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"I didn't have as much practice skiing as the Governor did. He was out there skiing when I was recovering from my wounds in Vietnam." WESLEY CLARK, presidential candidate, on rival Howard Dean's skiing activities after Dean got a medical deferment from the draft

"J.F.K. is my political idol." MIKHAIL SAAKASHVILI, U.S.-educated opposition leader in Georgia who helped bring on the resignation of President Eduard Shevardnadze and is favored to replace him

"Taliban and al-Qaeda forces are trying to wear down our staying power. I believe we need more troops to be able to provide that security." HILLARY CLINTON, Democratic Senator from New York, during her trip to Afghanistan to inspect the security situation

"Katherine will energize certain forces in the electorate when the President is on the ballot that may not need to be reminded of what happened in 2000." MARK FOLEY, Republican Congressman, on the possibility that Katherine Harris — Florida's secretary of state during the disputed 2000 election recount — will enter the race for the U.S. Senate in 2004

"We will land on you like a hammer. If you do anything to besmirch this man's reputation ... we will unleash a legal torrent like you've never seen." MARK GERAGOS, attorney for Michael Jackson, who was arrested on allegations of molesting a 12-year-old boy, in a warning to the press

"I personally would object to the assumption that they're investing $2 million in me." NEIL BUSH, President Bush's younger brother, in response to questions at a divorce deposition about a deal in which he received $2 million in stock from a Chinese-backed company

Sources: Washington Post; CNN; Washington Post; Bergen Record; New York Times; MSNBC (2)