When the Lord calls me home, whenever that may be, I will leave with the greatest love for this county of ours and eternal optimism for its future.

Regimes planted by bayonets do not take root.

I never thought it was my style or the words I used that made a difference. It was the content. I wasn't a great communicator, but I communicated great things.

Two visions of the world remain locked in dispute. The first believes all men are created equal by a loving God who has blessed us with freedom. The second vision believes that religion is opium for the masses. It believes that eternal principles like truth, liberty, and democracy have no meaning beyond the whim of the state. And [Vladimir] Lenin spoke for them.

What is important is that one strives to achieve a goal.

For centuries the Bible's emphasis on compassion and love for our neighbor has inspired institutional and governmental expressions of benevolent outreach such as private charity, the establishment of schools and hospitals, and the abolition of slavery.

And children, if your parents haven't been teaching you what it means to be an American, let 'em know and nail 'em on it. That would be a very American thing to do.