I'm never surprised by controversies that are whipped up in Washington.

America, our endless blessings bestow an enduring burden. But as Americans, we welcome our responsibility to lead.

A good compromise, a good piece of legislation, is like a good sentence; or a good piece of music. Everybody can recognize it. They say, 'Huh. It works. It makes sense.'

Nobody said democracies supposed to be easy. It's hard. And in a big country like America, it probably should be hard.

I'm not saying I'm impervious to criticism.

My core goal is to dismantle, defeat, destroy al Qaeda and its allies that killed Americans and are still plotting to go kill Americans.

My hope is that's something [Donald Trump] is thinking about, because not only is the president of the United States somebody that the entire country looks to for direction but sets the agenda internationally in a lot of ways.