I think the jobs [at the top] are unbelievably difficult, and there is nothing easier than second-guessing people.

As a leader, you have to have the ability to assimilate new information and understand that there might be a different view.

People are finding it harder and harder to relate to foreign policy.

For me, America is really, truly the indispensable nation.

I think there has to be the sense that once you have climbed the ladder of success, that you don't push it away from the building.

Iraq is a long way from the U.S., but what happens there matters a great deal here. For the risks that the leaders of a rogue state will use nuclear, chemical or biological weapons against us or our allies is the greatest security threat we face.

In 1953, the United States played a significant role in orchestrating the overthrow of Iran's popular prime minister, Mohammed Mossadegh. The Eisenhower administration believed its actions were justified for strategic reasons, but the coup was clearly a setback for Iran's political development and it is easy to see now why many Iranians continue to resent this intervention by America in their internal affairs.