I would rather fail in a cause that will ultimately triumph than to triumph in cause that will ultimately fail.

The saying contrasts short-term outcomes with long-term moral and historical judgment. It frames “failure” and “triumph” not as final verdicts but as temporary states measured against whether a cause is ultimately just, sustainable, or aligned with progress. The speaker claims a preference for integrity and alignment with a winning future over opportunistic victory for a doomed or unjust position. In political rhetoric, the line functions as a defense of principled dissent and a rebuke to expediency: better to be on the right side of history, even if it costs power now, than to win today in service of something destined to collapse.