Mitt Romney’s '47 Percent' Quote Tops List of 2012 National Quotes

We all, from time to time, say something we wish we could take back, but when you're in the public eye, quotable statements can stick -- and even affect the course of careers and political futures.

Since 2006, Yale Law School’s Fred Shapiro has been compiling an annual list of the most notable quotations, and this year, Mitt Romney’s “47 percent” quote topped the 2012 list:

There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what ... who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims ... These are people who pay no income tax. ... and so my job is not to worry about those people. I'll never convince them that they should take personal responsibility and care for their lives.

A recent MSN article stated that Shapiro “picks quotes that are famous, important or revealing of the spirit of the times, not necessarily the ones that are the most eloquent or admirable.”

Quotes from President Barack Obama and Romney make up half of the list, with four other political quotes and one South Korean  -- rapper PSY -- filling out the Top 10.

Romney’s “binders full of women,” Missouri senatorial candidate Todd Akin’s “legitimate rape,” and New Jersey governor Chris Christie’s “If you think I give a damn about presidential politics,” quotes are among the most memorable.

View Shapiro’s entire Top 10 list is here.

Any great local quotes come to mind? Tell us in comments.