I believe that if we stop talking at one another and start talking with one another, we can get a lot done.

We're not going to deputize a whole bunch of American citizens to start grabbing people or turning them in, in part because the ordinary American citizen may not know whether or not this person is illegal or not. But, you know, the notion that we're going to criminalize priests, for example, or doctors who are providing services to individuals, and throw them in jail for doing what their calling asks them to do, which is to provide help and service to people in need, I think that is a mistake. I think that's out of America's character.

When I turn over the keys to the president-elect, America will be much stronger than it was when I came into office.

I know there are problems that I say to myself, If maybe I was a little more gifted I might have been able to solve. But that's not because I believe what I did was a mistake. It's that maybe it required the talents of a Lincoln.

And above all, children need our unconditional love - whether they succeed or make mistakes; when life is easy and when life is tough.

If we can't meet with our friends, I don't know how we're going to lead the world in terms of dealing with critical issues like terrorism.

People have to recognize that it’s going to take some time for trust to be built not only between Democrats and Republicans, between Congress and the White House, between the House and the Senate. You know, we’ve had a dysfunctional political system for a while now.