Verbatim: Aug. 8, 2005

“I didn’t say nuke anything. I just said, ‘Take out their holy sites.'”

TOM TANCREDO, G.O.P. Congressman from Colorado, clarifying his comments on how the U.S. should respond to a nuclear attack by Islamic terrorists

“It isn’t just a matter of faith. It’s a matter of science.”

BILL FRIST, Senate majority leader and an anti-choice physician, supporting federal funding for stem-cell research on frozen embryos left over at fertility clinics, in a bill opposed by President George W. Bush and religious conservatives

“I think it tends to be a little bit voyeuristic.”

RICK SANTORUM, Republican Senator from Pennsylvania, on why the White House is balking at releasing Supreme Court nominee John Roberts’ income tax returns

“What does CAFTA sound like? NAFTA … Every time I drive through Kannapolis and I see those empty plants, I know there is no way I could vote for CAFTA.”

ROBIN HAYES, G.O.P. Representative from North Carolina, expressing his opposition to the Central American Free Trade Agreement two weeks before he changed his vote to help President Bush win passage of the bill, by a margin of two

“It was bigger than my village.”

ALI AL-SIROWIY, father of a 13-year-old Iraqi boy who underwent facial-reconstruction surgery in the U.S. for injuries caused by a U.S. cluster bomb, after he and his son visited Wal-Mart

“I promise I will become a spokesperson if you allow me to … I will defend you and try to get rid of any stereotypes.”

RICKY MARTIN, the Puerto Rican singer, offering to help change Westerners’ negative perceptions of Arab youth

“Gay men, oh, they love me. It’s like I’m the new Cher. They always tell me at the meet-and-greets, ‘Oh, honey, you’re my new Cher.'”

KELLY CLARKSON, who won the American Idol contest in 2002 and is now on a national concert tour, on her growing popularity since triumphing on national TV

Sources: Hannity and Colmes; AP; Philadelphia Inquirer; CNN; New York Times; AP (2)