Most Christmas carols have no obvious religious content, or at least that's noticeable to most people. I mean, it is almost by definition, a cultural phenomenon, all these songs, even though they point to this very religious holiday. They're not religious songs in effect anymore.

I believe that the flag of the Confederate States of America is a painful symbol and reminder of racial injustice and slavery which Abraham Lincoln denounced from here over 150 years ago.

What John McCain didn`t realize was that Sarah Palin was his demographic. He thought he was appealing to younger women, and in fact, Sarah Palin appealed to people who were like McCain, old white guys, who thought she was sexy to skin a moose. That was a miscalculation, it didn`t work. They didn`t do the vetting, they didn`t do the polling.

The idea that the United States is going to win the war in Iraq is just plain wrong.

The Iraqi prime minister is an anti-Semite. We don't need to spend $200 and $300 and $500 billion dollars bringing democracy to Iraq to turn it over to people who believe that Israel doesn't have a right to defend itself and who refuse to condemn Hezbollah.

I actually spoke in an African-American church yesterday.

I think the recovery hasn't been stronger because the hole that was dug for President Obama by the Bush administration was far worse than anybody could imagine, first of all.