This is a time of great change in the world but America's always been a pillar of strength and a beacon of hope to peoples around the globe and that's what it must continue to be.

I think the American people recognize is after a decade of war it's time to do some nation building here at home. And what we can now do is free up some resources, to, for example, put Americans back to work, especially our veterans, rebuilding our roads, our bridges, our schools, making sure that, you know, our veterans are getting the care that they need when it comes to post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury, making sure that the certifications that they need for good jobs of the future are in place.

I think that there's gonna be a lot of work to do in order to consolidate the transformations that I was interested in.

All the strands of my life came together and I really became a man when I moved to Chicago.

I don't buy the hype when everybody is saying how wonderful things are and how great I am, and I don't get too down when people say, "This is a disaster and he's done for."

Democracy demands that the religiously motivated translate their concerns into universal, rather than religion-specific, values.

I think it's useful to keep in mind I've been now President for over seven years and gun sales don't seem to have suffered during that time.