National Optimism Quotes

Through the potent example of his own life, President Obama enabled us to believe the best about America, and, therefore, about ourselves. That uplifting narrative - essentially equating the promise of America with his extraordinary life story - swept candidate Obama into the presidency.

America has much greatness left in her.

It's never paid to bet against America. We come through things, but its not always a smooth ride.

I believe in this country and in our government, and I know that it can be a positive force for good in the lives of our people.

...the incontestable truth is that America has been built up by optimists, not by pessimists, but by men possessing courage, confidence in the nation's destiny, by men willing to adventure, to shoulder risks terrifying to the timid.

I think New York City most represents what it is that America in general aspires to. It's big; it's dense. I've known this city from all of its social arcs. The best that's in America is yet to come. The worst that's in America is yet to come.

Who among us is not at a loss for words? Tears pour out. Tears of joy. Tears of relief. A stunning, whopping landslide of hope in a time of deep despair. In a nation that was founded on genocide and then built on the backs of slaves, it was an unexpected moment, shocking in its simplicity: Barack Obama, a good man, a black man, said he would bring change to Washington, and the majority of the country liked that idea.

I love America. It's got potential to be great again. But, really, it's not great right now.

I'm moderately optimistic. We Americans are an enormous country with more than 300 million people so there's reason for optimism.

Barack Obama has said he doesn't believe in American leadership or America winning - he is wrong. America can win again and we will win again.

Barack Obama knows that to create an economy built to last, we need to focus on middle-class families. Families who stay up on Sunday nights pacing the floor, like my dad did, while their children, tucked in bed, dream big dreams. Families who aren't sure what Monday morning will bring, but who believe our nation's best days are still ahead.

I mean, hope doesn't get actualized in three and a half years. If that were the case, we'd be out of luck as a country.

We're not perfect. We're a work in progress. But man, America has gotten a lot of things right.

I think it's what animates our president-elect [Donald Trump] more than anything else, is a belief in the boundless potential of every American to live the American dream.

I still believe in this country, that it can fulfill the destiny Blake and Whitman envisioned. I still believe in American poetry.

If I had my choice, I wish this country, America, were running great. I wish I could stand up and say, "Wow, this place is really running fantastically."

Two-thirds of Americans think our kids will have a worse life than we did. That is a powerful indication we are on the wrong path. I think we can change that, but I'll tell you, that's what I'm going to fight to do, and the reason so many grass-roots activists poured so much into it is they believed in our country. They believed in liberty.

We want American families to feel more confident in life. We want the next generation to know that yes, the best days of this country are still ahead of us.

I will always believe our nation's best days lie ahead.

We're America, and we have to stop worrying about what happens overseas, and to be optimistic, even though nobody should think we're not going to have some difficult times.

When Americans are worried about losing their jobs, their savings, their homes and their chance at the American Dream, Congress and the president must work together to lift our economy and restore hope. That is the course the New Direction Congress will continue in the days and weeks ahead.

The people are phenomenal. You know my theme is 'Make America Great Again' and I think it can be greater than ever before. But if we have four years of Hillary (Clinton), I don't know if we can ever come back.

By promoting liberty abroad, we will build a safer world. By encouraging liberty at home, we will build a more hopeful America.

Pending catastrophe is not an easy notion to entertain, much less sustain. Americans, moreover, have a low tolerance for doom and gloom. We are the nation of optimism, after all. We elect leaders who promise hope and change. We are the shining city on a hill. But what happens when the lights go out?