Speak softly and carry a big stick

Cultural  

1. A proverb quoted by Theodore Roosevelt as a brief statement of his approach to foreign policy. (See big stick diplomacy.)

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Speak softly and carry a big stick

Teddy Roosevelt, the famous trust-buster of the early 20th century, once advised: "Speak softly and carry a big stick."

From US News ● Jul. 12, 2016

Teddy Roosevelt's advice to statesmen, "Speak softly and carry a big stick," has been put to good use by Britain's Prime Minister Edward Heath.

From Time Magazine Archive

As President, TR believed in a policy, as he put it, to "Speak softly and carry a big stick."

From Time Magazine Archive

In other words, Dwight Eisenhower had adopted T.R.'s maxim: "Speak softly and carry a big stick."

From Time Magazine Archive

Perhaps the most famous of Roosevelt's epigrammatic sayings is, "Speak softly and carry a big stick."

From Theodore Roosevelt and His Times by Howland, Harold