Today in America we are no more "post-racial" than we are "post-partisan." We have a long way to go.

If you are going to be progressive, then you have to make progress. And that sometimes depends on breaking a few legs.

The most powerful recent innovation in government is when states aggressively use community colleges for retraining. In Michigan, where large numbers of workers were displaced from the manufacturing industry, we created a wildly successful program: No Worker Left Behind.

That's one of the most exciting things about Michigan's future. We need to, we must capitalize on our alternative-energy vehicles that we can produce right here.

For most of the 20th century, we didn't just enjoy economic success in Michigan, we defined it. Our innovators and entrepreneurs created the world's most productive companies, and our unions made sure that productivity led to broad middle class prosperity.

We're on the cusp, on the brink, of enormous change in this country.

We need to be celebrating those who serve us rather than mocking them for the purpose of getting on TV and selling some books.