What George didn't know was how often nutters would misquote him or falsely attribute to him positions he did not espouse.
https://www.mountvernon.org/library/digitalhi...uotations/
The following is a list of quotations misattributed to George Washington that have been sent to the Mount Vernon library in recent years. This list will continue to grow as research staff at Mount Vernon become aware of other misattributed or false statements that have been cited as belonging to Washington. When available, an example of this misquote is provided in context, including published books, speeches and periodicals.
"A free people ought not only be armed and disciplined, but they should have sufficient arms and ammunition to maintain a status of independence from any who might attempt to abuse them, which would include their own government."
For example
This quote is partially accurate as the beginning section is taken from Washington's First Annual Message to Congress on the State of the Union. However, the quote is then manipulated into a differing context and the remaining text is inaccurate. Here is the actual text from Washington's speech:
"A free people ought not only to be armed, but disciplined; to which end a uniform and well-digested plan is requisite; and their safety and interest require that they should promote such manufactories as tend to render them independent of others for essential, particularly military, supplies."
The claim: George Washington advocated for insurrection over right to bear arms
A Facebook post from 2015 featuring a quote attributed to the nation's first president recently went viral.
Posted without a caption on Dec. 14, 2015, the post is a meme with a portrait of President George Washington with a quote about the right to bear arms in text overlay.
"When government takes away citizens' right to bear arms it becomes citizens' duty to take away government's right to govern," the quote states. The post was shared over 5,800 times.
A single comment on the post, from five years ago, states "AMEN!"
USA TODAY reached out to the poster for comment.
The claim is one of several versions using the Founding Father's likeness to advocate for the right to bear arms. Others include this Instagram post from May 31 and another from Nov. 17.
While there is evidence that Washington promoted domestic arms manufacturing to avoid shortages in the event of a national emergency, the former president stopped short of endorsing insurrection against the government.
Fact check:Satirical flyer promotes Capitol siege as Stanford law group event
What did Washington really say about the right to bear arms?
The quote from the claim is one of many spurious quotations attributed to Washington, according to The Fred W. Smith National Library for the Study of George Washington at Mount Vernon, Washington's Virginia estate.
An explanation for the quote, or a similar one confused for it, has not been found, per a statement on the library's website.
"What we believe people are basing it on is the passage from Washington’s First Inaugural Address but you can see it’s taken way out of context," Matt Briney, vice president of media and communications for Mount Vernon, told USA TODAY.
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According to Briney, the full quote from the Jan. 8, 1790, address states: "A free people ought not only to be armed, but disciplined; to which end a uniform and well-digested plan is requisite; and their safety and interest require that they should promote such manufactories as tend to render them independent of others for essential, particularly military, supplies."
Washington fully supported a strong national defense against foreign enemies, per the library's website. But there is no reference to citizens' duty to take away the government's right to govern if the right to bear arms — described in the Second Amendment of the Constitution as part of a well-regulated militia — is denied.
Edward Lengel, editor in chief of the Papers of George Washington project at the University of Virginia, told PolitiFact in 2015 that he's "as certain as he can be" that Washington never spoke the words from the Facebook claim.
"There is no evidence that Washington ever wrote or said these words, or any like them," Lengel said.
Fact check:Story of Marine Corps leader rebuking Pelosi is fabricated
Our ruling: False
We rate this claim FALSE, based on our research. A Facebook claim attributes a fake quote about citizens' rights to take away control from the government over the right to bear arms to George Washington. The nation's first president never spoke the words, according to scholars.
Our fact-check sources:
George Washington's Mount Vernon, accessed Jan. 28: "Spurious Quotations"
George Washington's Mount Vernon, accessed Jan. 28: "FIRST ANNUAL ADDRESS, TO BOTH HOUSES OF CONGRESS, JANUARY 8, 1790"
Jan. 28 email from Matt Briney, vice president of media and communications for Mount Vernon
PolitiFact, Feb. 20, 2015: "Did George Washington offer support for individual gun rights, as meme says?"
