Our country deserves no less, because all of the other issues we want to deal with depend upon us being secure and strong.

I used to sit on the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue and wonder why the Senate was always going into recess, until in my first year I realized how intense the pressure was.

He [ Vladimir Putin] would rather have a puppet as president of the United States.

I've worked with a lot of different Muslim groups around America. I've met with a lot of them, and I've heard how important it is for them to feel that they are wanted and included and part of our country, part of our homeland security, and that's what I want to see.

As a young lawyer, I learned to try to find common ground with people, to look for a human connection. When I got to the Senate, despite the fact that there were a lot of people who didn't want me to get there - and were sure they'd never even talk to me, let alone work with me - I really tried to do the job I was sent there to do by the people of New York, which was to get things done for my constituents. I worked with Republicans, and we found a lot of common ground. It isn't easy, but it's part of what we have to do in politics today.

It's very much in our interest to unite [with Bernie Sanders] as quickly as possible to begin the campaign against Donald Trump. And I think the facts really speak for themselves. I have a won a big majority of the popular vote of the states, of pledged delegates, and we want to go forward in a positive and unified way.

Let's be honest: For a lot of well-meaning, open-minded white people, the sight of a young, black man in a hoodie still evokes a twinge of fear.