* “We need to move towards a trust-building road map with the Westerners. To them, trust-building means taking some steps in the nuclear case, and for us this happens when sanctions are lifted.”–Abbas Araghchi, deputy foreign minister of Iran and a nuclear-talks negotiator.
* “My question is whether the supreme leader and more conservative factions, including the Islamic Guard, will be willing to give (President) Rouhani enough flexibility so that he can offer the kind of nuclear concessions the U.S. will demand as a condition for sanctions relief.”–Gary Samore, President Obama’s former coordinator for arms control and weapons of mass destruction, proliferation and terrorism, in a presentation at USF.
* “Even though most Israelis dislike him, they see him as the best advocate–he knows how to deliver the goods when we are talking about talking. He’s a professional whistle-blower. He’s a professional prophet. But all the time pessimistic, threatening.”–An assessment of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu by Ben Caspit, a Netanyahu biographer.
* “An important step (Affordable Care Act). … But if you don’t make America healthier, you’re not going to control costs. And ultimately that’s what we have to do.”–Dr. Sanjay Gupta, neurosurgeon and CNN’s chief medical correspondent.
* “While I think we all agree … that more needs to be done to strengthen the recovery, particularly for those hardest hit by the Great Recession, we have made progress. The economy is stronger and the financial system sounder.”–Janet Yellen, who was recently appointed by President Obama to succeed Ben Bernanke as leader of the Federal Reserve system.
* “There’s a toughness to her that there isn’t in Bernanke.”–Christina Romer, former chairwoman of President Obama’s Council of Economic Advisers.
* “I don’t know that I would pick out one thing. It’s a lot of things. My family, my job, my rehabilitation from my back.”–U.S. Rep. C.W. “Bill” Young on his retirement announcement.
* “We need some kind of change up there. We need better people, or different people. Maybe I can be part of the solution.”–Alex Sink on the possibility of running for the congressional seat, Pinellas County’s District 13, of retiring U.S. Rep. C. W. “Bill” Young.
* “I have heard from many in Tampa Bay–including Republican members of Congress–and the message is clear: End the shutdown and focus on the big-picture budget for future years.”–U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor, D-Tampa.
* “This is affecting real people who have nothing to do with this. This is not their fight. This is a bunch of Tea Partiers who are trying to make a point, holding the U.S. government hostage.”–Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn on the impact of the federal government shutdown, including the abruptly postponed four-day national defense and intelligence conference at the Tampa Convention Center that would have meant 7,000 hotel nights and an estimated economic impact of $5 million.
* “We cannot have constant growth, small government, maximum liberty AND a life-sustaining environment.”–Chris Meindl, USF professor of Florida Studies.
* “I wish Jeb Bush had been elected president instead of ‘W,’ who I like, but he didn’t have the skill set to do the job like his little brother.”–Tom James, chairman of Raymond James Financial.
* “This is bigger than landing the Super Bowl, a national convention or the Olympics. It’s a mega-storm of growth that’s hitting our county with feeder bands that will create economic growth all over this area.”–Hillsborough County Commissioner Sandy Murman on Amazon’s completion of a real estate deal to build a massive distribution center in Ruskin.
* “Never lose sight of the power of your badge, and the absolute requirement that you never act in a way to bring dishonor to yourself or this organization.”–Tampa Police Chief Jane Castor.
* “In our community, the name Dottie stands for passion, integrity, tenacity and love.”–Former Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio on the late Dottie Berger MacKinnon.
* “(Owner Stuart Sternberg’s) job is to represent the interests of the Tampa Bay Rays. Mr. (Commissioner Bud) Selig’s job is to represent the interests of Major League Baseball. My job is to represent the interests of St. Petersburg.”–St. Petersburg Mayor Bill Foster.