Briefing

“In the privacy of the ballot box, the people made a public statement.”

ENDA KENNY, Prime Minister of Ireland, reacting to the referendum that approved same-sex marriage with 62% support, making Ireland the first country to do so by popular vote

“It’s not for me”

POPE FRANCIS, revealing that he hasn’t watched television since July 15, 1990

“The Iraqi forces just showed no will to fight.”

ASHTON CARTER, U. S. Defense Secretary, declaring that ISIS’s capture of Ramadi exposed glaring weaknesses in the Iraqi army; it was the Obama Administration’s harshest critique to date

“Obama has not done a damn thing so far to confront Daesh.”

MAJOR GENERAL QASEM SOLEIMAMI, commander of Iran’s elite Quds Force, addressing members of his country’s armed forces in Iran on May 24; Soleimani, referring to ISIS by its Arabic acronym, Daesh, said only Iran was committed to reversing the extremist group’s recent advances in Iraq

TIME, June 8, 2015