* “We will hunt down terrorists who threaten our country, wherever they are. That means I will not hesitate to take action against ISIL (Islamic State) in Syria, as well as Iraq. This is a core principle of my presidency: If you threaten America, you will find no safe haven.”–President Barack Obama.
* “The big picture is that this is going to be a very long-term proposition, that American leadership is necessary, and that this (military campaign against ISIL) can’t turn into a U.S. vs. Sunni battle. It has to be us helping the Sunnis battle the Sunni extremists.”–Samuel R. Berger, national security adviser to President Bill Clinton.
* “This cannot and should not be principally America’s fight; but the fact is, America is the only country that can coordinate the coalition–provide the intelligence, logistics and accurate air strikes–needed to win.”–Fred Kaplan, author of The Insurgents: David Petraeus and the Plot to Change the American Way of War.
* “I owe America a global apology. Because John McCain, through all of this, John McCain should be our president.”–Sarah Palin.
* “Its real quarrel should be with globalization, rather than England.”–Gordon Brown, former English prime minister, on Scotland’s vote for independence from England.
* “There’s this myth that somehow she screwed up. It’s just that Barack Obama was a phenomenon. He just outhustled everyone. She knows that. I think she knew it then.”–Retiring Democratic Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa, referring to Hillary Clinton, who returned to the key caucus state to attend Harkin’s annual steak fry.
* “I’m back.”–Hillary Clinton, who finished third in the 2008 Iowa presidential primary to Barack Obama and John Edwards, on her recent return to Iowa.
* Isn’t this awesome? This is our step to the future, the exploration of establishing a presence in the solar system.”–Robert Cabana, Kennedy Space Center director, at the unveiling of the Orion capsule, NASA’s lofty follow-on to the now-retired space shuttle program.
* “We know without any doubt that our climate is changing and our weather is becoming more extreme due to human activities such as the burning of fossil fuels. Time is not on our side, for sure.”–World Meteorological Organization Secretary-General Michel Jarraud.
* “If we shift tax revenue to money collected from a carbon tax, we can slash income, payroll and corporate taxes, incentivize investment and hiring, and unleash our economic competitiveness. That is a strategy hawks and doves, greens and big oil could all support.”–Thomas L. Friedman, New York Times.
* “The narrative is: ‘We’re the murder capital.’ Not close.”–Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel.
* “There’s an old Cuban joke. ‘What is it that you need to do well in Cuba, to be happy? (Have) family abroad.'”–Graciella Cruz-Taura, Florida Atlantic University history professor.
* “I’m from the South. Whipping is … we do that all the time. Every black parent in the South is gonna be in jail under those circumstances. I think we have to be careful letting people dictate how they treat their children.”–Charles Barkley’s defense of Adrian Peterson, the Minnesota Vikings’ running back who was indicted for child abuse.
* “The biggest damage to diversity in law enforcement is not who’s in jail, it’s who’s putting them in jail.”–Phillip Atiba Goff, founder of the Center for Policing Equity at UCLA.
* “We are looking to hire minorities. We want to. And if they are qualified, please give us a call.”–St. Petersburg police Chief Tony Holloway.
* “The residential real estate market is still sluggish. There’s still a long way to go before normalcy is reached in Florida.”–State economist Amy Baker.
* “There’s lots of people that would like to play in the Florida market. This is what is so insidious about what the utilities are doing. We cannot let the monopoly utilities set the tone and the communication about what solar can and cannot do.”–Stephen Smith, executive director of the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy.
* “The vehicles are not taxicabs and, and there is no meter installed. It’s a new category of service that the regulators never wrote into their laws.”–Matthew Gore, Uber’s general manager for Florida.
* “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. It’s not inexpensive, but I think it is worth doing.”–Mayor Bob Buckhorn, in revealing plans for a $20-million makeover for riverfront park improvements on the west side of the Hillsborough River.
* “He’s passionate about Tampa. He’s brought a vibrancy to downtown, and I think has a very strong business sense. We are really lucky to have him as mayor and I’m very supportive.”–Hillsborough County Commission Chairman Mark Sharpe, on the news that Mayor Bob Buckhorn had officially filed paperwork to seek a second term.
* “I think the last person he thinks about is him. … He is one of the unique players in this era. Hopefully, we see some guys like him in the future.”–Rays catcher Jose Molina on Derek Jeter.