Who Said That
Kentucky Senate President Robert Stivers. He was criticizing Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear for vetoing a slew of bills last week. Republicans control both legislative chambers with supermajorities, but in Kentucky only a simple majority is required to override vetoes. Beshear criticized GOP legislators for moving “shell” bills and voting on final versions without sufficient transparency. (Kentucky Lantern)
Amite Dominick, founder of Texas Prison Community Advocates. That group was among the plaintiffs that won a ruling from a federal judge who found that lack of air conditioning in Texas prisons is “plainly unconstitutional.” In Texas, 85,000 prisoners reside in facilities that lack air conditioning in most living areas. About a dozen die per year due to heat. The state says that installing air conditioning in all living units would cost more than $1 billion. (Texas Tribune)
Jack Ciattarelli, describing Bill Spadea, his opponent for the GOP nomination for governor in New Jersey. The candidates both seek to win over Republican primary voters by claiming to be the most aligned with President Donald Trump. Both men have criticized Trump in the past and each now characterizes the other as jumping on the Trump bandwagon opportunistically. (New Jersey Monitor)
Eric Lundberg, a pastor in Pierce County, Wash. He was testifying against a bill that would amend a “parents’ bill of rights” passed by voters last November, which requires schools to notify parents about mental health and medical decisions, as well as gender-related counseling. Sponsors said the bill is necessary to clear up confusion about implementing the ballot measure. (The Center Square)
Frank Chopp, the longest-serving speaker in Washington state history. Chopp died on Saturday at 71. After serving as speaker for nearly 20 years, the Democrat stepped aside from that role in 2019. Chopp, who was known for his work on housing issues, made the comment last year in announcing he would not seek another term in the state House. (Washington State Standard)
Gwinnett County, Ga., resident Lisa Hall. Her husband died two years ago after she couldn’t get through to 911 operators for more than five minutes, emblematic of problems with 911 delays in the Atlanta area. Many agencies have since made significant improvements. Atlanta and Gwinnett and Fulton counties have all made substantial strides, with nearly all emergency calls now answered within 20 seconds. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
Kansas state Rep. Susan Humphries. The Republican lawmaker from Wichita was speaking in favor of a proposal, placed by legislators on the ballot next year, to change the state’s method of selecting judges from gubernatorial appointment to direct elections. Democratic governors have appointed a majority of current justices. Gov. Laura Kelly and other Democrats say judicial elections are a recipe for dark money and more partisanship. (New York Times — March 20, 2025)
Florida GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis. He recently signed a law requiring localities to comply with federal immigration efforts and said that the “days of inaction are over.” Florida’s governor has the ability to remove elected local officials from office. State Attorney General James Uthmeier warned members of the Fort Myers City Council that their decision not to enroll in an Immigration and Customs Enforcement program could lead to penalties, including removal from office. (Tampa Bay Times)
John Roberts. The U.S. Supreme Court’s chief justice issued a rare response to a statement from President Donald Trump, who called for lawmakers to impeach “crooked” judges who lacked the sort of political mandate Trump won in November. Articles of impeachment were filed Tuesday in the House against U.S. District Judge James Boasberg, who ruled Saturday the administration could not deport alleged Venezuelan gang members. ( POLITICO — Feb. 16, 2025)
(The Louisiana Illuminator — March 14, 2025)
Republican Brad Hudson, who joined the Missouri Senate this year after serving in the state House. After years of infighting that frequently blocked legislation despite the GOP’s supermajorities, Missouri Republicans this year have passed major bills, including the repeal of a half-century-old energy consumer protection law and the state takeover of the St. Louis police. (Missouri Independent)
An anonymous source regarding the nomination of former Rep. Dave Weldon to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. On Thursday, the White House withdrew Weldon’s nomination after he faced pushback due to expressions of doubt about vaccine safety. In a statement, Weldon blamed lobbying from the pharmaceutical industry for his downfall. (Washington Post)
Education Secretary Linda McMahon. On Tuesday, the department announced it was firing 1,315 workers. Following earlier personnel reductions, this will bring the Education Department’s total workforce down to 2,183 — a drop of nearly half from 4,183 when President Donald Trump returned to office in January. (Fox News)
North Dakota state Rep. Daniel Johnston. The Republican was testifying in favor of his own bill that would require the treasurer to invest 1 percent of the state’s funds in gold and silver. Johnston said holding investments not pegged to dollars would be a good hedge against inflation. (North Dakota Monitor)
San Diego County Supervisor Jim Desmond. He was referring to the large number of fires set by homeless individuals. Last year, more than 1,100 fires may have begun in homeless encampments, nearly a fifth of all fires recorded in the city of San Diego. The county Board of Supervisors voted last month to explore the idea of immediately clearing encampments on days when the threat of wildfires is especially high. (San Diego Union-Tribune)
Chicago Public Library Commissioner Chris Brown, referring to a program for libraries to distribute Narcan to combat opioid overdoses. Brown said Chicago libraries distributed more than 10,000 Narcan kits in the first 20 months of the program. Illinois legislators are considering a bill to take the approach statewide. (Illinois News Bureau)
“I just cannot believe that we would pass a bill that would lead to more children dying of measles.”
