“If you've been successful, you didn't get there on your own. If you've got a business, you didn't build that, somebody else made that happen.”

—  Barack Obama

Misquoted by Mitt Romney " These Hands http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLZpMFbxyxU" campaign ad ()
[2012-07-19, Romney video deceptively edits Obama speech to make it sound anti-business, Greg, Sargent, The Plum Line, The Washington Post, http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/post/the-morning-plum-romney-video-deceptively-edits-obama-speech-to-make-it-sound-anti-business/2012/07/19/gJQAoRpavW_blog.html, 2012-10-08]
The Web version of the ad http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Lr49t4-2b8 uses a <span style="color:grey">longer misquote</span>: "If you've been successful, you didn't get there on your own. You didn't get there on your own. I'm always struck by people who think, "well, it must be because I was just so smart." There are a lot of smart people out there. "It must be because I worked harder than everybody else." Let me tell you something — if you've got a business, you didn't build that. Somebody else made that happen.
Splices two parts of a speech in Roanoke, Virginia on (see above). Full quote:
<p>There are a lot of wealthy, successful Americans who agree with me — because they want to give something back. They know they didn't — look, <span style="color:darkgrey">if you've been successful, you didn't get there on your own.</span> <span style="color:grey">You didn't get there on your own. I'm always struck by people who think, "well, it must be because I was just so smart." There are a lot of smart people out there. "It must be because I worked harder than everybody else." Let me tell you something —</span> there are a whole bunch of hardworking people out there.</p><p>If you were successful, somebody along the line gave you some help. There was a great teacher somewhere in your life. Somebody helped to create this unbelievable American system that we have that allowed you to thrive. Somebody invested in roads and bridges; <span style="color:darkgrey">if you've got a business, you didn't build that. Somebody else made that happen.</span> The Internet didn't get invented on its own. Government research created the Internet so that all the companies could make money off the Internet.</p>
Misattributed

Adopted from Wikiquote. Last update Sept. 30, 2023. History

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44th President of the United States of America 1961

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