When my son was a mere three months old, I started working at the State Department. I was not only the youngest Assistant Secretary of State but I was also a breastfeeding mother. I'm the first to admit that this felt crazy at times, and the balancing act is never ever easy. But my two kids are the most wonderful things that have ever happened to me.

President Obama is an extraordinary person to work with and for.

People are consuming the news that is comfortable for them, not necessarily the news that is real or that they need to know.

President Obama is perhaps the smartest person I've ever worked with.

As Prime Minister Netanyahu and Defense Minister Barak have repeatedly said, the intelligence and security relationship between the United States and Israel at present is unprecedented. It has never been stronger.

In this day and age, the U.S. and Europe do not have the luxury of focusing solely on a single region.

If you're trying to get something done, there will always be people who don't want to see you get something done, or who have a stake in the status quo. And if they approach that through ad hominem criticism of you, you've got to have enough confidence and thickness of skin to be able to endure.