When I came to Washington, I was troubled to observe so many similarities between the behaviors of drug-addicted patients and my political colleagues. In Washington power is like morphine.

If we're to honor the heritage of our country, whether it be in terms of religious freedom, whether it be in terms of truly protecting life, protecting not just the unborn but who comes next, the infirm, the elderly, the maimed, the disabled - that's who comes next as we get into the budget crunch of taking care of those people in the years - I believe we ought to have that debate honest and openly.

Few things infuse a member of Congress with more courage than self-imposed term limits or an imminent retirement. The issues they choose to focus on in their final months say a great deal about what are really the most important issues in the country.

What makes this mentality dangerous is that when the team is held together by careerism and mindless partisanship, individual members are punished for thinking for themselves.

I firmly believe that the court should take another direction on many of these moral issues that face us.

Careerism: the self-centered philosophy of governing to win the next election above all else.

Expose widespread waste and duplication in federal spending.