Iowa state Rep. Beth Wessel-Kroeschell, a Democrat. She was speaking in response to a bill that would require vaccine manufacturers to waive immunity on their products. Vaccine makers are currently granted legal immunity under a federal law that has created a system to compensate individuals injured by childhood vaccines. Wessel-Kroeschell and other critics warn the bill would prevent distribution and administration of many lifesaving drugs in Iowa. (Iowa Capital Dispatch)
Muriel Bowser, the mayor of Washington, D.C. Bowser announced that the city’s Black Lives Matter Plaza will be renamed and a BLM mural painted over. Her decision came after a member of Congress introduced a bill demanding the city to take such action or risk losing federal funding. Bowser said the mural had “inspired millions of people” but said that federal layoffs are a bigger concern at this point. (WRC)
Gila River Indian Community Gov. Stephen Roe Lewis. Testifying before Congress, the tribal leader stated that Native Americans understand that there is waste in federal programs but warned that the “chainsaw approach” of slashing employees taken by the Department of Government Efficiency is not taking into consideration the potential impact on services. (Arizona Mirror)
Montana Republican state Sen. Bob Phalen. He sponsored a bill that would have required posting the Ten Commandments in public schools. Although the U.S. Supreme Court found such displays unconstitutional in 1980, some conservatives believe the current Court might rule differently. Ten Commandment display bills have been introduced in multiple states this year. (Stateline)
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a Democratic congresswoman from New York. In an interview, Ocasio-Cortez says she agrees with President Donald Trump that government doesn’t work for many people, fueling distrust and anger. Unlike Trump, she asserts that government is working well only for the wealthy. (NPR — Feb. 28, 2025)
Ben Fiore-Walker, the town crier of Alexandria, Va., who writes his own rhyming cry in quatrains for local events. Town crying is an old practice, dating back in Alexandria to the 1700s. In past centuries, the crier would read out news or announcements to villagers, many of them illiterate. Fiore-Walker, a director of a nonprofit who has held the volunteer ceremonial position for 13 years, is only the city's second Black town crier. The first, in 1816, was Peter Logan, who purchased his own freedom from slavery. (Axios)
Indiana Gov. Mike Braun. A nonprofit group has been airing ads pressuring legislators to support Braun’s agenda, including property tax cuts. Braun said more conversation and information are healthy but warned against “going overboard.” (Indiana Capital Chronicle — Feb. 26, 2025)
Mississippi state Sen. Angela Burks Hill. She was one of four Republicans who voted against a bill that would cut taxes by $326 million, mainly by reducing the state’s flat income tax rate from 4 percent to 2.99 percent. Although the bill would cut income and grocery taxes, it would increase the tax on gasoline to pay for infrastructure. The Mississippi Senate will have to reconcile its version with a deeper income tax passed by the House. (Mississippi Today — Feb. 24, 2025)
Virginia Democratic state Rep. Alfonso H. Lopez. He sponsored a bill allowing the state to buy Oak Hill, which was President James Monroe's 1,240-acre estate in Loudoun County. The estate's woners want to sell the landmark to the state to become a park. The state Senate rejected Lopez's proposal however. He warns the valuable property could be turned into housing in the outer D.C. suburb. (Washington Post — Feb. 21, 2025)
Bellflower, Calif., City Manager Ryan Smoot, on proposals in the wake of the Los Angeles fires to allow architects and engineers working on small residential construction projects to "self-certify" their plans and start construction immediately, as Smoot’s city in southeast Los Angeles County has been allowing for a decade. A proposal before the Los Angeles City Council would allow self-certification, though the city would still inspect the projects during and after construction. (CalMatters — Feb. 14, 2025)
Federal biologist Ben Vizzachero, who recently found out he is among the roughly 3,400 U.S. Forest Service workers who were laid off by the Trump Administration. Vizzachero warns that as a result of the firings, national forests and the areas around them will be more vulnerable to fires, landslides and other natural disasters. (Los Angeles Times — Feb. 16, 2025)
Khanika Harper, on how it feels to be a wedding officiant for inmates at the The Missouri Department of Corrections. Harper is a former psychiatric nurse; through her work, she met the partners of incarcerated men who wanted to get married but couldn’t find an officiant who would perform the ceremony inside a prison. She decided to get ordained, and has since married more than a dozen couples inside the state’s correctional facilities.. (The Marshall Project — Feb. 14, 2025)
Arkansas state Sen. Mark Johnson. He represents Conway, which is home to Arkansas PBS, but he voted in favor of a bill abolishing its board in part because the Arkansas PBS Foundation lobbied him to vote against it, objecting to its potential mix of public and private funds for the purpose. The state Senate voted in favor of legislation to eliminate both the PBS board and the board that oversees the state library, citing concerns about mismanagement. (Wisconsin Examiner — Feb. 16, 2025)
Wichita Mayor Lily Wu. Wu leans libertarian and notes that there are always going to be more demands on government than it can provide. With her city facing a structural deficit, Wu says the city must prioritize its most urgent needs before it can consider funding programs that would be nice but not necessary to have. (Governing Feb. 18, 2025)
