The Wall Street Journal, in an editorial: "The message (from a key Senate vote on a nominee to the federal bench) seems to be: Liberals will keep their private views private but conservatives cannot be trusted to do so. If Mr. Kerry's Catholic beliefs don't disqualify him from becoming president, and they shouldn't, then the same religious beliefs of conservative judicial nominees shouldn't disqualify them from service as federal judges."

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Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's finance minister and former prime minister, on the Israeli fence: "Despite what some have argued, fences have proven highly effective against terrorism. Of the hundreds of suicide bombings that have taken place in Israel, only one has originated from the Gaza area, where Hamas and Islamic Jihad are headquartered. Why? Because Gaza is surrounded by a security fence. Even though it is not complete, the West Bank security fence has already drastically reduced the number of suicide attacks."

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Columnist Arnold Beichman: "Western society agrees to a common morality - core values - in that it accepts the validity of laws barring polygamy, men seducing young boys, marriage of children, etc. If the concept of marriage can be redefined to establish the validity of (homosexual) union, then why frown upon the antics of the North American Man Boy Love Association? The age of consent for girls in Canada is 14 years, so why not 13, 12 - whatever?"

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 Democratic Senator Hillary Clinton, addressing a three-day "Take Back America" conference in Washington featuring Howard Dean and sponsored by the progressive group, Campaign for America's Future: "Do you remember I once mentioned the vast right-wing conspiracy? Some doubted me."

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Republican Senator John McCain, responding in an interview with AARP Magazine to the question, "Are you becoming more liberal?": "I am a committed Republican and will remain so. I am a Republican of the Abraham Lincoln/Theodore Roosevelt garden variety, and I want my party to move back to those principles and practices."