Political Quotes

Edmund Burke: Despotism, if it means anything that is at all defensible, means a mode of government bound by no written rules, and…

On the record
Despotism, if it means anything that is at all defensible, means a mode of government bound by no written rules, and coerced by no controlling magistracies or well-settled orders in the state.
Said by
Edmund Burke

Editor's note · Context

Burke critiques despotism as a form of government lacking accountability and rules.

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