To achieve a lasting peace in the Middle East takes guts, not guns.

Whatever title or office we may be privileged to hold, it is what we do that defines who we are ... Each of us must decide what kind of person we want to be-what kind of legacy that we want to pass on.

I want to be that person who could sacrifice everything for others.

Children keep us in check. Their laughter prevents our hearts from hardening. Their dreams ensure we never lose our drive to make ours a better world. They are the greatest disciplinarians known to mankind.

It is all too easy to draw conclusions and make sweeping judgments about millions of Muslim women based on fleeting television images. That is not right.

I've learned to take things a little more easily, to be a little more forgiving of myself.

Of course democracy is good, but it is a process, not a prescription.