I think you grow wherever God plants you. I hope I'm growing as a person of faith, as a Christian. That should be our number one objective this journey of life. That all starts with a personal intimate relationship with Christ and then being in prayer every single day about all of those things - being tenacious about it.

Serving in Congress has been more than an honor; it has been one of the most exhilarating experiences of my life ... It has been a wonderful ride. It has been a wonderful journey.

My work in the House of Representatives, at this time in my life, is completed. It is time to return home.

We need to remember that politics is all about people, not programs. We shouldn't want to take the humanness out of the political arena.

The more I ponder some of the boneheaded decisions GOP candidates have made of late, I can't bring myself to believe that they are serious about capturing more than about 8 percent of the black vote.

In addition, there is one title I cherish a great deal more than Congressman and that is the title of... Dad.

You take a poor black child. Give him a good education, tell him he's somebody, that God didn't create junk when he created him, and that black child will create his own affirmative action.