I think that what is always true when you run against an incumbent president is, is that you end up talking more about that president's record than your vision for the future, and I think that the Democrats do have to present a proactive agenda and vision for the country and not simply run against something if they're going to be successful.

We can lead this world and make it safer and more secure for our children and our grandchildren, for generations to come.

I also believe that if we're serious about change, we need to have a real discussion about public financing for congressional elections.

There is a wonderful book called "Gandhi's Truth," by Erik Erikson, the psychologist. It is a great book. And I remember reading that and thinking about this connection between what we think in our personal lives and how that manifests itself in our politics. Those are two books, just off the top, that I think are sort of representative of reading that I did at that time. I never get a chance to read anymore.

I'll be honest, there have been times when I've listened to the rhetoric in Europe where an easy equivalent somehow between the United States and Russia and between how our governments operate versus other governments operate, where those distinctions aren't made.

Whatever decisions I make are going to be based first on a strategy to keep us safe and then we'll figure out how to resource it.

Contrary to the claims of some of my critics and some of the editorial pages, I am an ardent believer in the free market.