top of page
  • Writer's pictureJace Shoemaker-Galloway

It's Presidential Joke Day: Famous, funny and stupid presidential quotes and blunders


When it comes to holidays, Aug. 11 celebrates famous presidential faux pas and blunders. It's Presidential Joke Day in the USA! No joke!

While the yearly occasion is the perfect time to poke fun at the sitting president, this annual “holiday” was actually created in honor of one of America’s most beloved leaders, United States President Ronald Reagan.

On this day back in 1984, Reagan was preparing to give a radio address. Speaking into the microphone during a sound check, Reagan announced he had just signed legislation outlawing the Soviet Union and “we begin bombing in five minutes.” Unfortunately, the radio feed was live and the Russians were not laughing! Ahh, the perils of an open microphone created quite a stir even decades ago!

Famous, Funny & Stupid Presidential Quotes and Blunders

  • “If you want a friend in Washington, get a dog.” – Harry Truman

  • "I do not think it altogether inappropriate to introduce myself . . . I am the man who accompanied Jacqueline Kennedy to Paris, and I have enjoyed it." - John F. Kennedy

  • “It depends on what the meaning of the words “is” is.” – Bill Clinton

  • “I experimented with marijuana a time or two and I didn’t like it. I didn’t inhale and never tried it again.” - Bill Clinton

  • “If this were a dictatorship, it’d be a heck of a lot easier, just so long as I’m the dictator.” – George Bush

  • “I was under medication when I made the decision to burn the tapes." – Richard Nixon

  • "I am not a crook." - Richard Nixon

  • “I only know two tunes. One of them is ‘Yankee Doodle’ and the other isn’t.” - Ulysses S. Grant

  • “A zebra does not change its spots.” - Vice President Al Gore

  • “Corporations are people, my friend.” - Former Governor and Republican Presidential Nominee Mitt Romney

  • “Being president is like running a cemetery: you’ve got a lot of people under you and nobody’s listening.” - Bill Clinton

  • The fundamentals of the economy are strong." - Republican Presidential Nominee John McCain

  • “I love this state. The trees are the right height.” - Mitt Romney

  • “Only dead fish go with the flow.” - Former Governor and Vice Presidential hopeful Sarah Palin

  • "I didn’t really had a good answer, as so often – is me.” - Sarah Palin

  • “What’s the difference between a hockey mom and a pitbull? Lipstick!” - Sarah Palin

  • “As Putin rears his head and comes into the air space of the United States of America, where - where do they go? It’s Alaska. It’s just right over the border." Sarah Palin

  • "Read my lips. No new taxes." - George H. W. Bush

  • “I’ll be long gone before some smart person ever figures out what happened inside this Oval Office.” - George Bush

  • “You can fool some of the people all the time and those are the ones you want to concentrate on.” - George Bush

  • “I’m not familiar precisely with what I said but I’ll stand by what I said, whatever it was." - Mitt Romney

  • "I know words. I have the best words." - Donald J. Trump

  • "One of the wettest we've ever seen from the standpoint of water." - Trump referring to Huricane Florence

  • "Look at that face! Would anyone vote for that? Can you imagine that, the face of our next president?!” - Donald J. Trump talking about GOP candidate Carly Fiorina

  • "..extremely credible source’ has called my office and told me that Barack Obama’s birth certificate is a fraud." - Donald J. Trump

  • “So if you see somebody getting ready to throw a tomato, knock the crap out of ’em, would you? Seriously. Okay? Just knock the hell — I promise you, I will pay for the legal fees. I promise. I promise.”- Donald Trump at a rally in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

  • "He’s not a war hero. He was a war hero because he was captured. I like people who weren’t captured.” - Donald J. Trump

  • “Look at my African American over here!” - Trump at a rally on June 3, 2016

  • "There were very fine people on both sides” - Trump regarding the violence in Charlottesville.

  • "Russia, if you’re listening, I hope you’re able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing. I think you will probably be rewarded mightily by our press. " - Trump July 2016

  • "ISIS is honoring President Obama. He is the founder of ISIS. He founded ISIS. And I would say the co-founder would be crooked Hillary Clinton.” - Trump Aug. 2016

(There is not enough paper in the world to list all the "blunders" made by Donald J. Trump!)

Sources:

  • Suite 101. Diane Rutherford. “Funny, Profound U.S. President Quotes & Sayings.”

  • About Political Humor. Daniel Kurtzman. “The 50 Dumbest Bush Quotes of All Time”

  • About Political Humor. Daniel Kurtzman. "Stupid Presidential Quotes"

  • Politico. "37 Fatal Gaffes That Didn’t Kill Donald Trump"

bottom of page