* “What is coming out of the presidential palace today, or what President Karzai says today, I don’t know. It changes constantly.”–Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel.
* “No (Al) Qaeda threat has ever remained exclusively local. They have always eventually crossed borders and become regional in operations and attacks and certainly in fund-raising and recruiting.”–Bruce Hoffman, director of security studies at Georgetown University.
* “In this day and age, brands are more powerful than truth and, inexplicably, blindly, Israel is letting itself be branded an apartheid state–and even encouraging it.”–Hirsh Goodman, former editor of The Jerusalem Report and the author of The Anatomy of Israel’s Survival.
* “Indifference is not an option for Germany.”–Ursula von der Leyen, Germany’s new defense minister.
* “I think the way we have to think about this year is we have a divided government. The Republican Congress is not going to rubber-stamp the president’s agenda. The president is not going to sign the Republican Congress’ agenda.”–White House senior adviser Dan Pfeiffer.
* “Most people think income inequality is fine–in fact, it’s proper–when one person works harder than another. (President) Obama’s argument isn’t just that the economy has left incomes unequal. It’s that the economy is failing to honor work.”–William Saletan, Slate.
* “(I) found her smart, idealistic, pragmatic, tough-minded, indefatigable, funny, a very valuable colleague, and a superb representative of the United States all over the world.”–Former Defense Secretary Robert Gates, on Hillary Clinton in his book Duty.
* “Cities are taking measurable action to reduce emissions, emerging as leaders in the battle against climate change.”–Former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, recent appointee as United Nations special envoy for cities and climate change.
* “They’re a combination of competition, travelogue, politics, cultural panorama and personal drama.”–Sportscaster Bob Costas on what makes the Olympics special.
* “If we’re to maintain our hold as the gateway to the Americas and the financial center for Latin America, we can’t just rest on our laurels.”–Florida Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam.
* “Make no mistake: This is not about compassionate medical marijuana. This is about the Coloradofication of Florida, where the end game is a pot shop on every street corner.”–Florida House Speaker Will Weatherford, R-Wesley Chapel.
* “If we didn’t bring out the cattle prod, they would still be dithering. You have to look at the whole Rick Scott, the governor who has had the worst impact on protecting Florida’s waters of any governor in Florida history.”–Environmental attorney David Guest.
* “Marijuana isn’t some exotic mystery drug whose effects are unknown; it’s been around so long that it’s embedded in our culture–music, movies, television and literature. Smoking is totally a bipartisan groove.”–Carl Hiassen, Miami Herald.
* “Transportation is a vital element to the free enterprise system being successful in this community.”–Bob Rohrlack, CEO of the Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce.
* “We call the flights from Miami the Vatican flights, because God only knows when you’ll arrive.”–Tampa-visiting José Ramon Cabañas, the head of the Cuban Interests Section in Washington, D.C., on Miami’s reputation–as opposed to TIA’s–for air service to Cuba.
* “The (Hillsborough) county Democratic Party is restructuring and has not focused on recruiting as much as it needs to, especially young candidates.”–Susan MacManus, USF political science professor.
* “I have no plans to retire.”–MaryEllen Elia, 65, Hillsborough County Schools superintendent.
* “This is big. This is bodacious. This is exciting. This will be a game-changer.”–Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn, on the proposed West River Master Plan.
* “I want more. I want it faster.”–Mayor Bob Buckhorn, on his vision for downtown.
* “We expect to have a presence in India well after the event.”–Visit Tampa Bay CEO Santiago Corrada, on the impact of April’s Tampa-hosted Bollywood Oscars.
* “Most urban area’s clustered around water use their water to move people.”–Former Hillsborough County Commissioner Ed Turanchik, who represents HMS Ferries Inc.
* “It’s a sad reality that in too many of our classrooms, teachers spend just as much time trying to keep control as they do teaching.”–Pinellas County Commissioner Ken Welch, on the classroom-fight video at Gibbs High School.