I was born in segregated Birmingham, Alabama. I didn't have a white classmate till we moved to Denver.

I will never forget the bright September day, standing at my desk in the White House, when my young assistant said that a plane had hit the World Trade Center - and then a second one - and a third, the Pentagon.

I don't think anybody could have predicted that they would try to use an airplane as a missile, a hijacked airplane as a missile.

I may not agree with everything, but our President, just like President [George W.] Bush did, is trying to do his best under difficult circumstances.

I'm a great believer in the fact that as you get to know someone, it matters not what religious background they have, or what their nationality is, or where they came from. And I think that's how Americans really do relate to each other on a personal level.

Everyone wants Russia to be a prosperous, democratic state that is fully integrated.

It is a dangerous thing to ask why someone else has been given more. It is humbling - and indeed healthy - to ask why you have been given so much.