The liberties and freedoms which we hold dear and we recognize and cherish and respect guide the way we gather information in the United States
John AshcroftThe charges of the hysterics are revealed for what they are: castles in the air built on misrepresentation, supported by unfounded fear, held aloft by hysteria.
John AshcroftThe FBI. is a massive culture. It's been a culture that served America well, and it's been focused on prosecution. But what we need in terms of terrorism is prevention.
John AshcroftThe new rule says that the FBI has the right to go to public places on the same terms and conditions as other members of the public for counterterrorism purposes.
John AshcroftPeople who commit crimes should be responsible for those crimes. It doesn't matter whether they're priests or ministers or atheists.
John AshcroftThere's nothing more rewarding or important than to be involved in God's work of redemption.
John AshcroftThe way the terrorist is trained to operate, especially the suicide terrorists, makes punishment and the threat of punishment far less valuable to those who would prevent the crime
John AshcroftThe objective of securing the safety of Americans from crime and terror has been achieved.
John AshcroftPrior to September 11, we thought the world beyond our shores was one world of risk and the world in our continent was another world of risk
John AshcroftThe Internet provides very serious challenges to our ability to keep from children the kinds of things that are destructive to them
John AshcroftIf America is to be great in the future, it will be if we understand that our source is not civic and temporal, but our source is godly and eternal.
John AshcroftWhat did John Ashcroft say about moderates, he said, quote, there are two things you find in the middle of the road, a moderate and a dead skunk and I don't want to be either.
John AshcroftLeaders select noble objectives and pursue them with such intensity that others join them. ... The greatest of all leaders from this perspective was Jesus Christ. ....May your choices be so powerful and magnetic that you'll draw people toward life (Duet. 30:19, ...therefore choose life.-) rather than death, blessing rather than cursing.
John AshcroftWe're going to protect and honor the Constitution, and I don't have the authority to set it aside.... If I had the authority to set it aside, this would be a dangerous government, and I wouldn't respect it.
John AshcroftThe FBI has long been a part of the security for the nation's banks because bank robberies have been a priority
John AshcroftBy tearing down the wall between law enforcement and the intelligence community, we have been able to share information in a way that was virtually impossible before the Patriot Act.
John AshcroftNothing remains great without a capacity to change and to accommodate the conditions of a changing world.
John AshcroftFrankly, the president, during the first opportunity I had to be in a Cabinet meeting, before we started the meeting, he said, Folks, before we begin this meeting, I'm going to call on General Ashcroft and ask him invite the wisdom and presence of God in what we do. And I thought to myself how ashamed I'd been that so many times in my life I had entered upon great important tasks and I had cheated myself and those that I had served of a blessing.
John AshcroftFor the first time in a long time, our leaders in Washington understand what Americans of all religious backgrounds have long held to be true: through faith, all things are possible.
John AshcroftWe've got to understand that the whole nature of the way American democracy guards its freedom has been changed
John AshcroftWe have to think outside the box, inside the Constitution, find ways to do things that will elevate our security, reduce the risk of the incidence of terrorist attack
John AshcroftI feel the best way to ensure Americans' freedom is to tighten restrictions on that freedom in any way possible. Only through wiretaps, illegal searches and seizures, unfettered government intrusion, a controlled media and a complete crackdown on free speech can we ensure the liberties of all people.
John AshcroftThe state's interest in effective crime-fighting should never vitiate the citizens' Bill of Rights.
John AshcroftWe are a nation called to defend freedom - a tradition that is not a grant of any government or document, but is an endowment from God.
John Ashcroft[The war on terrorism isn't a religious war, but] a defense of our right to make moral choices, to seek fellowship with God that is chosen and not commanded.
John AshcroftWe must embrace the power of faith, but we must never confuse politics and piety. For me, may I say that it is against my religion to impose my religion.
John AshcroftWe need to strengthen our analytic capacity in Washington, we need to centralize the anti-terrorism effort
John AshcroftPeople want to see other people who have 'non-negotiables,' things for which they're willing to say, 'This is it' we take our stand right here.' That's a leadership quality which people respect.
John AshcroftDoing what is right in the face of adversity is not always easy or popular. Critics may assail you, but the critics don't always realize what they don't know or don't understand, because they don't have access to all the information.
John AshcroftThere is a concern that the Internet could be used to commit crimes and that advanced encryption could disguise such activity. However, we do not provide the government with phone jacks outside our homes for unlimited wiretaps. Why, then, should we grant government the Orwellian capability to listen at will and in real time to our communications across the Web?
John AshcroftAn FBI agent ought to be able to surf the net and look for sites that instruct people how to make bombs.
John AshcroftI decided this early on at Justice: if the traditional way was the most effective way of doing something, then we'd maintain it. But if it was not functioning at optimum levels, we would be doing the country a disservice by continuing to do things "like we've always done them."
John AshcroftThe transmission of values from one generation to the next is the single most important task of the society. ...What am I doing to shape the values of the society?
John AshcroftAgents need to be free to pursue investigations in ways that they haven't. There have been restraints that a reformed FBI needs to make sure we don't impose.
John AshcroftNothing that we have authorized conflicts with any law regarding privacy or any provision of the constitution.
John AshcroftIn this new war, our enemy's platoons infiltrate our borders, quietly blending in with visiting tourists, students, and workers. They move unnoticed through our cities, neighborhoods, and public spaces. They wear no uniforms. Their camouflage is not forest green, but rather it is the color of common street clothing. Their tactics rely on evading recognition at the border and escaping detection within the United States. Their terrorist mission is to defeat America, destroy our values and kill innocent people.
John AshcroftJust as the First and Fourth Amendment secure individual rights of speech and security respectively, the Second Amendment protects an individual right to keep and bear arms. This view of the text comports with the all but unanimous understanding of the Founding Fathers.
John AshcroftIf necessity is the mother of invention, it's the father of cooperation. And we're cooperating like never before.
John AshcroftWe must not descend to the level of those who perpetrated Tuesday's violence by targeting individuals based on their race, their religion, or their national origin. Such reports of violence and threats are in direct opposition to the very principles and laws of the United States and will not be tolerated.
John Ashcroft