A thing moderately good is not so good as it ought to be. Moderation in temper is always a virtue; but moderation in principle is always a vice.
Thomas Paine
Very good quote applied aptly
That is a classic quote from the famously immoderate Thomas Paine, and I mean that in a good way.
Another relevant quote on the subject comes from Barry Goldwater:
"I would remind you that extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice! And let me remind you also that moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue."
Or, perhaps, you'd prefer my own definition:
A "moderate" is one who makes of fetish of even-handedness in order to evade the responsibility of judgment.
Damn. Good one. Every pastel patriot in the country ought to read that one on rising, every morning for the rest of his life.
Obama was the most liberal congressman in DC and yet this man thought he'd somehow transform into a moderate once elected president?