[ Bernie Sanders' popularity] is exactly the same as Donald Trump's.It is a bunch of people who are disaffected with what the establishment has done, and they are striking out. Do they have any clear idea of what they want as an alternative? No. The candidates that they have surrounded themselves with either have no idea or are promising things that are so impractical they will never get done.

Ironically, it is exactly because we are a city that embraces freedom, that welcomes everyone and encourages their dreams, that New York remains on the front lines in the war on terror.

Government should not tell you what to do unless there's a compelling public purpose.

Many of America's and New York's sons and daughters are around the world fighting for the freedoms that the Statue of Liberty stands for.

The system [in U.S.] is designed for a two-party system. And those two parties have an interest in keeping third parties out. There's too much of the structure that works in the two-party way. They will keep the third party out.

Others may doubt us. They may criticize us. They may try to deny us what is rightfully ours. But they will fail. And I promise you, as long as I am mayor, I will never back away from fighting any opponent - or confronting any obstacle - that would prevent our people from achieving all of their dreams in Our New York.

To a contrarian like me, constant advice not to do something almost always starts me quickly down the risky, unpopular path.