Catholics From The United States

"I know I can still play, but it's like I told my wife, I'm just tired mentally. I'm just tired."

"Yip cabbage on three!"

"I'd like to think, eight years ago, I was pretty humble and modest. But I think, with each year, you get more modest, more humble, more appreciative. The off the field tragedies put things in better perspective, but life happens to everybody, and I think we all just try to do the best we can."

"I'm pretty boring really."

"With each game I play, with each season I play, I'm running out of chances... you're never guaranteed next year. You're never guaranteed the next game. You have to seize the opportunity when it's there in front of you."

"I really believe this team has a lot of potential — whether it's this year or in years to come, I don't know."

"It's fun leading this offense. I don't think we've hit our peak."

"On Monday, President Biden expressed his support for a ceasefire in Gaza during a phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanayhu. But Biden stopped short of directly demanding Israel halt its assault, despite growing pressure from Congress, where over two dozen Democratic senators have backed an immediate ceasefire. After Biden’s call, Israel continued its attack on Gaza, which has now entered its ninth day. At the United Nations, the United States once again blocked the U.N. Security Council from backing a ceasefire. Israel is the largest recipient of U.S. military aid, receiving some $3.8 billion a year. In recent weeks, the Biden administration approved the sale of $735 million in precision-guided weapons to Israel"

"Again, the Democrats are urging you to vote for an obviously defective candidate. Biden has changed his principles so often, he no longer has any principles. He disavowed his authorship of the 1994 Crime Bill. He's a Trojan Horse with Bernie, AOC, Pelosi, Black Lives Matter and his party's entire Left Wing hidden inside his body just waiting to execute their pro-criminal, anti-police policies."

"In Joe Biden, we'll have a leader who prioritizes common ground and civility over alienation, bullying, and scorched-earth tactics."

"I think he has been wrong on nearly every major foreign policy and national security issue over the past four decades."

"Biden and Harris show where the nation is heading: a blend of ethnicities, lived experiences and worldviews that must find a way forward together if the American experiment is to survive."

"During Joe Biden's 2020 bid for the presidency, the campaign issued a statement on his immigration plan, titled "The Biden Plan for Securing Our Values as a Nation of Immigrants," asserting that "unless your ancestors were native to these shores, or forcibly enslaved and brought here as part of our original sin as a nation, most Americans can trace their family history back to a choice-a choice to leave behind everything that was familiar in search of new opportunities and a new life." Unlike the previous "nation of immigrants" statement, the Biden campaign's did acknowledge prior and continuing Native presence, as well as specifying that enslaved Africans were not immigrants. However, the new rhetoric continues to mask the settler-colonial violence that established and maintained the United States and turns immigrants into settlers."

"You have hundreds of thousands of people pouring across every month Not only are they letting them through, they’re farming them out all across the country, putting them on planes, putting them on buses. Do you think they’re worrying about COVID for that? Of course not. Whatever variants there are around the world, they’re coming across that southern border. He’s not shutting down the virus. He’s helping facilitate it. Why don’t you get this border secure? Until you do that, I don’t want to hear a blip about COVID from you."

"It was very obvious that Vice President Biden cared, as he extended to Jacob Jr. a sense of humanity, treating him as a person worthy of consideration and prayer."

"Biden’s an empty vessel. I don’t think he has any firm principles."

"For decades, he has been my loyal and dedicated friend. Joe has the experience, character, and decency to bring us together and restore America’s greatness. We deserve a person with integrity and judgment, someone who is honest and fair, someone who is committed to what is best for the American people."

"Mr. Vice President, there's a saying in my community that you're dipping into the Kool-Aid and you don't even know the flavor."

"Everything was upside-down There was this lovely wife, who was just as much a part of the Senate win as he was, and she was gone. Joe went into himself for a time I spent a year with him. We traveled together, we skied in Vermont. His sense of frustration was intense"

"President Joe Biden and the Democratic Congress are facing a crisis as the popular domestic agenda they ran on in the 2020 elections is held hostage by two corporate Democratic senators: fossil-fuel consigliere Joe Manchin and payday-lender favorite Kyrsten Sinema."

