Everett Dirksen Quote - Liberty Quotes Blog

"A billion here, a billion there,
sooner or later it adds up to real money."

by:	Everett Dirksen (1896-1969) U.S. Congressman and Senator (R-IL)
Source:	Popularly attributed
Rating:
Categories:	Debt, Economics, Fed, Government
	Tweet

Reader comments about this quote:

Yep, really funny. The Obamunist has updated that little diddle: A trillion here, a trillion there, sooner or later it adds up to real money -- Mike, Norwalk 5
Mike you beat me to it. That was the first thought that popped into my head when I read the quote. Hat tip to you. -- Anon 3
400 billion here,400 billion there ,and sooner than later it adds up to real inflation. -- jim k, austin 3
He never made THAT statement. Ever since the fed res note has become more than just worthless, the quote has been taken out of context. Dirkson, the big thief of the interstate highway commission because he has insider information regarding where the roads would be built so he bought up miles of property and became an instant millionaire, said, and I quote, "A MILLION here and a MILLION there, pretty soon it adds up to real money!" -- pilgrim 1776, novi, michigan
pilgrim, don't shoot the messenger. Didn't Gates say something similar concerning billions? At the exponential rate the Obamunist is increasing the size of the currency, pretty soon someone will be saying 'A quadrillion here a quadrillion there, pretty soon it adds up to real money' -- Mike, Norwalk 2
Pilgrim you may be right about Eve Dirksen but a more recent Illinois son of the praire the last Speaker of the House, that guy from Yorkville, Illinois did the same thing. I can't think of his name but he bought up farms surronding a proposed clover leaf for a highway that no one wants. Increasing the national debt or budget does not increase the size of the currency. If that were true we would have not 500 billion in circulation but 10 trillion. I give the quote a three for succinctness. -- Waffler, Smith
Waffler, I didn't equate debt to currency in a manner that you imply but, what will your comment be in 2 to 4 years from now (maybe sooner) when inflation takes off uncontrollably from the last 12 months of governmental currency increase (especially under the Obamunist)? -- Mike, Norwalk
Mike, when Waffler speaks of wasteful spending by Obama it equals necessary stimulus. When he speaks of any spending by Reagan or Bush for any reason it is budget busting national debt creating waste. It all depends on who does it. Make work for a clover leaf can be either one depending on who does the spending. My memory has the quote as being million not billion but truly with Obama once it hits a trillion it no longer is real money. -- warren, olathe 2
Million, billion, trillion -- it all adds up to an unpayable debt. Waffler, you confuse printed federal reserve notes (referred to as dollar bills) as 'currency' -- yes there may only be 500 billion bills printed, but our volume of currency also includes what is called 'checkbook' currency. After all, we do not receive our salaries in cash do we? This 1.2 trillion dollars being 'borrowed' is not in the form of dollar bills but in checks, so yes, there are over 10 trillion dollars in circulation, some in paper promissory notes (federal reserve notes, treasury bonds), checks, and digital account balances. Now, when the government 'borrows' it is only printing up T-Bills (I do believe they still print these) and exchanges them for a check from the Federal Reserve or from anyone using federal reserve notes or checks representing federal reserve notes. And yes, the checks are simply printed -- or even quicker is the simple electronic deposit -- poof, instant money. Of course it is simply Monopoly money, and in the end everything ends up back in the box. Understand this simple point: the Federal Reserve does not buy T-bills with money they already have, no, they simply issue Federal Reserve notes in the form of bills or checks with the T-Bill as the backing, so new money is created whenever the government 'borrows' from the bank. It is one IOU exchanged for another IOU, and the interest is the perpetual tribute we pay to the bank for the privilege of being bankrupt forever. Has anyone bothered to figure out what the annual interest is on 1 trillion dollars? The purpose of income taxes is to keep paying the interest to the Fed. Here's the $25,000 question: If the government can print a treasury bill, why can't they print up a dollar bill? And why pay interest at all, thus no taxes would be required? -- E Archer, NYC 6
E Archer, very helpful post but those 2 last questions might be tough for Waffler with his mega intelligent complicated thought processes. They are too simple and take what's called common sense. -- Anon 4
-- Ronw13, Yachats Or
When you get to being 78 yeas old sometimes the only thing that still works is the memory. :- ) Dirksen was one of my favorite old time, classic senators in the history of what used to be the "greatest debating club in the world" and I've never forgotten this quote. I saw Dirksen make this comment at as news conference back in the mid-sixties. Back then I watched him deliver this quote at the news conference on a small black & white TV in our small apartment in Philadelphia, PA. -- Joe Murray, Mobile, AL 3
-- jim k, Austin
-- Mary, MI

Bio of Everett Dirksen
More Everett Dirksen Quotes
Books by or about Everett Dirksen
Everett Dirksen Videos
Wikipedia
This Everett Dirksen quote is found in these quote Categories:
Debt Quotes
Economics Quotes
Fed Quotes
Government Quotes

Quotes & Quotations - Send This Quote to a Friend

© 1998-2024 Liberty-Tree.ca