For the Record

“CCP-controlled entities are now buying up American farmland, much of which is near U.S. military bases. Yet, our diplomats in China can’t even go to the grocery story without someone following them. We have to take this seriously.” —former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo

“The Inflation Reduction Act is not about reducing inflation. It will not reduce inflation in any significant way. As a matter of fact, the best-informed debate at the moment seems to be about whether it will have zero effect on inflation or actually make inflation worse.” —Byron York

The BIG Lies

“[The Inflation Reduction Act is] definitely not a green bill. This is a red, white, and blue bill, and it’s great for America.” —Senator Joe Manchin

“We’re not spending money, we’re investing.” —Joe Manchin

“We did not raise taxes. We’ve closed loopholes. That’s all we did.” —Joe Manchin

“No one ever said inflation wasn’t really happening. … In fact, if you go back to January or February when we first got here, we talked about the fact that the American Rescue Plan was going to bring a little more heat back into this economy.” —Biden economic advisor Jared Bernstein

“Please do not dismiss the work that we’ve done thus far and the actions that we’ve taken thus far to help the American people deal with these elevated price pressures.” —Jared Bernstein

A Trip Down Memory Lane

“What interest do we have in Afghanistan with al-Qaida gone?” —President Joe Biden, August 2021

Non Compos Mentis Awards

“It’s going to be a close election in Georgia because [Herschel] Walker has the backing of the Republicans. Now you ask: Why are Republicans backing this man who’s so clearly unintelligent, who so clearly doesn’t have independent thoughts? But that’s actually the reason. Walker’s going to do what he’s told, and that’s what Republicans like. That’s what Republicans want from their negroes: to do what they’re told. And Walker presents exactly as a person who lacks independent thoughts, lacks an independent agenda, lacks an independent ability to grasp policies, and he’s just going to go in there and vote like Mitch McConnell tells him to vote. And remember, this has worked for the GOP in the South already. Tommy Tuberville, who right now is probably the dumbest person in the United States Senate … all he does is do what Mitch McConnell tells him to do. And so the GOP likes these candidates that aren’t able to kind of think for themselves, because that means that it’s just — it basically means that Mitch McConnell gets three votes every time he shows up to work, as opposed to just his own.” —The Nation legal correspondent Elie Mystal

“Do I think a five-year-old should be at a drag show? No, but you know what? If you are for parental choice when it comes to your kid wearing a mask to school, if you are for parental choice when it comes to your kid learning about slavery and learning the true history of this country, then why in the hell can’t you be about parental choice on whether you take your kid to a drag show or not? … I looked at the top causes of endangerment for children, of children’s death. It’s firearms. It’s car accidents. It’s drowning. It is not drag queen. I’ve yet to see a kid who dies from being exposed to a drag queen.” —"The View" co-host Ana Navarro

“I grew up in a community that often took a anti-abortion position. But my parents sent me to college. They didn’t send me there to learn about abortion. They sent me there to learn about a broader world. … I evolved on this issue because I learned more.” —Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams

Swamp Doctor

“Superimposed upon an anti-vax-type feeling among some, superimposed upon the political divisiveness we have in this country … and the social media misinformation and disinformation, it’s very difficult to get people to adhere to commonsense public health measures.” —National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director Anthony Fauci