The lack of access to proper nutrition is not only fueling obesity, it is leading to food insecurity and hunger among our children.

I think we have not done a good job of explaining to people in rural America what is actually happening, number one. And, number two, we're not expressing appreciation and acknowledging the contribution that rural America makes. Where does your food come from? Where does the water come from? Where does the energy feedstock come from? It all comes from rural areas. Where does your military come from? Nearly 35 to 40 percent of the military is from 15 percent of America's population living in rural America. It makes a tremendous contribution to this country. It just isn't recognized.

President Obama's fight for rural America is personal. He was raised by a single mom and grandparents from Kansas. He hails from a farming state, Illinois.

But It doesn't make sense for us to have a continued reliance on a supply of oil where whenever there is unrest in another part of the world, gasoline prices jump up. We need a renewable fuel industry that's more than corn-based, of course, and there are a whole series of great opportunities here.

I think, certainly, Barack Obama has created an opportunity for America to understand that diversity is a blessing, diversity is a strength. It isn't necessarily something to be concerned about. And I think, at the end of the day, we're going to learn that this country operates best when it celebrates and surrounds itself and appreciates diversity, and doesn't shun it.

There are a lot of farmers and ranchers who are struggling. I get on my knees every day. If I had a rain prayer or a rain dance I could do, I would do it.

If I had a rain prayer or a rain dance I could do, I would do it.