I believe education is the great equalizer. Our children are our hope for the future, so we have an obligation to provide them with the tools to succeed. There is no more powerful tool than knowledge.

I'd rather live in Nebraska than Washington.

Nebraskans are known for giving of themselves and that quality is part of what makes our state such a wonderful place to live, work and raise a family.

But, I don't want to assume that our tradition of excellence is a guarantee of future excellence.

I am very proud of the quality of public education in Nebraska, but I believe we have an obligation to continually assess whether our system is meeting 21st Century education needs.

Nebraskans have very strong opinions, but we sit down around a table and we solve our problems.

I'll get a three-page letter and the last paragraph says 'I know you'll never read this, but here's my number.' I love to call those people because the first thing they say is, 'Governor, I didn't mean everything I said in the letter about you.'