Richard M. Daley Quotes

We should be tough on a bureaucracy that fails to turn aid money into critical services for the poor.

Have you ever noticed that it’s only the public sector that complains about too many customers.

For too long it was assumed that you could completely separate out flows of money from responsibilities and accountabilities in service delivery. This flawed assumption is central to understanding many of the failures.

If the people are not getting what the people need, you shouldn’t be paying for it.

I used to be on the Lincoln City Council. You learn that there's never enough money for all of the police officers and fire-fighting apparatus you'd like to have.

In too many ways, Ohio is being run for the benefit of those who have already made it, and too many of our friends and neighbors are being left behind. Nowhere is this more evident than in the cuts to police officers, firefighters, nurses, teachers, and to our local schools, while property and sales taxes are going up.

We should never forget the government should be held accountable for providing services.

911 rings at the mayor’s office, not at the Justice Department or the White House.

Democratic government is responsible government—which means accountable government--and the essential problem in contracting out is that responsibility and accountability are greatly diminished.

That’s not my job.

I've organized everything for my family since I was little. I know how to delegate and budget. I solve people's problems.

As the governor of the state of Arizona, I took an oath to uphold the laws and to protect the people of Arizona. And I'm going to be relentless in it. I'm going to do what is right.

When you're the CEO, you take responsibility.

You go to your public library, or you call your fire department or police department, what do you think you are calling? These are socialist institutions.

People will give you the responsibility, even the authority, to go after the big things, the visionary things, the reaching for incredible opportunities, if they trust that you're running a city well. And if you don't run a city well, conversely, you can't do the big things.

Provision of best services to the citizens is our top priority, and Punjab government has evolved a coordinated programme in this regard.

In local government, it's very clear to your customers - your citizens - whether or not you're delivering. Either that pothole gets filled in, or it doesn't. The results are very much on display, and that creates a very healthy pressure to innovate.

Here in Washington State, I've supported efforts to provide our law enforcement with the proper training and resources required to meet their changing and demanding needs of their job. In doing so, I feel that the community and the law enforcement relationship will gratefully benefit from a renewed sense of responsibility and accountability.

I see my role as police commissioner as providing strategic oversight, support and accountability for the bureau.

Taking power is fine. But what do you do when you are in power?

There is definitely a balance that I have to strike both in terms of supporting the Police Bureau - making sure they have the tools and the resources they need to do their jobs effectively. But I also have an important role to play when it comes to oversight and accountability.

Extra homes require additional services and councils have to pick up the tab.

I have learned lessons in America about how you go about things, and what I know is that you find the best people, empower them, give them the resources, and hold them accountable.

At the risk of sounding really corny now, I'm a career prosecutor. I've been doing this for a very long time. And I believe in holding people responsible when they violate the law. But our sole responsibility is to seek justice. And sometimes that means a very lengthy sentence for people who are dangerous and from which society must be protected.

People elect me to make sure the chief of police is the right chief of police. They elect me to make sure I have the right person running the airport.