* “So I made the decision not to jump up immediately and leave the classroom. I didn’t want to rattle the kids. I wanted to project a sense of calm.”–Former President George W. Bush explaining his initial reaction to learning of the 9/11 attacks.
* “The federal government will have absolute and unfettered power to create complex regulatory schemes to fix every perceived problem imaginable and to do so by ordering private citizens to engage in affirmative acts, under penalty of law.”–The Thomas More Law Center of Ann Arbor, Mich., in asking the Supreme Court to strike down health care overhaul.
* “The only hope for an AARP society is to keep investing in children’s health, schools and colleges, roads, rail, fiber optics, and research and development to stoke economic growth.”–Fred Hiatt, Washington Post.
* “We’ve got a great union. There’s absolutely no reason to dissolve it. But if Washington continues to thumb their nose at the American people, who knows what might come of that?”–Texas Gov. Rick Perry.
* “November 2012 constitutes the new conservatism’s one chance to restructure government and change the ideological course of the country.”–Charles
Krauthammer, Washington Post.
* “Many pundits view taking a position in the middle of the political spectrum as a virtue in itself. I don’t. Wisdom doesn’t necessarily reside in the middle of the road, and I want leaders who do the right thing, not the centrist thing. … The problem with American politics right now is Republican extremism, and if you’re not willing to say that, you’re helping make the problem worse.”–Paul Krugman, New York Times.
* “…Hard righters wouldn’t even nominate (Ronald) Reagan today, but why mess with a good myth as long as it’s still
working on the stump?”–Kathleen Parker, Washington Post.
* “Where have all the adults in this (Republican) party gone? … Are you telling me that they are ready to fall in line behind Michele Bachmann, Grover Norquist, Rush Limbaugh and Sarah Palin? Are these really the pacesetters of modern conservatism?”–Thomas Friedman, New York Times.
* “The Tea Party could destroy itself if it’s not careful.”–David Gergen, senior political analyst for CNN and former presidential advisor in the Nixon, Ford,
Reagan and Clinton administrations.
* “We have negotiated with terrorists.”–Vice President Joe Biden’s characterization of debt-limit negotiations with Tea Party Republicans.
* “He seems to have the charisma that many of his colleagues can only fake.”–Assessment of Sen. Marco Rubio by the Washington publication the Hill.
* “Chaos creates opportunity.”–Stewart R. Massey, chief investment officer at Massey, Quick & Co.
* “Several years ago it became very clear to us that master’s education was moving very rapidly to become the entry degree in
many professions.”–Debra W. Stewart, president of the Council of Graduate Schools.
* “Basically, court proceedings are no longer news but entertainment.”–Judge Belvin Perry, the judge in the Casey Anthony case.
* “I’m Chihulied out, like I am with (architect) Frank Gehry. There’s just too much Chihuly in the world.”–University of California architect professor Stanley Saitowitz, one of five jurists sitting in judgment of firms vying to design St. Petersburg’s $50 million Pier project.
* “Passenger traffic is strong. We expect to see growth by year’s end.”–Noah Lagos, St. Petersburg-Clearwater International Airport director.
* “I’m not sure playing hardball benefits us.”–Financial advisor and St. Petersburg City Council candidate Joshua Shulman, commenting on the
stadium standoff between Mayor Bill Foster and the Tampa Bay Rays.
* “You have to see yourself as a professional.”–Hillsborough County Schools Superintendent MaryEllen Elia, in addressing new county teachers.
* “He is an unstoppable force.”–Tampa Bay Rays President Matt Silverman describing Rays’ Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations Andrew
Friedman, who was overseeing the trade deadline from his (post-appendectomy) bed at St. Anthony’s Hospital.