"Character does count. For too long we have gotten by in a society that says the only thing right is to get by and the only thing wrong is to get caught. Character is doing what's right when nobody is looking..."

J. C. Watts Politics See all quotes by J. C. Watts →

React to this quote

More by J. C. Watts

“They said that I had sold out and Uncle Tom. And I said well, they deserve to have that view. But I have my thoughts. And I think they're race-hustling poverty pimps.”

“America needs to be a place where all of us can feel a part of the American dream. But it will not happen by dividing us into racial groups. It will not happen by trying to turn the poor against the rich. It will not happen by asking Americans to accept what is immoral and wrong in the name of tolerance.”

“I've done a lot of work in terms of outreach but I've done it because it was the right thing to do. Good policy makes good politics and what I've done has been good politics.”

“PBS Transcript: Congressman J.C. Watts Speaks at the GOP National Convention”

Resonant Thoughts

"I believe that animals have rights which, although different from our own, are just as inalienable. I believe animals have the right not to have pain, fear or physical deprivation inflicted upon them …"

— Roger A. Caras

Science1928–2001

#justice

"There are numerous forms of marginalization that exist in our society:, classism, sexism,,, and so on. If you happen to be on the wrong side of any of these hierarchies, you will face many inequities …"

— Julia Serano

Literature1967

#justice

"I would like to go for a ride with you, have you take me to stand before a river in the dark where hundreds of lightning bugs blink this code in sequence: right here, nowhere else! Right now, never ag…"

— Amy Hempel

Literature1951

#nature

"I’m not quite twenty, but, thanks to you, I’ve learned something that many women these days never learn: Prince Charming really is a toad. And the Beautiful Princess has halitosis. The bottom line is …"

— Tom Robbins

Literature1932–2025

#time