Improving our national intelligence capabilities should remain a top priority and a continual process.

My heart has been heavy and I have deliberated within my own conscience, knowing that my decision should not come out of my initial emotion of anger toward the President for such reckless behavior, but should be based on the facts.

In rural areas of America, there is a growing increase in poverty, homelessness and hunger. You cannot separate these factors from domestic violence ?- a mother with three kids and no financial security is going to stiffen her lip and take the abuse, because not only does she have nowhere else to go, she has three children depending on her for survival.

Many Americans are unaware that we still have a large population of working families, elderly, and children who rely on emergency food pantries, shelters, and other resources to meet their nutritional needs.

Right and wrong becomes more difficult for each of us as we grow older, because the older we get the more we know personally about our own human frailties.

I am not normally a betting person, but I say that putting your money on the American people is about as close to a sure bet as you are going to get.

If we invest in the American people, the American people always bring this Nation a good return.