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Who really said it

To anger a conservative, lie to him. To anger a liberal, tell him the truth

Not Theodore Roosevelt — a modern internet fabrication Theodore Roosevelt 1858–1919 · 26th U.S. President; the quote is falsely attributed to him
Disputed Rights unconfirmed

There is no evidence Theodore Roosevelt ever said or wrote this. It appears in none of his speeches, letters, or writings, and the Theodore Roosevelt Center found no trace of it ↗. Etymologist Barry Popik dates the full line to print only around 2007 — nearly a century after TR’s death — and it was first attached to Roosevelt around 2009. Its true author is unknown.

Last verified 14 Jul 2026 · how we verify · spot an error?

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Disputed — copy with the correction

“To anger a conservative, lie to him. To anger a liberal, tell him the truth” Misattributed to Theodore Roosevelt. No source exists in his speeches or writings; the line first appeared in print around 2007. Author unknown.

The slide-ready mistake: crediting this to Theodore Roosevelt. Use the credit shown above instead.

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We couldn’t verify where this wording comes from, so there’s no rights status to give. Safe to present as an unverified or anonymous line — just don’t assert a specific author or source.

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In context

Evoking the world of Theodore Roosevelt — 26th U.S. President · the quote is falsely attributed to him. Theme: "To anger a conservative, lie to him. To anger a liberal, tell him the truth". Atmospheric and restrained, cinematic directional light, a muted period-appropriate palette, fine grain and texture. Compose with generous empty space for the quote and a small credit line. No lettering in the image itself.

Minimalist

Minimalist editorial slide for the quote "To anger a conservative, lie to him. To anger a liberal, tell him the truth". Clean background, a single muted accent color, generous negative space, subtle paper or linen texture, no literal illustration — let the words carry it. Reserve clear space for a serif quote and a small credit line. No lettering in the image itself.

Provenance

Where the line actually comes from

Falsely attributed to
Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919)
Actual status
Anonymous 21st-century internet coinage
First in print
c. 2007, credited to an “unknown source”
First tied to Roosevelt
c. 2009; routine by 2010

To anger a conservative, lie to him. To anger a liberal, tell him the truth.

No documented source in Roosevelt’s speeches, letters, or writings exists for this wording. A partial precursor — “it’s easy to annoy a liberal, just tell the truth about them’’ — appears on a Usenet group in 1995, per Barry Popik ↗, but the full two-part line only surfaces around 2007.

Barry Popik: origin research on the quote

How we verified this

  • Etymologist and OED contributor Barry Popik traced the full line to print around 2007 ↗, with only a partial 1995 Usenet variant before it — long after Roosevelt’s death.
  • FactCheck.org ↗ quotes the Theodore Roosevelt Center and a University of Virginia scholar, both of whom could find no evidence TR said it and doubt its authenticity.
  • TruthOrFiction ↗ documents the arc: unknown attribution c. 2007, first credited to Roosevelt c. 2009, and regularly linked to him by 2010.

The wording has no identifiable author or source work: it is an anonymous internet-era coinage first seen in print around 2007. Because no originating work or date can be established, no copyright status can be asserted — and it is certainly not a Roosevelt-era public-domain text.

Fact-check

How the misattribution spread

This is a textbook internet misquote: a punchy partisan line dressed up with the name of a long-dead, widely admired president to lend it borrowed authority.

Theodore Roosevelt No evidence

The Theodore Roosevelt Center and scholars found no trace of it ↗ in his speeches or writings; the full line only reached print around 2007, decades after his 1919 death.

Winston Churchill Also false

The same line has circulated under Churchill’s name, another all-purpose magnet for unsourced quips, per FactCheck.org ↗.

Rush Limbaugh Also false

Gizmodo ↗ notes the quote has also been attributed to the radio host — a sign it is a free-floating modern coinage, not anyone’s documented words.

The real author is unknown. The wording is an anonymous internet-era coinage first seen in print around 2007, as documented by Barry Popik’s antedating research ↗ — not Theodore Roosevelt, Churchill, or Limbaugh.

Context

Why the attribution doesn’t fit

Beyond the missing source, the quote is anachronistic. In Theodore Roosevelt’s day the pairing of “liberal” against “conservative” as the two poles of American politics was not the common framing — “progressive” was the word of the moment, and Roosevelt himself ran as a Progressive in 1912. The line’s neat left/right symmetry reflects a 21st-century culture-war idiom, not early-1900s usage.

Its documented history bears this out: a partial precursor surfaced on a Usenet newsgroup in 1995, the full two-part version reached print around 2007 credited to an “unknown source,” and Roosevelt’s name was grafted on only around 2009.

There is no evidence this quote exists before the 21st century — it likely originated on the Internet.

Explore

Filed under

More provenance-checked quotes on the same theme, each with its reuse status.

Truth

Go further

Dig deeper

Trusted places to keep pulling the thread — primary archives, fact-checks, and scholarship. We show how we used each one before you leave.

Unverified Teddy Roosevelt 'Quotation' Lives Onfactcheck.org

FactCheck.org quotes the Theodore Roosevelt Center and scholars finding no evidence TR said it.
Barry Popik: origin of the quotebarrypopik.com

Etymologist’s antedating research: 1995 partial Usenet variant, full line c. 2007.
Teddy Roosevelt on Conservatives vs. Liberalstruthorfiction.com

Timeline of how the line went from “unknown source” (2007) to a Roosevelt attribution (2009–2010).
This Teddy Roosevelt Quote Is Fakegizmodo.com

Explains the anachronism and notes the same line is also misattributed to Rush Limbaugh.
Is a Viral Quote About Liberals and Conservatives Attributable to Teddy Roosevelt?thedispatch.com

The Dispatch: no source can be found online; the TR Center never encountered it in its research.

Falsely credited

About Theodore Roosevelt

Theodore Roosevelt

1858–1919 · 26th U.S. President · the quote is falsely attributed to him

Theodore Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States (1901–1909), a prolific author, and one of the most heavily quoted figures in American history — which makes him a magnet for invented sayings. This partisan zinger is one of many lines pinned on him with no basis in his actual speeches or writings. As scholars note, the modern political labels “liberal” and “conservative” were not even used this way in his era, where “progressive” was the more common term.

For writers & researchers

Cite this

Sources

Barry Popik, “To anger a conservative, lie to him; to anger a liberal, tell him the truth,” BarryPopik.com; and Eugene Kiely, “Unverified Teddy Roosevelt ‘Quotation’ Lives On,” FactCheck.org, May 2019. Earliest documented in print c. 2007; no source in Roosevelt’s works.

This verification page

Quotle.info. “Who really said ‘To anger a conservative, lie to him. To anger a liberal, tell him the truth’?” Last verified 14 Jul 2026. https://quotle.info/who-said/to-anger-a-conservative-lie-to-him-to-anger-a-liberal-tell

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