Verbatim Archives

All Hail the Grifter-in-Chief

January 23, 2025 Buck Banks

“I’ve covered Trump’s finances for 8 years and wrote a book about conflicts of interest during his first term. I’ve never seen anything quite like the profiteering that occurred over the last few days.”

— Dan Alexander

Pope Francis: Trump’s Deportation Plans a ‘Disgrace’

January 20, 2025 Buck Banks

“If it is true, it will be a disgrace, because it makes the poor wretches who have nothing to pay the unpaid bill. It won’t do. This is not the way to solve things.”

— Pope Francis criticized President-elect Donald Trump’s plan to deport immigrants as a “disgrace,” CNN reports.

Biden Welcomes Trump ‘Home’ to White House

January 20, 2025 Buck Banks

“Welcome home.”

— President Biden, quoted by ABC News, greeting President-elect Donald Trump at the White House.

Biden Pardons Mark Milley

January 20, 2025 Buck Banks

“After forty-three years of faithful service in uniform to our Nation, protecting and defending the Constitution, I do not wish to spend whatever remaining time the Lord grants me fighting those who unjustly might seek retribution for perceived slights.”

— Retired Army Gen. Mark Milley said he was “deeply grateful” to receive a preemptive pardon from outgoing President Joe Biden Monday, USA Today reports.

Johnson Makes a New Enemy

January 18, 2025 Buck Banks

“You have a two-seat majority, and you shot one of your members.”

— A House Republican lawmaker, quoted by Politico, on Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) ousting House Intelligence Chair Mike Turner (R-OH) and making him “an enemy.”

Where a Historian Finds Solace During Trump’s Second Term

January 18, 2025 Buck Banks

“It’s weird to find solace in the Civil War, or the Great Depression, or the beginning of World War Two, but my whole optimistic temperament depends on saying that we will get through it and emerge stronger.”

— Historian Doris Kearns Goodwin, in an interview with the Financial Times.

Biden’s Legacy Is Tragedy

January 17, 2025 Buck Banks

“The Joe Biden story is one of the great tragedies of American politics. I really mean that. He should be having a glorious, well deserved, highly acclaimed retirement. And he’s not. It’s hard to blame anybody but him.”

— Veteran Democratic political strategist James Carville, quoted by NBC News.

Krugman Warns of Trump’s Scamming Nature

January 16, 2025 Buck Banks

“A lot of people are going to get brutally scammed …. Scamming people like that is what his whole life has been around.”

— Paul Krugman, talking about the incoming Trump administration on The Daily Blast.

Biden Warns Nation of Rising Oligarchy

January 16, 2025 Buck Banks

“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, a fair shot for everyone to get ahead.”

— President Biden warned Americans of a “dangerous concentration of power” in the hands of a “very few ultra-wealthy people” and the impact he feared it would have on the country’s democracy as he delivered a farewell address Wednesday from the Oval Office, Bloomberg reports.

Trump Has No Economic Plan

January 15, 2025 Buck Banks

“Even though he will take office in just a few days, we have almost no idea. … That’s not because the Trump team is keeping its plans closely held, nor is it because there are major factional fights. All the evidence suggests, instead, that Trump’s economic team still doesn’t have any plans, or even concepts of plans. All it has are some half-formulated thoughts about how to cater to Trump’s prejudices without doing massive economic damage.”

“I’ve covered Trump’s finances for 8 years and wrote a book about conflicts of interest during his first term. I’ve never seen anything quite like the profiteering that occurred over the last few days.”

— Dan Alexander

“If it is true, it will be a disgrace, because it makes the poor wretches who have nothing to pay the unpaid bill. It won’t do. This is not the way to solve things.”

— Pope Francis criticized President-elect Donald Trump’s plan to deport immigrants as a “disgrace,” CNN reports.

“Welcome home.”

— President Biden, quoted by ABC News, greeting President-elect Donald Trump at the White House.

“After forty-three years of faithful service in uniform to our Nation, protecting and defending the Constitution, I do not wish to spend whatever remaining time the Lord grants me fighting those who unjustly might seek retribution for perceived slights.”

— Retired Army Gen. Mark Milley said he was “deeply grateful” to receive a preemptive pardon from outgoing President Joe Biden Monday, USA Today reports.

“You have a two-seat majority, and you shot one of your members.”

— A House Republican lawmaker, quoted by Politico, on Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) ousting House Intelligence Chair Mike Turner (R-OH) and making him “an enemy.”

“It’s weird to find solace in the Civil War, or the Great Depression, or the beginning of World War Two, but my whole optimistic temperament depends on saying that we will get through it and emerge stronger.”

— Historian Doris Kearns Goodwin, in an interview with the Financial Times.

“The Joe Biden story is one of the great tragedies of American politics. I really mean that. He should be having a glorious, well deserved, highly acclaimed retirement. And he’s not. It’s hard to blame anybody but him.”

— Veteran Democratic political strategist James Carville, quoted by NBC News.

— Paul Krugman, talking about the incoming Trump administration on The Daily Blast.

“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, a fair shot for everyone to get ahead.”

— President Biden warned Americans of a “dangerous concentration of power” in the hands of a “very few ultra-wealthy people” and the impact he feared it would have on the country’s democracy as he delivered a farewell address Wednesday from the Oval Office, Bloomberg reports.

— Paul Krugman

Poetic Justice

Verbatim

“I’ve covered Trump’s finances for 8 years and wrote a book about conflicts of interest during his first term. I’ve never seen anything quite like the profiteering that occurred over the last few days.”

— Dan Alexander

“If it is true, it will be a disgrace, because it makes the poor wretches who have nothing to pay the unpaid bill. It won’t do. This is not the way to solve things.”

— Pope Francis criticized President-elect Donald Trump’s plan to deport immigrants as a “disgrace,” CNN reports.

“Welcome home.”

— President Biden, quoted by ABC News, greeting President-elect Donald Trump at the White House.

“After forty-three years of faithful service in uniform to our Nation, protecting and defending the Constitution, I do not wish to spend whatever remaining time the Lord grants me fighting those who unjustly might seek retribution for perceived slights.”

— Retired Army Gen. Mark Milley said he was “deeply grateful” to receive a preemptive pardon from outgoing President Joe Biden Monday, USA Today reports.

“You have a two-seat majority, and you shot one of your members.”

— A House Republican lawmaker, quoted by Politico, on Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) ousting House Intelligence Chair Mike Turner (R-OH) and making him “an enemy.”

Numerati

$445 million

Big oil spent a stunning $445 million throughout the last election cycle to influence Donald Trump and Congress, The Guardian reports.

58%

A new Reuters/Ipsos poll found that 58% of Americans are not in favor of President Trump pardoning all of the people who were convicted of crimes related to the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol just over four years ago.

24.6 million

$15 trillion

$25 billion