January 2011
48 posts
“If a caribou needs to be sacrificed for the sake of energy independence, I say,...”
– Sarah Palin, voicing her support for oil drilling in the Alaska National Wildlife Refuge, most of which is currently off-limits to oil and gas development.
“Clearly, Mubarak’s time has run out.”
– A “senior advisor” to President Obama, speaking to the New York Times.
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“Most people refer to me who know me, and even in the press, of being a little...”
– Vice President Joe Biden expressing his amusement over how The Onion spoofs him.
“This constant refrain ‘bankers, bankers, bankers’ is just...”
– JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, making the argument that “not all banks are the same” and “not all banks would have failed” without the government’s bailout.
“Said sandwich wrap was unwholesome and unfit for human consumption in that it...”
– A lawsuit filed by Democratic Rep. Dennis Kucinich, alleging that the U.S. House of Representatives cafeteria served in a vegetarian sandwich wrap that damaged his teeth. He seeks $150,000 in damages.
“His theme last night was wtf, winning the future. I thought, okay, that acronym...”
– Sarah Palin, being interviewed on Fox News about her reaction to Obama’s State of the Union address.
“I’m Rahm Emanuel without the curse words. Sometimes.”
– The new Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chairman, Rep. Steve Israel, explaining his leadership style.
“Just goes to show that Steny Hoyer has made it big on Twitter. They say...”
– A spokeswoman for Democratic Rep. Steny Hoyer, whose Twitter account got hacked last night during the State of the Union address. A prankster, using the lawmaker’s old Twitter account, called the president’s promise to veto bills with earmarks a “load of bull.”
“Give us a bit of credit for getting eight years out of him. That’s the longest...”
– An anonymous NBC News executive, on the departure of former MSNBC host Keith Olbermann.
“You know, I want to just advise people watching at home playing that now popular...”
– Rep. Anthony Weiner, a New York Democrat, ranting during this week’s House debate on the repeal of the health care reform bill.
“You represent the worst of humanity. … Words cannot adequately describe...”
– A federal judge, giving a verbal lashing to former Illinois Sheriff Raymond Martin, who was accused and convicted of trafficking marijuana and enlisting his then-wife and son in a plan to kill off two potential witnesses.
“I didn’t compare the Republicans to Nazis.”
– Rep. Steve Cohen, a Tennessee Democrat, clarifying earlier comments in which he compared Republicans’ lies about health care reform to strategies advanced by Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels.
“I believe that the evidence is very clear that he was developing weapons of mass...”
– Sen. Joe Lieberman, insisting that Saddam Hussein was developing weapons of mass destruction in Iraq even though none have been found.
“This is all speculative. Obviously, further study is needed.”
– Barbara Harsha, executive director of the non-profit Governors Highway Safety Association, linking an uptick in pedestrian deaths to First Lady Michelle Obama’s anti-obesity initiative, which encourages children to exercise more.
“Anybody here today who has not accepted Jesus Christ as their savior, I’m...”
– Alabama Governor-elect Robert Bentley, speaking Monday at Martin Luther King’s former Baptist Church.
“I know exactly how Caesar felt.”
– Former RNC chairman Michael Steele, on his successor, Reince Priebus. Priebus, once appointed the RNC’s general counsel by Steele, ended up challenging Steele for the chairmanship.
“It’s unfortunate that we’re not able to do more for our creditors. But if you...”
– Marti Brown, Vallejo council member, commenting on the city’s reorganization plan filed in bankruptcy court. Under the plan, Vallejo will pay its creditors about 5 to 20 percent of their claims for the time being.
“I’ve given up being disillusioned about the CIA. They’re trained to...”
– New Yorker journalist Seymour Hersh, delivering a diatribe on U.S. foreign policy.
“It pops up in a machine in some administrative office, and is somebody there...”
– Judge Richard Owen of the U.S. District Court in Manhattan reportedly asked lawyers in 2007 to explain e-mail to him. Read more in our story on aging judges.
“She died in 2007? You’re kidding me?!”
– Chief strategist for the Tea Party Express, Sal Russo, when asked why a deceased woman’s name appeared among the group’s 2009 and 2010 contributors.
“Everybody was doing it, and therefore, since nobody was being prosecuted for it,...”
– Former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, a Texas Republican, explaining why he thinks he will succeed in overturning his money laundering conviction and three-year prison sentence.
“We consider our size an asset that we try hard to preserve.”
– A line from a new report by Goldman Sachs’ business standards committee, which this week announced a number of internal changes. The report made no mention of the phrase “too big to fail.”
“Oh, you guys are nothing if not entertaining over there. It’s like living...”
– Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels, comparing his neighboring state Illinois to “The Simpsons.”
