The stark and tragic images of human suffering in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina have reminded us yet again that civil rights and equal rights are still the great unfinished business of America. The suffering has been disproportionately borne by the weak, the poor, the elderly and infirm, and largely African-Americans, who were forced by poverty, illness, unequal opportunity to stay behind and bear the brunt of the storm's winds and floods. I believe that kind of disparate impact is morally wrong in this, the richest country in the world.

I don't think America can just drill itself out of its current energy situation. We don't need to destroy the environment to meet our energy needs. We need smart, comprehensive, common-sense approaches that balance the need to increase domestic energy supplies with the need to maximize energy efficiency.

The separation of church and state can sometimes be frustrating for women and men of deep religious faith. They may be tempted to misuse government in order to impose a value which they cannot persuade others to accept. But once we succumb to that temptation, we step onto a slippery slope where everyone's freedom is at risk.

I have fallen short in my life, but my faith has always brought me home.

My father enabled me to really believe in myself. And yet I've heard very similar stories - from many, many people. It's the way he approached his life. The way he approached his life - he was the eternal optimist. He was the most optimistic person that I've ever known. Even in the face of this diagnosis with cancer, he was filled with optimism about what he could do and what he could accomplish.

I hope for an America where no president, no public official, no individual will ever be deemed a greater or lesser American because of religious doubt - or religious belief.

Individual faults and frailties are no excuse to give in - and no exemption from the common obligation to give of ourselves.