I went to my first national convention in 1976, when my family supported [Ronald] Reagan over [Gerald] Ford, so we've always been Republicans, but we've always wanted the Republican Party to be the party of fiscally conservative, limited-government types. And I think, sometimes, we haven't done that as well.

I do believe people ought to be left alone. I don't care who you are or what you do at home or who your friends are or where you hang out, what kind of music you listen to, what you do in your home is your own business. That's always been who I am. I am a leave me alone kind of guy.

I'm in favor of everything with regards to ending institutional racism.

To understand how Republicans lost the African American vote, we must first understand how we won the African American vote.

My first choice had always been my father. He's still my first pick. Now that the nominating process is over, tonight, I'm happy to announce that I'm going to be supporting Governor Romney.

I really think that discrimination and racism is a horrible thing. And I don't want any form of it in our government, in our public sphere.

If I had been told to get out of the street as a teenager, there would have been a distinct possibility that I might have smarted off. But, I wouldn’t have expected to be shot.