“I wasn’t going to resign but decided to quit after what happened Saturday....”
– Anthony Miller, Republican chairman of the Arizona Legislative District 20, resigning from his elected position after the shooting of U.S. Rep Gabrielle Giffords. Miller said that verbal attacks from local committee members with ties to the tea party made him concerned about his family’s...
“I think there are plenty of people that can render opinions on that. I’m...”
– White House press secretary Robert Gibbs, declining to comment on Sarah Palin’s controversial use of phrase “blood libel” to describe criticism leveled against conservatives in the wake of the Tucson shooting.
“[J]ournalists and pundits should not manufacture a blood libel that serves only...”
– Sarah Palin, denouncing what she perceived to be a rush to condemn conservatives for the Arizona shooting. “Blood libel” refers to an accusation from the Middle Ages used as an excuse to murder Jews.
“Anything other than prayers for the victims and their families at this time...”
– National Rifle Association spokesman Andrew Arulanandam, asked to comment on whether the repeal of gun restrictions played a role in the deadly shooting in Arizona.
“I can’t be remorseful for something I think I didn’t do.”
– Former House majority leader Tom DeLay, upon being sentenced to three years in prison for money laundering and conspiracy in the channeling of corporate campaign contributions. DeLay said he is “guilty” only of arrogance, but said “I like to think of it as ‘Texas...
“The whole nation and the world are watching us. I just told a reporter about a...”
– Arizona state Sen. Steve Farley, a Democrat, commenting on Arizona’s political climate and gun control laws.
“This bird didn’t stay in Israel in the breeding season, so it might be a Turkish...”
– An Israeli scientist, commenting on a bird that was arrested by Saudi Arabian officials last week on suspicion of spying. The bird wore a tag which bore a Tel Aviv University label.
“After you get settled, I would love to talk about what we can do to promote...”
– Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., in an email to Kentucky Secretary of State Trey Grayson, a Republican. Giffords sent the email the night before she was shot at a public event.
“What a bunch of crap!!”
– A handwritten comment that was redacted by the Department of State when it turned over documents in response to a Freedom of Information request. The comment was scrawled on a House resolution that said Pakistan should be designated as a state sponsor of terrorism.
“The EPA is the scariest agency in the federal government, an agency run amok.”
– Rep. Mike Simpson, an Idaho Republican and chairman of the Appropriations committee’s Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies subcommittee, which oversees EPA funding.
“The leader and the speaker have established their integrity and their mendacity...”
– Rep. Steve King, an Iowa Republican, praising the Republican leaders of the House for their “integrity and mendacity.” Mendacity, by definition, means untruthfulness or deceit.
“He’s had a six-year stretch now where basically he’s been going 24/7...”
– President Barack Obama, on the departure of White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs. Gibbs earned $172,200 last year.
“Now is not the time to ‘come out,’ if you will.”
– Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Adm. Mike Mullen, warning troops not to come out yet because the ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ repeal doesn’t go into effect until after the president, defense secretary, and Mullen himself certify the implementation plan.
“I will politically haunt you for the biggest fumble in the history of San...”
– Chris Daly, an outgoing member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, yelling at a colleague because he disagreed with his vote on who should serve as interim mayor of San Francisco.
(Submitted by rubenfeld)
“I promised a more open process. I didn’t promise that every single bill...”
– House Speaker John Boehner, a Republican, explaining why he won’t allow Democrats to offer amendments to a bill to repeal the health care law.
“I’m praying.”
– Outgoing Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, joking when asked whether his younger brother’s appointment as White House chief of staff will mean more money for Chicago. (Daley said, in seriousness, he’s sure it won’t.)
“I think people misunderstand the meaning of the word corrupt, and obviously CNN...”
– Rep. Darrell Issa, the new Oversight Committee Chairman, responding to a question by CNN about whether he was wrong to use the word “corrupt” to describe the Obama administration before any investigations have been completed.
“As part of their overall embargo plan against Gaza, Israeli officials have...”
– A recently leaked U.S. diplomatic cable from November 2008.
“I think Obama was playing by Marquis of Queensbury rules and McConnell was using...”
– Outgoing Rep. Jim Oberstar, A Minnesota Democrat, crediting Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell with politically outmanuevering President Obama.
“You know these deep-dish pizzas—it’s not pizza. It’s very good, but...”
– U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, giving his take on pizza deep-dish pizza.
“You do not need the Constitution to reflect the wishes of the current society....”
– U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, explaining his view that the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment does not protect against discrimination on the basis of gender or sexual orientation.
“Because I don’t want to.”
– Chicago mayoral candidate Carol Moseley Braun, explaining why she won’t make public her tax returns prior to next month’s election. Several other candidates have already released theirs. Update: She has since changed her mind.