With President Donald Trump making his famous claim of being a "very stable genius" early in January, 2018 looked set to be a promising year for memorable quotes—and indeed, it has delivered, with a top Yale Law School librarian sharing a list of the year's most notable phrases.
While Trump's "stable genius" claim, which he made on Twitter on January 6 in response to reports questioning his mental stability, did make the list assembled by Yale Law School Library Associate Director Fred Shapiro, it was the president's personal attorney Rudy Giuliani who stole the spotlight, with his summer proclamation that "truth isn't truth."
Read more: As Rudy Giuliani claims 'truth isn't truth,' here's all the ways Trump's administration has claimed facts are no longer real
Giuliani left Meet the Press host Chuck Todd visibly bewildered when he made the comment in an August interview while discussing whether Trump should testify in special counsel Robert Mueller's ongoing investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election.
"When you tell me that [Trump] should testify because he's going to tell the truth and he shouldn't worry, that's so silly, because it's somebody's version of the truth. Not the truth," Giuliani said.
"Truth is truth," Todd had simply responded, to which Giuliani replied: "No, it isn't truth. Truth isn't truth."
Todd had a difficult time containing his laughter, accurately predicting that the exchange was sure to "become a bad meme."
While Giuliani sparked widespread criticism—and laughter—with the claim, he later defended his words, asserting that they had not been a "pontification on moral theology" but a reference to cases of "he said, she said."
Kavanaugh Earns Second Place
Meanwhile, Brett Kavanaugh, now a Supreme Court justice, earned second place on Shapiro's list over his comments defending his drinking habits in high school during his high-profile testimony before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee that addressed allegations of sexual assault from Palo Alto University professor Christine Blasey Ford.
"I liked beer. I still like beer," Kavanaugh said on September 27 during the hearing.
Kavanaugh's defense of his drinking preferences, and general behavior during the hearing, which included heated outbursts from Kavanaugh, sparked a surge of Twitter reactions and memes, with many mocking how many times Kavanaugh's partiality toward beer came up.
Kavanaugh was confirmed to the Supreme Court on October 6, bringing a five-justice conservative majority to the High Court.
Among others whose comments made the "most notable" list were former FBI Director James Comey, rapper Kanye West and David Hogg, a survivor of the Parkland, Florida, school shooting who has become a prominent gun control activist since the attack.
Shapiro's list is an annual update to The Yale Book of Quotations, which was first published in 2006.
Last year, the phrase "alternative facts," which was initially used by Counselor to the President Kellyanne Conway, made the top of the list.
Read the full record of notable quotes from 2018, which was published by The Associated Press:
1. "Truth isn't truth." — Rudy Giuliani, interview on Meet the Press, August 19.
2. "I liked beer. I still like beer." — Brett Kavanaugh, U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee testimony on his Supreme Court nomination, September 27.
3. "While all pharmaceutical treatments have side effects, racism is not a known side effect of any Sanofi medication." — Sanofi drug company, in a tweet responding to Roseanne Barr's blaming its sleep aid Ambien for her tweet that led ABC to cancel her show, May 30.
4. "We gather to mourn the passing of American greatness, the real thing, not cheap rhetoric from men who will never come near the sacrifice he gave so willingly, nor the opportunistic appropriation of those that live lives of comfort and privilege while he suffered and served." — Meghan McCain, while delivering a eulogy for her father, the late John McCain, on September 1.
5. "We're children. You guys, like, are the adults. You need to take some action and play a role. Work together, come over your politics and get something done." — David Hogg, a survivor of the Parkland, Florida, school shooting, in a CNN interview on February 15.
6. "(I am) not smart, but genius...and a very stable genius at that!" — President Donald Trump, in a tweet on January 6.
7. "You don't have to agree with Trump but the mob can't make me not love him. We are both dragon energy. He is my brother. I love everyone." — Kanye West, in a tweet on April 25.
8. "Our country is led by those who will lie about anything, backed by those who will believe anything, based on information from media sources that will say anything." — James Comey, in a tweet on May 23.
9. "I have just signed your death warrant." — Judge Rosemarie Aquilina, addressing former USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar upon sentencing him to up to 175 years in prison for sexual assault on January 24.
10. "If you see anybody from that Cabinet in a restaurant, in a department store, at a gasoline station, you get out and you create a crowd! And you push back on them. And you tell them they're not welcome anymore, anywhere." — Democratic Representative Maxine Waters of California, in remarks at a rally in Los Angeles on June 23.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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Chantal Da Silva is Chief Correspondent at Newsweek, with a focus on immigration and human rights. She is a Canadian-British journalist whose work ... Read more
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