"[During] a critical period early in the Obama administration, when the White House contemplated exerting real pressure on Benjamin Netanyahu to keep the possibility of a Palestinian state alive, Biden did more than any other cabinet-level official to shield Netanyahu from that pressure... When it came to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Michael Oren notes in his memoir, Biden sometimes employed an uncomfortable analogy: “Never crucify yourself on a small cross.” The message: The Palestinians aren’t pliable or important enough to be worth the trouble, given the political cost domestically."

"One of the things I like about the fact of the Biden-Harris plan is that they are, number one, not talking about taking people’s healthcare.... The Biden-Harris plan is talking about raising people’s living wages, $15 an hour. The Trump-Pence plan is talking about giving more money to the wealthy. In fact, the Trump-Pence-McConnell plan, they refuse to pass a stimulus because they want another $200 billion in tax cuts, they want money for a fighter jet, and they want to protect corporations from liability when those corporations didn’t protect their people from coronavirus. So, what we have is two different worlds operating.... So, on the one hand, while Pence and — while Biden and Harris may not be every, fully where the Poor People’s Campaign are, they are in the world of wanting to do more. They’re in the sphere of wanting to increase. They’re in the sphere of wanting to make sure that the people have what they need, as opposed to wanting to only secure the wealthy and the greedy."

"Dekel-Chen according to US hostage families urge Biden-Trump cooperation to reach deal before inauguration (Today)"

"If the sides wait until Trump enters office on January 20 to strike a deal, “there’s a very real possibility that none of the hostages will remain alive, and it will be nearly impossible to retrieve the remains of those who have been murdered,” Dekel-Chen warns."

"Listen to me, boss," Biden told Obama, according to Obama's recent memoir recounting their conversations. "Maybe I've been around this town for too long, but one thing I know is when these generals are trying to box in a new president." According to the former President's account, Biden brought his face a few inches from Obama's and stage-whispered: "Don't let them jam you."

"Let me close by stating my gratitude to so many people. To the members of my administration, as well as public service and first responders across the country and around the world, thank you for stepping up to serve. To our service members and your families, it's been the highest honor of my life to lead you as commander in chief. And, of course, to Kamala and her incredible partner — a historic vice president. She and Doug have become like family. And to me, family is everything. My deepest appreciation to our amazing first lady, who is with me in the Oval today, for our entire family. You are the love of my life and lifes of my love. And my eternal thanks to you, the American people. After 50 years of public service, I give you my word, I still believe in the idea for which this nation stands, a nation where the strengths of our institutions and the character of our people matter and must endure. Now it's your turn to stand guard. May you all be the keeper of the flame. May you keep the faith. I love America. You love it too. God bless you all. And may God protect our troops. Thank you for this great honor."

"We must reform the tax code — not by giving the biggest tax cuts to billionaires, but by making them begin to pay their fair share. We need to get dark money — that's that hidden funding behind too many campaigns' contributions — we need to get it out of our politics. We need to enact an 18-year time limit — term limit — time and term — for the strongest ethics ref- — and the strongest ethics reforms for our Supreme Court. We need to ban members of Congress … from trading stock while they're in the Congress. We need to amend the Constitution to make clear that no president — no president — is immune from crimes that he or she commits while in office. The president's power … it's not absolute, and it shouldn't be. And in a democracy, there's another danger to the concentration of power and wealth. It erodes a sense of unity and common purpose. It causes distrust and division. Participating in our democracy becomes exhausting and even disillusioning, and people don't feel like they have a fair shot. But we have to stay engaged in the process. I know it's frustrating. A fair shot is what makes America, America. Everyone is entitled to a fair shot — not a guarantee, but just a fair shot, an even playing field — going as far as your hard work and talent can take you. We can never lose that essential truth — remain who we are. I've always believed and I've told other world leaders America can be defined by one word: possibilities. Only in America do we believe anything possible, like a kid with a stutter from modest beginnings in Scranton, Pennsylvania, and Claymont, Delaware, sitting behind the — this desk in the Oval Office as president of the United States. That's the magic of America. It's all around us."

