Insight

“There are laws to protect the freedom of the press’s speech, but none that are worth anything to protect the people from the press.” —Mark Twain (1835-1910)

The BIG Lie

“We’re in a better position than any country in the world to lead the world. And we’re coming back, and it’s about time.” —President Joe Biden

Baghdad Bob

“There is no evidence. … There’s no ‘there’ there. And it’s so unfortunate that Republicans in Congress want to focus on the president’s family instead of the American family. We want to work with them in a bipartisan way.” —White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre

“What we want to do is continue to focus on Bidenomics and continue lowering costs and prices for the American people.” —Karine Jean-Pierre

“Two words that I’m going to give you that we’re going to continue to do as it relates to the economy is continue to lower costs. And that has been at the center of Bidenomics.” —Karine Jean-Pierre

“We get that it’s going to take a little bit of time for folks to feel what the Bidenomics has been able to do.” —Karine Jean-Pierre

“The president has always, always put equity at the center of every policy he’s put forward. … We’re not trying to do the trickle-down economics.” —Karine Jean-Pierre

“We need to continue to work together on border security. … We need Republicans in Congress to work with us on that. … They wanted to take away law enforcement folks who are at the border trying to protect our border. And so that’s not what we want to see.” —Karine Jean-Pierre

“Congress needs to act. The president took [illegal immigration] very seriously on day one.” —Karine Jean-Pierre

“It is shameful that a Republican governor, Governor Abbott in Texas, is using migrants as a political stunt.” —Karine Jean-Pierre

For the Record

“Biden’s ‘Justice’ Department has threatened to sue the Lone Star State for maintaining its border because doing so is the federal government’s job. Let’s put that another way. After the Biden administration has refused to do the job, the Justice Department is threatening to sue a state for enforcing a state law that matches federal law. Totally undermining the Rule of Law is the official policy of the Biden administration.” —Nate Jackson

Theater of the Absurd

“Every person, every human being has the legal right to come to the United States and seek asylum or shelter.” —Boston Mayor Michelle Wu

“One thing that is at stake is the legitimacy of the Supreme Court. Because it is so clear that the law and the facts require [Trump’s] removal.” —Washington Post columnist Jennifer Rubin

Projection

“[Trump] wants to use the Justice Department to wreak havoc and to get back at his enemies.” —Jennifer Rubin

Belly Laughs of the Day

“This president has done more in three years than any other president has done in two terms.” —Karine Jean-Pierre

“President Biden has done … an outstanding job — one of the most accomplished presidents since the 1960s in terms of things that the country will have seen benefits from. … Think about where we were four years ago in the midst of a pandemic, the country completely isolated, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands losing their lives. We’re now out of that with a roaring economy.” —Democrat pollster Fernand Amandi

Spin Doctor

“In a few days, no less than 14 of the public health associations of the United States all together wrote a scathing takedown of the Great Barrington Declaration, saying this would probably kill tens of thousands of people. … So I don’t regret saying this is dangerous. It was.” —former National Institutes of Health Director Francis Collins

Political Futures

“I am firmly opposed to Trump’s candidacy. While I think it is critical the Biden administration be beaten at the polls, Trump is not the answer. He is not capable of winning the decisive victory Republicans need to advance conservative principles. And his truculent, petty, and toxic persona — unconstrained by any need to face the voters again — will damage the country.” —former Attorney General William Barr

Race Bait

“It has been distressing to have doubt cast on my commitments to confronting hate and to upholding scholarly rigor — two bedrock values that are fundamental to who I am — and frightening to be subjected to personal attacks and threats fueled by racial animus.” —former Harvard President Claudine Gay

“This is an attack on every black woman in this country who’s put a crack in the glass ceiling. It’s an assault on the health, strength, and future of diversity, equity, and inclusion — at a time when Corporate America is trying to back out of billions of dollars in commitments.” —Al Sharpton

Tongue-in-Cheek

“Harvard President Claudine Gay has resigned, saying it’s time to ‘ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.’” —Jimmy Failla

And Last…

“Gay’s resignation letter includes zero apologies to all of the academics she ripped off to advance her own career, but more [than] 3 dozen references to herself. … She embodies everything wrong with academia today: So utterly self-absorbed by her own (unearned) biological traits, Gay cannot help but to interpret every external event through her own narrow prism of narcissism. Plagiarism is the cardinal sin of academia, and all she can think to do after getting caught red handed is to libel her critics as racist. When supposedly august institutions like @Harvard start ranking ‘equity’ above excellence, it’s perfectly predictable scam artists end up being elevated to the highest echelons in higher learning.” —Tom Elliott