* “The euro area is facing an economic contraction of a magnitude and speed that are unprecedented in peacetime.”–Christine Lagarde, president of the European Central Bank.
* “At the heart of the tragedy is an uncomfortable truth: The Chinese Communist Party simply does not share the same interests and norms as the international community into which it has been so momentously and thoroughly integrated.”–Nicholas Eberstadt, the National Bureau of Asian Research.
* “The country Trump promised to make great again has never in its history seemed so pitiful. Will American prestige ever recover from this shameful episode?”–Fintan O’Toole, The Irish Times.
* “Reopening the economy, which Republicans are so anxious to do, will get nowhere without rebuilding and expanding child care, especially in rural areas.”–Jennifer Rubin, Washington Post.
* “A country that showed the world how to defeat polio now promotes quack remedies involving household disinfectants from the presidential podium.”–Timothy Egan, New York Times.
* “A medical crisis created an economic crisis. But a political crisis can make the economic crisis much worse.”–Austan Goolsbee, professor of economics at the University of Chicago and former adviser to President Barack Obama.
* “Trump is creating a parallel, shadow government filled with like-minded loyalists, without transparency, democratic norms or public processes–a ‘deep state’ of its own.”–David Rohde, author of “In Deep: The FBI, the CIA and the Truth About America’s ‘Deep State.'”
* “Bill Barr’s America is not a place that anyone, including Trump voters, should want to go. It is a banana republic where all are subject to the whims of a dictatorial president and his henchmen.”–Donald Ayer, former deputy attorney general under President George H.W. Bush.
* “Trump’s base, like Nixon’s, consists of true believers. To them, Trump can never be worse than the system he rails against, the press he loves to hate or the Democrats that he insists are out to destroy America.”–Brian Klass, assistant professor of global politics at University College London.
* “Trump is too much of a fake tough guy to wear a mask, and Mike Pence is too much of a sycophant to the fake tough guy to wear a mask.”–Maureen Dowd, New York Times.
* “The Constitution is not suspended in times of crisis.”–Attorney General William Barr in an April 27 memo.
* “If we have another four years like this, will there even be an America?”–How “Mourning in America,” a political ad released by the Lincoln Project–a group of prominent former Republicans and never-Trump GOPsters–concludes.
* “Department stores have been struggling for a long time. Now, it’s a blood bath. How many will survive is unclear.”–Craig Johnson, president of Customer Growth Partners.
* We’re working along with the airlines so that when customers decide they want to travel, they can be sure that the most up-to-date technologies and standards are being used.”–TIA CEO Joe Lopano.
* “Opening at 25 percent capacity, our restaurants can’t be successful. We need to be at about 80 percent.”–Richard Gonzmart, president of Columbia Restaurant, which is not reopening right away.
* “I was born and raised in Tampa. I will not leave Tampa.”–That was Mayor Jane Castor’s response to speculation that she might have her eye on a gubernatorial run.
* “It’s been my honor to serve the county for 30-plus years and 10 years as administrator.”–Mike Merrill, who is retiring next month as Hillsborough County administrator. The County Commissioners have named assistant county administrator Bonnie Wise to succeed Merrill.
* “While so much still remains uncertain, there is one thing of which you can be sure: USF will be unrelenting in our efforts to understand and combat this virus in service to our community. … Because of the deepening reciprocity between the university and the communities it serves, we will emerge stronger and more united than ever.”–USF President Steve Currall.