"Americans are being buried under an avalanche of misinformation and disinformation enabling the abuse of power. The free press is crumbling. Editors are disappearing. Social media is giving up on fact-checking. The truth is smothered by lies told for power and for profit. We must hold the social platforms accountable to protect our children, our families, and our very democracy from the abuse of power. Meanwhile, artificial intelligence is the most consequential technology of our time — perhaps of all time. Nothing offers more profound possibilities and risks for our economy and our security, our society, our very — for humanity. Artificial intelligence even has the potential to help us answer my call to end cancer as we know it. But unless safeguards are in place, AI could spawn new threats to our rights, our way of life, to our privacy, how we work, and how we protect our nation. We must make sure AI is safe and trustworthy and good for all humankind. In the age of AI, it's more important than ever that the people must govern. And as the land of liberty, America — not China — must lead the world on the development of AI. You know, in the years ahead, it will help to be — it's going to be up to the president, the presidency, the Congress, the courts, the free press, and the American people to confront these powerful forces."

"You know, we've proven we don't have to choose between protecting the environment and growing the economy. We're doing both. But powerful forces want to wield their unchecked influence to eliminate the steps we've taken to tackle the climate crisis to serve their own interest for power and profit. We must not be bullied into sacrificing the future, the future of our children and our grandchildren. We must keep pushing forward and push faster. There is no time to waste."

"I'm so proud of how much we've accomplished together for the American people. And I wish the incoming administration success, because I want America to succeed. That's why I've upheld my duty to ensure a peaceful and orderly transition of power to ensure we lead by the power of our example. I have no doubt that America is in a position to continue to succeed. That's why, in my farewell address tonight, I want to warn the country of some things that give me great concern. … and that's the dangerous concentration of power in the hands of very few ultra-wealthy people, and the dangerous consequences if their abuse of power is left unchecked. Today, an oligarchy is taking shape in America of extreme wealth, power, and influence that literally threatens our entire democracy, our basic rights and freedoms, and a fair shot for everyone to get ahead. We see the consequences all across America. And we've seen it before, more than a century ago. But the American people stood up to the robber barons back then and busted the trusts. They didn't punish the wealthy. They just made the wealthy … play by the rules everybody else had to. Workers won rights to earn their fair share. You know, they were dealt into the deal, and it helped put us on the path to building the largest middle class and the most prosperous century any nation the world has ever seen, and we've got to do that again. In the last four years, that is exactly what we've done. People should be able to make as much as they can, but … play by the same rules, pay their fair share in taxes."

"It's been the honor of my life to see the resilience of essential workers getting us through a once-in-a-century pandemic, the heroism of service members and first responders keeping us safe, the determination of advocates standing up for our rights and our freedoms. Instead of losing their jobs to an economic crisis that we inherited, millions of Americans now have the dignity of work; millions of entrepreneurs and companies creating new businesses and industries, hiring American workers, using American products. And together, we've launched a new era of American possibilities — one of the greatest modernizations of infrastructure in our entire history, from new roads, bridges, clean water, affordable high-speed Internet for every American. We invented the semiconductor — smaller than the tip of my little finger. And now it's bringing those chip factories and those jobs back to America where they belong, creating thousands of jobs. Finally giving Medicare the power to negotiate lower prescription drug prices for millions of seniors. And finally doing something to protect our children and our families by passing the most significant gun safety law in 30 years and bringing violent crime to a 50-year low. Meeting our sacred obligation to over 1 million veterans so far who were exposed to toxic materials, and to their families — providing medical care and education benefits and more for their families. You know, it will take time to feel the full impact of all we've done together. But the seeds are planted, and they'll grow and they'll bloom for decades to come. At home, we've created nearly 17 million new jobs — more than any other single administration in a …single term. More people have health care than ever before. And overseas, we've strengthened NATO. Ukraine is still free. And we've pulled ahead of our competition with China. And so much more."

