Saying the Quiet Part Out Loud

“Frankly, [the shutdown] is our only moment of leverage.” —Sen. Chris Coons

“It’s the only lever we have.” —Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse

For the Record

“I don’t know what Democrats are holding out for. The Democrats think that we’re suddenly going to vote for their partisan [continuing resolution]. … It wouldn’t pass here. It can’t pass in the House. And it wouldn’t be signed into law by the president.” —Senate Majority Leader John Thune

“You might think … that a government shutdown might actually hurt the Republican brand, but in fact, it hasn’t. If anything, it’s been helped a little bit.” —CNN’s Harry Enten, who may be causing CNN to wonder why they haven’t fired him yet

What Could Possibly Go Wrong?

“No New Yorker should ever be priced out of anything they need to survive. And we believe … it is government’s job to deliver that dignity. Dignity, my friends, is another way of saying freedom.” —New York City socialist mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani

The BIG Lies

“The president has time to do everything but what he needs to focus on. In fact, we heard the press secretary say that his main priority is the ballroom.” —Rep. Jasmine Crockett

“They are choosing not to fund these programs … and when the White House press secretary said the top priority is the ballroom, we could not disagree more.” —Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz

“[The ballroom] is his main priority. Can you believe that?” —House Minority Leader Chuck Schumer

Don’t Believe Your Lying Ears

“I haven’t suggested that Donald Trump is Hitler.” —Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker

“I don’t think any Democrat has.” —MSNBC’s Nicolle Wallace

Re: The Left

“‘I am not a secret Nazi,’ protested Graham Platner. ‘We are not the crazy ones!’ shrieked AOC. I’m not a campaign manager, but neither of those statements strikes me as the sort of thing you want on a candidate’s yard sign.” —Nate Jackson

“Islamophobia is a fake term made up to silence us. We’re allowed to not want Islam taking over American cities. Don’t be shamed out of that totally sensible position.” —Megyn Kelly

“For 50+ years, the federal government has been paying Americans not to work by feeding, housing, and medicating them for ‘free,’ and then wonder why we have so many useless, jobless, helpless people.” —Ann Coulter

“The Democratic Party is in a fight for its soul — and the breathtakingly dumb policies of its socialist wing are winning.” —Sen. John Kennedy

And Last…

“The Department has spent over TWO DECADES defending other homelands. Now, we’re defending our own. These narco-terrorists have killed more Americans than Al-Qaeda, and they will be treated the same. We will track them, we will network them, and then, we will hunt and kill them.” —Secretary of War Pete Hegseth