“I think as far as the adverse impact on the nation around the world,[the Bush] administration has been the worst in history.”
— Former President Jimmy Carter, who later said his comments were “careless or misinterpreted”
“I think it’s sad that President Carter’s reckless personal criticism is out there, and I think he is proving to be increasingly irrelevant with these kinds of comments.”
— White House spokesman Tony Fratto
“The United States already has enough people with college degrees. Who is going to cut their tobacco?”
— Migrant worker Edmundo Bermudez, on preferences that would be given to migrants with higher education and skills under the Senate’s proposed immigration plan
“Hopefully, young people who look up to people like Paris will learn from this.”
— Kathy Hilton, on her daughter’s 45-day jail sentence, which was reduced to 23 days
“It is this kind of political theater that has caused the American people to lose confidence in how Washington operates.”
— President Bush, on the attempt by Senate Democrats to hold a no-confidence vote on embattled Atty. Gen. Alberto Gonzales
“The president should understand that while he has confidence in Atty. Gen. Gonzales, very few others do.”
— U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), who proposed the no-confidence resolution
“It’s not perfect, but the good news is that there are more people of color and more women in the pipeline. We just need to give them a seat at the table, even if it’s a folding chair.”
— Democratic strategist Donna Brazile, the first black person to lead a major presidential campaign (for Al Gore), on getting minorities involved in presidential politics
“Gas prices run up every spring and summer, and they tumble back down every fall. Adding a nickel to the gas tax now is kind of like spitting in the ocean.”
— Minnesota state Sen. Steve Murphy, on a 5-cent boost in the state’s 20-cent gas tax to help pay for road projects
“As for the one Mormon running for office, those that really believe in God will defeat him anyway, so don’t worry about that. That’s a temporary situation.”
— Rev. Al Sharpton, on Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney’s faith; Sharpton apologized and has agreed to meet with elders of the Church of Latter-day Saints
“I’d tell her, ‘I love my house, I love my church and I love my job. Those are things I am not quite ready to leave.’ Now, I’ve lost all three.”
— Judy Marshall, 66, who told her daughter for years that she would not leave Greensburg, Kan., to join her in Salina; a May 4 tornado killed nine people and destroyed 95 percent of Greensburg
“You will now be branded as a convicted killer. How does that sound to you? Juan Luna, convicted killer.”
— Joy Ehlenfeldt, to Juan Luna during the death penalty phase of his murder trial; Luna was convicted of killing seven people, including Ehlenfeldt’s parents, in a Brown’s Chicken restaurant in Palatine in 1993
“I’m really pleased that I’ve got a second chance in life … but if you haven’t got no money after all this, which is my fault — I spent it all — they should pay something back.”
— John Brandrick, 62, of England, who went on a spending spree after doctors said he had a short time to live; he wants compensation because the diagnosis was wrong and he’s now broke.
