The worst thing that can happen in a democracy - as well as in an individual's life - is to become cynical about the future and lose hope.

[The Republicans] all want to see women's rights eroded and for abortion to become illegal again.

You can be maybe rented but never bought.

As a senator, I raised the alarm about sub prime mortgages. I fought to hold reckless manufacturers accountable for toxic toys and household products that threaten our kids. I introduced legislation to protect Americans' personal data and combat identity theft. So as president, I will make consumer protection a top priority across the entire government.

Now I know that Wal-Mart's policies do not reflect the best way of doing business and the values that I think are important in America.

With respect to my own husband, I am probably still going to pick the flowers and the china for state dinners and stuff like that. But I will certainly turn to him as prior presidents have for special missions, for advice.

For more than a half a century, we know that we prospered because of a bipartisan consensus on defense and foreign policy. We must do more than return to that sensible, cooperative approach.