"Politics is supposed to be the second-oldest profession. I have come to realize it bears a very close resemblance to the first."

"Politics is just like show business. You have a hell of an opening, you coast for awhile, you have a hell of a closing."

"Politics is not a bad profession. If you succeed there are many rewards, if you disgrace yourself you can always write a book."

"How can a president not be an actor?" (Upon being asked how an actor could become president.)

"I don’t know. I’ve never played a governor." (Upon being asked by a reporter in 1966 what kind of governor he would be.)

"What makes him think a middle-aged actor, who’s played with a chimp, could have a future in politics?" (On Clint Eastwood’s bid to be Mayor of Carmel, California.)

"I have wondered at times what the Ten Commandments would have looked like if Moses had run them through the U.S. Congress."

"I’m afraid I can’t use a mule. I have several hundred up on Capitol Hill."

"Government is like a baby. An alimentary canal with a big appetite at one end and no sense of responsibility at the other."

"My friends, some years ago the federal government declared war on poverty — and poverty won."

"Government’s view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it."

"Republicans believe every day is 4th of July, but Democrats believe every day is April 15."

"I am not worried about the deficit. It is big enough to take care of itself."

"Recession is when your neighbor loses his job. Depression is when you lose yours. And recovery is when Jimmy Carter loses his."

"How do you tell a Communist? It’s someone who reads Marx and Lenin. And how do you tell an anti-Communist? It’s someone who understands Marx and Lenin."

"I have left orders to be awakened at any time in case of national emergency — even if I’m in a cabinet meeting."

"But there are advantages to being elected President. The day after I was elected, I had my high school grades classified Top Secret."

"Honey, I forgot to duck." (Explaining to his wife, Nancy Reagan, why he had been hit by John Hinckley’s bullet.)

"I hope you’re all Republicans." (To the surgeons in the operating room after the assassination attempt.)

"I want you to know that I will not make age an issue in this campaign. I am not going to exploit, for political purposes, my opponent’s youth and inexperience." (In response to a question during the second of the 1984 Presidential Debates against opposing candidate Walter Mondale.)