When you have both parties who will not find ways to compromise, who won't meet in the middle, you have paralysis. It's the perversion of idealism.

The checks and balances is a way to prevent government from either devolving into an autocratic tyranny or an autocratic mob mentality.

The fact that slavery is written into the Constitution is about as entrenched a form of classism as you could possibly imagine.

If you work hard and play by the rules, you'll have a better life than your parents did, and your children will have a better life than you did.

When you have both parties who will not find ways to compromise, who won't meet in the middle, you have paralysis. It's the perversion of idealism.

Is self-interest a bad thing? We want our leaders to be pure and good, but at the same time we want them to be effective, and to be effective you often have to be ruthless and not bound by ideology or the same morals that we pretend to hold ourselves to.

My jobs on campaigns were pretty low on the totem pole - I was an advance man.