I learned to slip back and forth between my black and white worlds. One of those tricks I had learned: People were satisfied so long as you were courteous and smiled and made no sudden moves. They were more than satisfied; they were relieved -- such a pleasant surprise to find a well-mannered young black man who didn't seem angry all the time.

America is a strong and resilient country. And I know we will succeed, if we put aside partisanship and politics and work together as one nation.

What I've said to [my team] is, "Look, we ran our leg of the race and we did a darn good job."

Generally speaking, people who know me will tell you that my public persona is not that different from my private persona.

It's the job, I think, of leaders to try to address peoples' real legitimate concerns and channel them in the most constructive ways possible.

The American people are both anxious for change. We're in a time of flux.

Our efforts will only be effective if ordinary citizens in other countries have confidence that the United States respects their privacy too. And the leaders of our close friends and allies deserve to know that if I want to learn what they think about an issue, I will pick up the phone and call them, rather than turning to surveillance.