I have a few:

"Cast your whole vote, not a strip of paper merely, but your whole influence."

"He forthwith adopts one of the candidates thus selected as the only available one, thus proving that he is himself available for any purposes of the demagogue."

Both of those from Henry David Thoreau's On the Duty of Civil Disobedience (1849), which I recommend all of you to read.

Funny you mention Ben Franklin:

"Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."

"Love your Enemies, for they tell you your Faults."

Staying on early american history, how about Jefferson's Declaration of Independence?

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with inherent and inalienable Rights; that among these, are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness; that to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed; that whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the people to alter or abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles, and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness."

Oh, and if you want quotes, basically anything from Mark Twain is good: http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Mark_Twain