"After 50 years at the center of all of this, I know that believing in the idea of America means respecting the institutions that govern a free society: the presidency, the Congress, the courts, a free and independent press. Institutions that are rooted not — they just — not to reflect the timeless words, but they re- — they — they echo the words of the Declaration of Independence: "We hold these truths to be self-evident." Rooted in the timeless words of the Constitution, "We the People." Our system of separation of powers, checks and balances, it may not be perfect, but it's maintained our democracy for nearly 250 years — longer than any other nation in history that's ever tried such a bold experiment. In the past four years, our democracy has held strong. And every day, I've kept my commitment to be president for all Americans through one of the toughest periods in our nation's history."

"The very idea of America was so big, we felt the entire world needed to see — the Statue of Liberty, a gift from France after our Civil War. Like the very idea of America, it was built not by one person but by many people, from every background and from around the world. Like America, the Statue of Liberty is not standing still. Her foot literally steps forward atop a broken chain of human bondage. She's on the march, and she literally moves. She was built to sway back and forth to withstand the fury of stormy weather, to stand the test of time, because storms are always coming. She sways a few inches, but she never falls into the current below — an engineering marvel. The Statue of Liberty is also an enduring symbol of the soul of our nation, a soul shaped by forces that bring us together and by forces that pull us apart. And yet, through good times and tough times, we've withstood it all."

"My fellow Americans, I am speaking to you tonight from the Oval Office. Before I begin, let me speak to important news from earlier today. After eight months of nonstop negotiation, my administration — by my administration, a ceasefire and a hostage deal has been reached by Israel and Hamas, the elements of which I laid out in great detail in May of this year. This plan was developed and negotiated by my team and will be largely implemented by the incoming administration. That's why I told my team to keep the incoming administration fully informed, because that's how it should be: working together as Americans. This will be my final address to you from — the American people from the Oval Office, from this desk as president. And I've been thinking a lot about who we are and, maybe more importantly, who we should be."

"These past few days have been historic, and, you know, it’s in the days ahead that will determine the future of a — this country, and we intend to approach them with strength, wisdom, and resolve."

"As I’ve said, this is a moment of considerable risk and uncertainty, but I also believe this is the best opportunity in generations for Syrians to forge their own future free of opposition. It’s also an opportunity, through far from certain — though it’s far from certain, for a more secure and prosperous Middle East, where our friends are safe, where our enemies are contained. And it would be a waste of this historic opportunity if one tyrant were toppled and only a — only to see a new one rise up in its place. So, it’s now incumbent upon all the opposition groups who seek a role in governing Syria to demonstrate their commitment to the rights of all Syrians, the rule of law, and the protection of religious and ethnic minorities."

"Make no mistake, some of the rebel groups that took down Assad have their own grim record of terrorism and humanit- — human right abuses. We’ve taken note of statements by the leaders of these rebel groups in recent days. And we’re — they’re saying the right things now, but as they take on greater responsibility, we will assess not just their words, but their actions."

"Looking ahead, the United States will do the following: First, we’ll support Syria’s neighbors — including Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq, and Israel — should any threat arise from Syria during this period of transition. I will speak with leaders of the region in the coming days. I had long discussions with all of our people earlier this morning. And I’ll send senior officials from my administration to the region as well. Second, we will help stability — ensure stability in eastern Syria, protecting any personnel — our personnel against any threats. And it will remain — our mission against ISIS will be maintained, including the security of detention facilities where ISIS fighters are being held as prisoners. We’re clear-eyed about the fact that ISIS will try to take advantage of any vacuum to reestablish its capability and to create a safe haven. We will not let that happen."

"Russia’s support for Assad also failed. And that’s because Ukraine, backed by our American allies, has put up a wall of resistance against the invading Russian forces, inflicting massive damage on the Russian forces. And that has left Russia unable to protect its main ally in the Middle East."

"Iran’s own military capabilities have been weakened. Iran tried two times to attack Israel, and the United States and — built a coalition of countries to directly defend Israel and help defeat those attacks. All this made possible for Iran and Hezbollah to continue to prop up — impossible, I should say, for them to prop up the Assad regime."

