Thomas Jefferson Encyclopedia

The government will one day be corrupt (Spurious Quotation)

Find out if Thomas Jefferson ever said, "The government will one day be corrupt and filled with liars, and the people will flock to the one that tells the truth."

A modern-day portrait of Thomas Jefferson in early 19-century attire with a speech bubble next to his head that says, "I said what?!"

Quotation: "The government will one day be corrupt and filled with liars, and the people will flock to the one that tells the truth."

Variations: "The government will one day be corrupt and filled with liars, and the people will flock to the one who tells the truth."

Earliest known appearance in print: This quotation has not been located in print. 

Summary: This quotation has not been found in the writings of Thomas Jefferson.  It seems to exist mainly on Twitter, but we have been unable to trace its existence before 2015.1

Sources searched:

  1. Founders Online
  2. Google
  3. Google Books
  4. Twitter

- Anna Berkes, 11/19/18

Footnotes

  1. Ziad K. Abdelnour (@blackhawkinc), “"The Government will one day be corrupt and filled with liars, and the people will flock to the one that tells the truth."- Thomas Jefferson,” X [Twitter], October 27, 2015, 5:49 p.m., https://x.com/blackhawkinc/status/659124895360688128.