Don't give up on your ideals. Don't compromise. Don't turn to expediency. And for heaven's sake . . . don't get cynical.

Thomas Jefferson made a comment about the Presidency and age. He said that one should not worry about one's exact chronological age in reference to his ability to perform one's task. And ever since he told me that, I stopped worrying.

I have learned that one of the most important rules in politics is poise - which means looking like an owl after you have behaved like a jackass.

My golf-loving friend Bob Hope asked me what my handicap was, so I told him - the Congress.

America has not been a story or a byword. That small community of Pilgrims prospered and, driven by the dreams and, yes, by the ideas of the Founding Fathers, went on to become a beacon to all the oppressed and poor of the world.

A nation's greatness is measured not just by its gross national product or military power, but by the strength of its devotion to the principles and values that bind its people and define their character.

Our American tradition of neighbor helping neighbor has always been one of our greatest strengths and most noble traditions.