United States Senate, accessed Jan. 28: "Constitution of the United States"
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck...291783001/
https://www.mountvernon.org/library/digitalhi...uotations/
The following is a list of quotations misattributed to George Washington that have been sent to the Mount Vernon library in recent years. This list will continue to grow as research staff at Mount Vernon become aware of other misattributed or false statements that have been cited as belonging to Washington. When available, an example of this misquote is provided in context, including published books, speeches and periodicals.
"A free people ought not only be armed and disciplined, but they should have sufficient arms and ammunition to maintain a status of independence from any who might attempt to abuse them, which would include their own government."
For example
This quote is partially accurate as the beginning section is taken from Washington's First Annual Message to Congress on the State of the Union. However, the quote is then manipulated into a differing context and the remaining text is inaccurate. Here is the actual text from Washington's speech:
"A free people ought not only to be armed, but disciplined; to which end a uniform and well-digested plan is requisite; and their safety and interest require that they should promote such manufactories as tend to render them independent of others for essential, particularly military, supplies."
The claim: George Washington advocated for insurrection over right to bear arms
A Facebook post from 2015 featuring a quote attributed to the nation's first president recently went viral.
Posted without a caption on Dec. 14, 2015, the post is a meme with a portrait of President George Washington with a quote about the right to bear arms in text overlay.
"When government takes away citizens' right to bear arms it becomes citizens' duty to take away government's right to govern," the quote states. The post was shared over 5,800 times.
A single comment on the post, from five years ago, states "AMEN!"
USA TODAY reached out to the poster for comment.
The claim is one of several versions using the Founding Father's likeness to advocate for the right to bear arms. Others include this Instagram post from May 31 and another from Nov. 17.
While there is evidence that Washington promoted domestic arms manufacturing to avoid shortages in the event of a national emergency, the former president stopped short of endorsing insurrection against the government.
Fact check:Satirical flyer promotes Capitol siege as Stanford law group event
What did Washington really say about the right to bear arms?
The quote from the claim is one of many spurious quotations attributed to Washington, according to The Fred W. Smith National Library for the Study of George Washington at Mount Vernon, Washington's Virginia estate.
An explanation for the quote, or a similar one confused for it, has not been found, per a statement on the library's website.
"What we believe people are basing it on is the passage from Washington’s First Inaugural Address but you can see it’s taken way out of context," Matt Briney, vice president of media and communications for Mount Vernon, told USA TODAY.
Get the Checking the Facts newsletter in your inbox.
Fact or fiction? Find out the truth about news stories you see online.
Delivery: Mon - Fri
Your Email
According to Briney, the full quote from the Jan. 8, 1790, address states: "A free people ought not only to be armed, but disciplined; to which end a uniform and well-digested plan is requisite; and their safety and interest require that they should promote such manufactories as tend to render them independent of others for essential, particularly military, supplies."
Washington fully supported a strong national defense against foreign enemies, per the library's website. But there is no reference to citizens' duty to take away the government's right to govern if the right to bear arms — described in the Second Amendment of the Constitution as part of a well-regulated militia — is denied.
Edward Lengel, editor in chief of the Papers of George Washington project at the University of Virginia, told PolitiFact in 2015 that he's "as certain as he can be" that Washington never spoke the words from the Facebook claim.
"There is no evidence that Washington ever wrote or said these words, or any like them," Lengel said.
Fact check:Story of Marine Corps leader rebuking Pelosi is fabricated
Our ruling: False
We rate this claim FALSE, based on our research. A Facebook claim attributes a fake quote about citizens' rights to take away control from the government over the right to bear arms to George Washington. The nation's first president never spoke the words, according to scholars.
Our fact-check sources:
George Washington's Mount Vernon, accessed Jan. 28: "Spurious Quotations"
George Washington's Mount Vernon, accessed Jan. 28: "FIRST ANNUAL ADDRESS, TO BOTH HOUSES OF CONGRESS, JANUARY 8, 1790"
Jan. 28 email from Matt Briney, vice president of media and communications for Mount Vernon
PolitiFact, Feb. 20, 2015: "Did George Washington offer support for individual gun rights, as meme says?"
United States Senate, accessed Jan. 28: "Constitution of the United States"
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck...291783001/
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