Two from the world of politics;:
1 In a debate in the House of Commons in 1962 after the PM, Harold Macmillan had sacked a third of his cabinet in a desperate attempt to boost his popularity, the then young leader of the Liberal Party (Jeremy Thorpe) parodied holy scripture thus:
"Greater love hath no man than this, that he lay down his friends for his life"
14 years later, when the Labour government of James Callaghan had slipped into a minority and was facing the real prospect of defeat in a motion of no confidence at the hands of the new Opposition Leader, Margaret Thatcher, the then tiny Liberal party, by now led by David Steel after Jeremy Thorpe's disgrace, fearful of losing what few seats they had at a general election, came to the government's aid (the "Lib-Lab pact"). This prompted a Tory backbencher, whose name escapes me, to declaim scathingly about the Liberals, "Many times have I heard of rats deserting a sinking ship, but this is the first time I have heard of mice joining a one!"