Political success is often dependent on the ability to be heard above the din of controversy and debate and to set a course with one's own compass.

A skilled worker, regardless of the job description, remains a treasure.

Common wisdom dictates that the vice president should provide balance to the ticket by representing a different part of the country, another set of experiences, or a basketful of electoral votes.

Early childhood education begins early, even before birth.

If being a woman is a factor politically, it's usually not because of a conscious bias, but because women are a novelty.

There are not many female role models to guide voters, and the tradition that a Southern woman's place is in the home still lingers in some quarters.

I confess to feeling continued ambivalence about political life, aware of its shortcomings and disappointments, but drawn back to it again and again because of its infinite promise. Justice can triumph, wrongs can be righted, and pain can be alleviated, if the right fix is found. The optimistic illusion that one can change the world is difficult to resist, especially when from time to time that illusion is sustained by even a hint of reality. Change does happen in the political process.