When the middle class thrives, the country thrives, and when it doesn't, we don't.

I sometimes think that I didn't leave the Republican Party, as much as it left me.

I think that the coalition that President [Barack] Obama put together to win twice is a coalition that I can put together and add to.

If you wish to fault the administration, it is that we didn't have a clear picture and we probably didn't do as clear a job explaining that we did not have a clear picture until days later.

I can't stand the kind of paralysis that some people fall into because they're not happy with the choices they've made.

Yes, we've cut the maternal mortality rate in half, but far too many women are still denied critical access to reproductive health care and safe childbirth, and laws don't count for much if they're not enforced. Rights have to exist in practice - not just on paper. Laws have to be backed up with resources and political will. And deep-seated cultural codes, religious beliefs and structural biases have to be changed.

Donald Trump first gained political prominence leading the charge for the so-called birthers. He promoted the racist lie that President Obama is not really an American citizen, part of a sustained effort to delegitimize America's first black president.