* “Russia’s goal was, and is, to keep Ukraine so unstable that we accept everything that the Russians want. I have no doubt that Putin could, with his direct influence, end the fighting.”–Petro Poroshenko, president-elect of Ukraine.
* “I would betray my duty to you, and to the country we love, if I sent you into harm’s way simply because I saw a problem somewhere in the world that needed fixing, or because I was worried about critics who think military intervention is the only way for America to avoid looking weak.”–President Barack Obama in his commencement speech to the U.S. Military Academy’s class of 2014.
* “I want the best relations with the government of the United States, based on respect and permanent communications.”–Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
* “I will not be a part of a political slugfest on the backs of dead Americans.”–Part of Hillary Clinton’s rebuttal to partisan charges that she and others in the Obama Administration tried to cover up aspects of the Benghazi attacks.
* “I was trained as a spy in sort of the traditional sense of the word in that I lived and worked undercover overseas–pretending to work in a job that I’m not–and even being assigned a name that was not mine.”–Edward Snowden.
* “We’re very pleased to be here. We’re learning a lot about the changes taking place in Cuba.”–Thomas J. Donohue, U.S. Chamber of Commerce President and CEO.
* “When the militias evaporated, so did the original meaning of the Second Amendment.”–Michael Waldman, author of The Second Amendment: A Biography.
* “It has always confused me when people refer to this as a liberal issue. William F. Buckley and Milton Friedman were supporters of marijuana reform, and medical marijuana in particular.”–Dan Riffle, director of federal policies for the Marijuana Policy Project.
* “As appalling as the wait times are for VA care, the people living in states that refused the Medicaid expansion aren’t just waiting too long for care. They’re not getting it at all. They’re going completely uninsured when federal law grants them comprehensive coverage.”–Ezra Klein, Vox.com.
* “We have too few college graduates. We also have too few people who are prepared for college.”–MIT economist David Autor.
* “What stands out to me most about Maya Angelou is not what she has done or written or spoken, it’s how she lived her life. She moved through the world with unshakeable calm, confidence and a fierce grace.”–Oprah Winfrey.
* “Separating children by race, class or test scores into pseudo-private charter schools is affecting our communities and our nation in the very ways we once tried to undo.”–Sally Kohn, The Daily Beast.
* “Men are afraid that women will laugh at them. Women are afraid that men will kill them.”–Novelist, poet Margaret Atwood.
* “This country just can’t fall to lobbyists and their deceit and manipulation. I’m not going to just sit back and have all Bill’s hard work just trashed to inside-the-Beltway politics. Ugh.”–Beverly Young, widow of the late Rep. C.W. Bill Young, in vowing to run against David Jolly in 2016.
* “The expectations of the anchorman have changed over the years. Stations want you to be able to report, shoot and edit video.”–Michael Bille, owner of Tampa-based Collective Talent, an online employment resource.
* “Tampa Bay’s long-term economic future will significantly benefit if we develop options for people to travel to work and home.”–U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor, D-Tampa, in announcing a $4.8 million federal grant for a proposed high-speed ferry.
* “They became a global franchise after winning the Super Bowl. I think he deserves a tremendous amount of credit. … He was a man who sold watches door to door and became owner of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Manchester United.”–Jon Gruden on the passing of Bucs’ owner Malcolm Glazer.
* “By partnering with Ohio State University … we’ve built a cancer-research expressway.”–Alan List, president and CEO of H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute, on Moffitt teaming with Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center to create the largest known database of patients for research.
* “You’re seeing the effects of an improving economy.”–Bob Henriquez, Hillsborough County property appraiser, on the third straight year of growth in real estate values.
* “There are some days you could actually out-walk a bus using the transit way. It’s not functioning the way it was intended.”–Jeff Seward, CFO of HART, on why the Marion Street transit way needs revamping.
* “It’s beginning to happen.”–D.T. Minich, CEO of Visit St. Pete/Clearwater, on prospects for selling vacation packages in China.