I think that in a country as successful as ours, we still have a long way to go in terms of parity for women, whether it’s equal pay in the workforce or a whole host of other issues.

Those self-evident principles of life and liberty, pursuit of happiness, they're not self-executing. They require each of us to get engaged. And what Barack Obama is really concerned about is to ensure that the American people appreciate their power to influence the democracy.

As we try to compete in this global marketplace, we need to rebuild our infrastructure. We need to rebuild our schools. We need to make sure that teachers and first responders and veterans who are coming home from serving our country so proudly have jobs waiting for them.

The President has been a big proponent of the public option since the campaign.

The ADA was a landmark civil rights legislation. It was a bill of rights for persons with disabilities, a formal acknowledgement that Americans with disabilities are Americans first and that they're entitled to the same rights and freedoms as everybody else.

We have to think creatively about changes that need to be made in the workplace to accommodate the growing demands on the work force.

A new era of responsibility is here.