KAKISTOCRACY (noun) — Government by the worst, least qualified, or most unscrupulous people.
In Their Own Words

Quotes

A searchable collection of documented public statements from people covered by the Kakistocracy Files.

5,728Total Quotes in the Archive
AllAlex JonesAlina HabbaAndrew ClydeAnn CoulterAnthony ScaramucciBill BarrBrendan CarrByron DonaldsCharlie KirkChristine O’DonnellChuck GrassleyCorey LewandowskiDan BonginoDonald TrumpDonald Trump Jr.Doug BurgumElise StefanikElon MuskEnrique TarrioEric TrumpGeorge SantosGreg GutfeldHerschel WalkerHillary ClintonHope HicksHoward LutnickIvanka TrumpJack PosobiecJacob ChansleyJames ComerJames ComeyJD VanceJeanine PirroJenna EllisJesse WattersJim JordanJohn EastmanJosh HawleyKari LakeKaroline LeavittKash PatelKayleigh McEnanyKellyanne ConwayKimberly GuilfoyleKristi NoemLaura LoomerLauren BoebertLindsey GrahamLouie GohmertMadison CawthornMarco RubioMarjorie Taylor GreeneMark RobinsonMatt GaetzMehmet OzMichael CohenMichael FlynnMike JohnsonMike LindellMike PenceMo BrooksNancy MaceNewt GingrichPam BondiPaul GosarPete HegsethPeter NavarroRick ScottRobert F. Kennedy Jr.Roger StoneRon DeSantisRon JohnsonRonna McDanielRoy MooreRudy GiulianiRussell VoughtSarah Huckabee SandersSean HannitySean SpicerSebastian GorkaSharron AngleSidney PowellStephanie GrishamStephen MillerSteve BannonSteve KingSteve ScaliseTed NugentTim ScottTom HomanTommy TubervilleTucker CarlsonTulsi GabbardVivek Ramaswamy
161 quotes from Russell Vought
“You have a dysfunctional Congress.”
— Russell Vought
June 1, 2024   •   Vought criticized Congress while discussing his view that significant policymaking power had migrated to executive agencies.
Steve Bannon's War Room / RealClearPolitics transcript
“The President's Budget does all of that.”
— Russell Vought
May 2, 2025   •   Vought praising Trump's fiscal year 2026 budget proposal.
White House / Office of Management and Budget
“It was about destabilizing the Trump administration.”
— Russell Vought
July 1, 2024   •   Vought's characterization of the 2020 protests following George Floyd's murder.
Centre for Climate Reporting undercover recording
“This bill doesn't increase the deficit or hurt the debt.”
— Russell Vought
June 1, 2025   •   Vought defending the administration's tax-and-spending legislation. Budget estimates varied depending on assumptions and scoring methodology.
CNN State of the Union / White House
“We are making incredible strides.”
— Russell Vought
August 26, 2025   •   Vought assessing the administration's deregulation program.
White House Cabinet meeting
“We actually want it to go to cancer research.”
— Russell Vought
June 1, 2025   •   Vought discussing federal research funding.
CNN State of the Union / White House
“We can't have a government shutdown or even fight over the debt limit.”
— Russell Vought
June 1, 2024   •   Vought was criticizing political leaders whom he believed were unwilling to use confrontational tactics over spending and government power.
Steve Bannon's War Room / RealClearPolitics transcript
“We have to get spending under control.”
— Russell Vought
January 1, 2025
Senate confirmation hearing
“I would probably be Christian nation-ism.”
— Russell Vought
July 1, 2024   •   Vought discussing how he describes his political and religious philosophy.
Centre for Climate Reporting undercover recording
“This budget builds on the President's vision by continuing to constrain non-defense spending and reform the federal government.”
— Russell Vought
April 15, 2026   •   Vought testifying about the FY2027 budget request.
House Budget Committee
“We are working doggedly on that.”
— Russell Vought
July 1, 2024   •   Vought discussing plans for executive agencies.
Centre for Climate Reporting undercover recording
“I want to be the person that crushes the deep state.”
— Russell Vought
July 1, 2024   •   Vought describing his objectives for a future Trump administration.
Centre for Climate Reporting undercover recording
“I'm not here to defend it.”
— Russell Vought
January 23, 2025   •   Vought distinguished a Center for Renewing America budget proposal from the incoming Trump administration's policies.
Senate Budget Committee confirmation hearing
“We have to dismantle the administrative state.”
— Russell Vought
October 3, 2026   •   Vought describing his policy objective for the federal bureaucracy.
Public remarks
“Our adversaries already hold the weapons of the government apparatus.”
— Russell Vought
October 3, 2026   •   Vought's characterization of federal institutions under the Biden administration.
Center for Renewing America conference
“That's pretty close to Christian nationalism because I also believe in nationalism.”
— Russell Vought
July 1, 2024
Centre for Climate Reporting undercover recording
“He's running against the brand.”
— Russell Vought
July 1, 2024   •   Vought's interpretation of Trump's public distancing from Project 2025.
Centre for Climate Reporting undercover recording
“We are at 245 deregulatory initiatives.”
— Russell Vought
August 26, 2025   •   Vought reported the administration's planned regulatory rollbacks during a White House Cabinet meeting.
White House
“The stark reality in America is that we are in the late stages of a complete Marxist takeover of the country.”
— Russell Vought
October 3, 2026   •   Vought's political characterization of the United States under the Biden administration.
Center for Renewing America conference
“If a battle plan is out there that will do what he wants, there are the people like me that have his trust.”
— Russell Vought
July 1, 2024
Centre for Climate Reporting undercover recording