Insight: “The condition upon which God hath given liberty to man is eternal vigilance; which condition if he breaks, servitude is at once the consequence of his crime and the punishment of his guilt.” —John Philpot Curran (1750-1817)

“‘Missing context’ is the fact-checker euphemism for ‘this claim is correct but we don’t want anyone screencapping this as ammo.’” —Noam Blum

“Democratic congressional leaders propose to pass the largest single spending bill in history with no regard to rising inflation, crippling debt or the inevitability of future crises. Ignoring the fiscal consequences of our policy choices will create a disastrous future for the next generation of Americans.” —Senator Joe Manchin on the Democrats’ $3 trillion spending bill

“This [Afghanistan fiasco] was the most disgraceful act of foreign policy I believe a president has ever done. I don’t think there’s a parallel and I’ve been looking through history books for the last three days.” —historian Bill Bennett

A trip down memory lane: “The vice president … holds the American record for wrong on the most issues in foreign affairs, ever.” —Charles Krauthammer on Joe Biden, 2012

“There is a lot of political pundit speculation about whether the public outrage over Biden’s disastrous Afghanistan withdrawal will subside as the mainstream media news cycle focus subsides. But here is what the pundits are missing: The 21st anniversary of the 9/11 attack, the one year anniversary of Biden’s Afghan retreat disaster and all of its consequences, will occur just before the midterm elections next year.” —Mark Alexander

“The president is not going to be removed from office. … I think the way these behaviors get adjusted in this country is at the ballot box. There isn’t going to be an impeachment.” —Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell

“Science is not supposed to be about intimidating, countering interpretation of data, or abusing, or censoring data. Science is not supposed to have a view. Science is only about data and the scientific process. There is never supposed to be ‘an accepted view’ of science.” —Dr. Scott Atlas

Hot air: “The fossil fuel industry and the future of humanity are fundamentally incompatible. They just are. I mean, that’s not a political opinion, that is the science. We continue to burn fossil fuels, our planet will become inhabitable.” —Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

D'oh! “There’s no question the Delta variant is why today’s jobs report isn’t stronger.” —Joe Biden (“I’m not going to shut down the country. I’m not going to shut down the economy. I’m going to shut down the virus.” —Joe Biden, October 30, 2020)

Lack of self-awareness: “I think the world is starting to realize what’s been missing of late. Not only do we have to look inward, we also need to look at each other and talk to each other, rebuild communities through empathy and acts of kindness and decency.” —Joe Biden

Demagogue: “I respect people … who don’t support Roe v. Wade. I respect their views. I respect those who believe life begins at the moment of conception and all. I respect that. I don’t agree, but I respect that. Not going to impose that on people.” —Joe Biden (“You actually ARE imposing that on people when you try to force me to fund abortion through my taxes, though.” —Allie Beth Stuckey)

Gaslighting: “I know you’ve never faced those choices, nor have you ever been pregnant. But for women out there who have faced those choices, this is an incredibly difficult thing. [The] president believes their rights should be respected.” —White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki to a reporter who asked, “Who does [the president] believe … should look out for the unborn child?”

Non compos mentis: “In Texas, you cannot mandate life saving masks to prevent the spread of COVID. You have the freedom to bring your guns into stores and restaurants and churches and even psychiatrist hospitals, but women, trans and non-binary people are not allowed to make their own choices about their bodies. … By next summer, we could be living in our own version of ‘The Handmaid’s Tale,’ where forced birth is the law in large sections of the country, including for children.” —MSNBC’s Joy Reid

Sexism bait: “What this [Texas] law is really about is not stopping abortions across the board. This is about bearing down on the most vulnerable among us. … They’re going to do everything they can if you are vulnerable, if you don’t have alternatives, to make sure that you are forced into carrying a pregnancy that you do not want to carry. And I just think this is fundamentally wrong.” —Senator Elizabeth Warren

Grand delusions: “Important to know that so goes Texas, so will go other states. I believe at the heart of all of this is a deep anti-women movement. It’s in politics, it’s in the church, it’s everywhere. Women have long been viewed as a threat in the Catholic Church. They are viewed as a threat. This is one more tactic to keep them without their own personal rights. This isn’t just about Texas, trust me.” —NBC News anchor Maria Shriver

Despicable: “If you’re an Afghan woman and they offer to resettle you in Texas, what do you do?” —Newsweek editor at large Naveed Jamali

And last… “The Democrat party has a long history in America of devaluing the lives of black people. From slavery to the post-Reconstruction peonage system to redlining to Jim Crow to abortion, Democrats have proven that for blacks to vote for them is to vote for their own self-destruction.” —Darrell B. Harrison