Politics & Power Quote by Adlai E. Stevenson

Stevenson’s line is political jujitsu: it takes the expected complaint about “lies” and flips it into an accusation so blunt it almost dares the listener to laugh. The setup is ostensibly conciliatory - stop lying, and we’ll stop responding - then the punch lands: Democrats aren’t inventing counter-smears; they’re merely reporting Republicans as they are. It’s a quip that performs innocence while doing damage, the rhetorical equivalent of a raised eyebrow.

The intent is twofold. First, it reassures Stevenson’s side that aggression can be delivered with a clean conscience. Second, it frames the opposition’s narrative as not just wrong but dishonest, shifting the argument from policy disagreement to moral character. That’s crucial in mid-century American politics, when mass media was tightening message discipline and “fairness” norms were becoming their own battlefield. If you can brand the other party’s claims as lies, you don’t have to litigate each detail; you delegitimize the whole stream.

The subtext is also a small lecture about asymmetry. Stevenson implies Democrats are stuck playing defense against propaganda, and that “truth” itself has become partisan ammunition. It’s witty, but the wit has teeth: it suggests Republicans can’t withstand accurate description. The line’s elegance is that it sounds like a plea for civility while escalating the fight, a reminder that in politics, humor often arrives as the most socially acceptable form of contempt.