* “Some day we may see this as the moment when we decided to save our planet. History will judge today’s efforts as pivotal.”–President Barack Obama, in formally joining Chinese President Xi Jinping in signing on to the Paris climate accord in Hangzhou, China.
* “Part of what makes America an exceptional nation is that we are also an indispensible nation. In fact, we are the indispensible nation. People all over the world look to us, and follow our lead.”–Hillary Clinton.
* “There is no doubt that Republicans during the Obama presidency pioneered and perfected scorched-earth politics and have paid a price for it. They let themselves be led around by a group of no-compromise talk-radio gasbags, think-tank ideologues in the pay of one industry or another, Fox News know-nothings and an alt-right fringe, who, together, so poisoned the GOP garden that an invasive species, Donald Trump, just took over.”–Thomas Friedman, New York Times.
* “Trump’s (immigration) retreat points the way to the only serious solution: enforcement plus legalization.”–Charles Krauthammer, Washington Post.
* “I fully understand that the African-American community has suffered from discrimination and that there are many wrongs that must still be made right.”–Donald Trump at Great Faith Ministries International, a black church in Detroit.
* “Mr. Trump’s real, if unspoken, (Latino and African-American) strategy here may well be making himself more palatable to moderate white voters, and holding down turnout among minority voters.”–Adam Nagourney, New York Times.
* “There is no Democratic majority without (African-American) voters. The danger is that if you don’t get these voters out, you’ve got the 2004 John Kerry electorate again.”–Democratic pollster Cornell Belcher.
* “(Trump’s) going to run up the score with white voters without a college education. I agree he may set a record there, but he’s losing badly in loads of other categories.”–Political scientist Larry Sabato of the University of Virginia Center for Politics.
* “The key moment is going to be that first debate. Trump will be viewed as a distinct underdog, which could be dangerous. You have to make sure you dominate the first debate.”–David Plouffe, former Obama presidential campaign manager.
* “I haven’t heard an economic concept come out of Trump’s mouth except for protectionism and lower taxes. If you put those two together, that is a recipe for disaster.”–Carlos Gutierrez, former commerce secretary under President George W. Bush.
* “Racists now call themselves ‘racialists.’ White supremacists now call themselves ‘white nationalists.’ The paranoid fringe now calls itself ‘alt-right.’ But the hate burns just as bright.”–Hillary Clinton.
* “Senator Marco Rubio is the embodiment of the worst of Washington. I promise I will serve a full six-year term for the people of Florida.”–U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy.
* “Donald Trump is doing us no favors in Miami-Dade.”–Rep. Richard Corcoran, R-Land O’Lakes, incoming Florida House Speaker.
* “Seeing the American airlines landing routinely around the island will drive a sense of openness, integration and normality. That has a huge psychological impact.”–Richard Feinberg, author of “Open for Business: Building the New Cuban Economy.
* “It’s just a severe overreach by the FDA.”–U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor, on regulations stopping the donation of cigars to U.S. troops serving abroad.
* “Never argue with stupid people. They will drag you down to their level and beat you with experience.”–Mark Twain.
* “A shadow government of complete mercenaries.”–Former Florida legislator Dan Gelber, in maintaining that term limits have shifted Tallahassee power and institutional knowledge to the world of lobbying.
* “It’s both a revenue enhancer and a reputation enhancer for USF.”–John Sinnott, chairman of the internal medicine department at USF’s Morsani College of Medicine, on the value of a working relationship with Lanzhou, China. USF has trained more than 200 Lanzhou physicians.
* “A huge victory for our neighborhoods. Now, for the first time in countless years, we can invest in infrastructure for a system that is over 100 years old.”–Mayor Bob Buckhorn’s reaction of City Council’s vote to approve a new yearly fee to pay for better drainage citywide.
* “If it really saves lives, I would say okay. City after city has taken them down. There is a reason. They all tried it, and it didn’t work.”–City Council member Yolie Capin, on the city’s red-light camera program that is coming up for extension.
* “We will never solve our problems if we don’t get people out of their cars.”–Tom Hall, co-founder of the Tucker/Hall public relations firm.