"You don't tell deliberate lies, but sometimes you have to be evasive"
About this Quote
The subtext is pragmatic, even combative: governance isn’t a seminar; it’s a battlefield of negotiation, markets, security, party discipline, and public confidence. A leader can’t always disclose what she knows, what she’s planning, or what she’s conceding. So Thatcher offers a vocabulary that lets her keep control while appearing principled. “Evasive” sounds procedural, almost polite; it’s a softer word than “misleading,” and miles away from “manipulative.” It suggests discretion rather than distortion.
Context matters because Thatcher’s political brand was clarity and conviction. She sold herself as the antidote to muddle: straight talk, hard choices, no flannel. Admitting the need for evasion quietly acknowledges the limits of that persona. It’s also an implicit warning about how modern leadership operates: credibility is a currency you spend strategically. This isn’t a confession of hypocrisy so much as a justification for statecraft - the argument that in high office, transparency is not a constant virtue but a negotiable luxury.
Quote Details
| Topic | Honesty & Integrity |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Thatcher, Margaret. (2026, January 17). You don't tell deliberate lies, but sometimes you have to be evasive. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/you-dont-tell-deliberate-lies-but-sometimes-you-36748/
Chicago Style
Thatcher, Margaret. "You don't tell deliberate lies, but sometimes you have to be evasive." FixQuotes. January 17, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/you-dont-tell-deliberate-lies-but-sometimes-you-36748/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"You don't tell deliberate lies, but sometimes you have to be evasive." FixQuotes, 17 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/you-dont-tell-deliberate-lies-but-sometimes-you-36748/. Accessed 12 Feb. 2026.











