A biography for J. Edgar Hooverhasn’t been written yet.
“Justice is merely incidental to law and order.”
“Banks are an almost irresistible attraction for that element of our society which seeks unearned money.”
“Above all, I would teach him to tell the truth Truth-telling, I have found, is the key to responsible citizenship. The thousands of criminals I have seen in 40 years of law enforcement have had one thing in common: Every single one was a liar.”
“I regret to say that we of the FBI are powerless to act in cases of oral-genital intimacy, unless it has in some way obstructed interstate commerce.”
“The cure for crime is not the electric chair, but the high chair.”
“We are a fact-gathering organization only. We don't clear anybody. We don't condemn anybody.”
“No amount of law enforcement can solve a problem that goes back to the family.”
“Just the minute the FBI begins making recommendations on what should be done with its information, it becomes a Gestapo.”