Quote
By Rutherford Birchard Hayes
The President of the United States of necessity owes his election to office to the suffrage and zealous labors of a political party, the members of which cherish with ardor and regard as of essential importance the principles of their party organization; but he should strive to be always mindful of the fact that he serves his party best who serves the country best.
- Source
- Inaugural Address, March 5, 1877
- Read at
- The American Presidency Project (text follows the Public Papers of the Presidents)
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About this quote
From Rutherford B. Hayes's Inaugural Address, March 5, 1877, in his passage on civil service reform. The full sentence is given, because the famous short form ("he serves his party best who serves the country best") is the end of a longer sentence that first admits the President owes his election to a party.