We focused so much on saying, "Don't vote for them and here's why" and we didn't tell the American people "Vote for us and here's why."

Republicans also have to start to look at talent recruitment. Eight years ago Barack Obama was a no-name state senator. So I think we need to look outside the Beltway and start to look at a younger, more diverse pool of people and tap them to run for office instead of continuously tapping the same type of self-funder individual that Republicans seem to go after every time.

The Iranians are not going to cede any kind of power. They're not going to cede any kind of control. [Hassan] Rouhani used to be the nuclear negotiator. Any YouTube saying this is our mission to become nuclear. He's not going to change his mind.

I'm OK with guns in schools, if it's a security, trained security personnel. But every teacher having a gun, I don't know if I can jump up and down on that one and fully get behind it.

We need to tap into new issues. There's a way to resurrect the sound policies of our party, but also to look toward new issues - kitchen-table issues like the rising cost of education. I think that's a winning issue for Republicans.

Conservatives need to figure out a way to motivate by reason and persuade through emotion. Meaning that when they talk about our issues, it can't come from a selfish place - "Give me a tax cut. Where's my tax cut." We have to get back to that "shining city on the hill."

Republicans and conservatives have to figure out that Democrats have plenty of rope to hang themselves on their own. But you have to give voters a reason to vote for you as well.