The expansion of tobacco cessation centers is an important part of our historic and continuing effort to help smokers quit. The expansion of these centers will give even more New Yorkers the help they need to quit once and for all.

After September 11th, nations from across the globe offered their generous assistance to the people of New York. And whenever our friends around the world need our assistance, New York is there.

If someone lives in New York, he's a New Yorker - they are entitled to the best medical system in the world.

We have been actively trying to have New York City host the 2012 Olympics.

Our decade of change has unleashed the ingenuity, creativity, and character of the most extraordinary people in the world - the people of this state, who come from every corner of the globe.

Israel has always been and must always be America's strongest ally.

For the first time federal, state and local bureaus of investigation are coordinating their effort, to serve as eyes and ears and protect us against further attacks.

There is no moral equivalency between those who would kill using children, innocent civilians, children and adults, in their homes and in their places of worship, to that of a government that is seeking those terrorists before they can engage in that awful activity.

We are going through tough economic times but things are looking up, and the indicators are improving not only for large corporations but also for small business.

You know, there are some areas of the state that are providing enormous help to their students; there are others where they're not doing what they can.

The moral equation strongly tells everyone who understands freedom, who understands morality, that Israel is engaging in a just war in defense of its people and its freedom.

Olympics is global competition in which eighty, ninety, hundred, hundred and ten countries participate.

But, you know, all I can do is submit my budget and then make the case to the Legislature to act.

Let's make New York the safest state in America - that must be our goal. Let's achieve it together.

We have a reliable computerized network devoted to counterterrorist activities.

We passed important laws to give the authorities responsible for investigation wide powers to defend us.

When I look at Washington today, we need to bring us together. We need to solve problems, we need to rebuild our military so we can stand up to radical Islam, we need to get our economy growing much faster by throwing out the corrupt tax code and lowering the rates.

When I left, there were over 1 million fewer people on welfare in New York state than when I took office, replacing dependency with opportunity.

What I did in New York was bring people together, an overwhelmingly Democratic state. But I was able to get Democrats to support the most conservative sweeping policy changes in any state in America.

We're confident this will give the riding public all the security they need,

I can govern by bringing people together. And also, I've been tested in a way no one else has. I was governor on September 11th, and I'm proud of my leadership in bringing New York through that time. And when I left, we were stronger, we were safer, and we were more united than at any time in my lifetime.

I don't think you expand entitlements when so many people are dependent on government and when the money the federal government is offering is going to be taken away from you after just a couple of years.

Religious liberty doesn't include encouraging a fellow American to engage in violent jihad and kill an American here. That is not protected free speech. That is not protected religious belief.

We can't just throw a switch and say Indian Point is going to be safe, we have to look long-term because it will ultimately be decommissioned and we have to work aggressively now to bring in new sources of power.

You know, Hillary Clinton's always saying how Republicans don't follow science? Well, they're the ones not listening to the scientists today, because doctors say that at 20 weeks that is a viable life inside the womb. And at that point, it's a life that we have the right to protect, and I think we should protect.

We will emerge stronger as a diverse community; the area will be rebuilt with life around the clock, new buildings, restaurants, places of entertainment.

First, how to memorialize the heroes of 9/11; second, something that expresses our resolve.

We also have a program in place for low income people. A family of four making $26,000 a year can receive medical coverage, irrespective of citizenship or what documents.

Do we want someone has a national agenda of what she will achieve for the people of Arkansas and Illinois in the U.S. Senate, or do we want someone who is one of us, a native New Yorker who understands this state, who has fought for this state, who has represented this state in Washington, who shares our philosophy?

This is not just a crime against a synagogue. It's a crime against all of us.

I'm excited about the opportunities to move the state forward even more than we've come over the course of the past year, and that's my focus.

I knew that good people who wanted to be a part of the American dream have become trapped in dependency because the federal government and the state government had made it in their economic interest not to take a job because the benefits that they didn't work were better. I changed that.

I have two sons. Both served. One as a marine officer in Iraq, one as an army officer in Afghanistan. I do not see - want to see one parent or loved one worrying about getting a call in the middle of the night. I would not place one American life at risk unless it was absolutely necessary. But to destroy ISIS, it is necessary.

I'm very proud of what we've done with the State University and the City University. They're totally different institutions than they were when I took office.

Obviously you follow the law of the land, there are many laws I disagree with, but you follow the law. You fight to change the law, you don't break the law. I believe that's the American way.

Larry Silverstein has betrayed the public's trust and that of all New Yorkers.

I think there are steps that can be taken that haven't been required or energy to make that fight more secure and we are going to continue to push the federal government to do that.

Well, I know I worked for Governor Rockefeller the last time he ran for his fourth term, and I obviously ran against Governor Cuomo the time he ran for his fourth term.

Now Mitt is not a perfect candidate. He has a number of problems. It's hard for him, for blue collar families like mine to identify with him. It's hard for economic conservatives to identify with him. He needs to do more to reach out to Latinos...

Freedom of speech is one of the greatest American liberties, and I hope this pardon serves as a reminder of the precious freedoms we are fighting to preserve as we continue to wage the war on terror.

In Washington, when you're a leader, you have to put aside partisan politics to do what's right for the people.

Baseball is a diversion. It is therapy. It takes peoples minds off of everything that has happened, if just for a while.

It is a very real concern and my view is that everything changed on September 11th and the procedure, the policies that were in place prior to September 11th no longer should apply.

I'm a Republican who embraces science and understands we have to work with the next generation of millennials to have the innovation and technology so that we can grow a 21st century economy.

My father couldn't speak English when he went to the first grade and I had to work in a factory over Christmas and summer vacations. And I think that's the American way and one of the things that excites me about this race is that pretty much everything I've done I've started at the bottom and been able to finish at the top.

What better day to lay the cornerstone of the Freedom Tower than the day our country declared its independence.

I have tremendous admiration for everyone who enters the political arena so long as their goal is to do what they believe is right for the people of New York.

Putting Americans at risk for a political reason I think is wrong and I think it's unfortunate.

I'm here helping Doug Forrester become the next governor of New Jersey.

We need a President that all Americans can respect, not a celebrity who uses words like freedom and liberty like they are a punchline in a reality show.

We are one America. If we work together across party lines, there's no problem we can't solve and the 21st century will be America's greatest century.

I don't need a court to say that not just New York City but other particularly low-income school districts across the state had been short-changed.