Political Quotes

Edmund Burke: The words of the article do this, or they do nothing; and so far as the crown had a share in passing those acts, the…

On the record
The words of the article do this, or they do nothing; and so far as the crown had a share in passing those acts, the public faith was unquestionably broken.
Said by
Edmund Burke

Editor's note · Context

Burke argues that the wording of an article is crucial, suggesting that the crown's involvement in passing acts breaks public faith.

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