"You know, for years, the main backers of Assad have been Iran, Hezbollah, and Russia. But over the last week, their support collapsed — all three of them — because all three of them are far weaker today than they were when I took office. And let’s remember why."

"At long last, the Assad regime has fallen. This regime brutalized and tortured and killed literally hundreds of thousands of innocent Syrians. A fall of the regime is a fundamental act of justice. It’s a moment of historic opportunity for the long-suffering people of Syria to build a better future for their proud country. It’s also a moment of risk and uncertainty. As we all turn to the question of what comes next, the United States will work with our partners and the stakeholders in Syria to help them seize an opportunity to manage the risks."

"A lot happening in the Middle East. After 13 years of civil war in Syria and more than half a century of brutal authoritarian rule by Bashar Assad and his father before him, rebel forces have forced Assad to resign his office and flee the country. We’re not sure where he is, but the- — there’s word that he’s in Moscow."

"Folks, all of us carry a special obligation. Independents, Republicans, Democrats. We saved democracy in 2020, and now we must save it again in 2024. The vote that each of us cast this year will determine whether democracy and freedom will prevail. It’s that simple. It’s that serious. And the power is literally in your hands. History’s in your hands. Not hyperbole. It’s in your hands. America’s future’s in your hands."

"Selecting Kamala was the very first decision I made when I became our nominee. And it was the best decision I made my whole career. We’ve not only gotten to know each other, we’ve become close friends. She’s tough, she’s experienced, and she has enormous integrity. Enormous integrity. Her story represents the best American story. And like many of our best Presidents, she was also Vice President. That’s a joke. But she’ll be a President our children could look up to. She'll be a President respected by world leaders because she already is. She’ll be a President we can all be proud of. And she will be an historic President who puts her stamp on America’s future."

"Folks, I’ve got five months left in my presidency. I’ve got a lot to do. I intend to get it done. It’s been the honor of my lifetime to serve as your President. I love the job, but I love my country more. I love my country more."

"Donald Trump promised Infrastructure Week, every week for four years, and he never built a damn thing. And now because of what Kamala and I have done—remember, we were told we couldn’t get it done? Remember, when we came into office, we couldn’t get anything passed?—but right now, we’re giving America an infrastructure decade not week. We’re modernizing our roads, our bridges, our ports, our airports, our trains, our buses, removing every lead pipe from schools and homes so every child could drink clean water. We’re providing affordable high speed internet for every American no matter where they live, unlike, not unlike what Roosevelt did with electricity. And so much more. We are uniting the country, we’re growing our economy, we’re improving our quality of life, and we’re building a better America. Because that’s who we are."

"I know and believe in an America where honesty, dignity, decency, still matter. An America where everyone has a fair shot and hate has no safe harbor. An America where the fundamental creed of this nation that all of us are created equal is still very much alive. And a broad coalition of Americans joined with me. Eighty-one million voters voted for us, more than any time in all of history. Because of all of you in this room and others, we came together in 2020 to save democracy. As your President, I’ve been determined to keep America moving forward, not going back. To stand against hate and violence in all its forms. To be a nation where we not only live with but thrive on diversity, demonizing no one, leaving no one behind, and becoming a nation that we profess to be."

"Progress was and is possible. Justice is achievable, and our best days are not behind us, they’re before us. Now it’s summer. The winter has passed, and with a grateful heart I stand before you now on this August night to report that democracy has prevailed, democracy has delivered, and now democracy must be preserved. You’ve heard me say it before, we’re facing an inflection point, one of those rare moments in history when the decisions we make now will determine the fate of our nation and the world for decades to come. That’s not hyperbole, I mean it literally. We’re in a battle for the very soul of America."

"My fellow Democrats, my fellow Americans, nearly four years ago in winter on the steps of the Capitol, on a cold January day, I raised my right hand and I swore an oath to you and to God, to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution and to faithfully execute the office of the President of the United States. In front of me was a city surrounded by the National Guard. Behind me, a Capitol just two weeks before had been overrun by a violent mob. But I knew then, from the bottom of my heart that I knew now, there is no place in America for political violence. None."