I do feel kind of like I have a split identity in that there's Van Jones, who has this big public role and tries to inspire millions of people to do new stuff together. And then there's just me: a pretty quiet, shy, retiring person.

Sometimes we overemphasize the political system. There are other ways to make a difference. There's technology, there's media, there's business.

You don't get lower ratings playing the villain on reality TV.

You don't get fewer followers saying outrageous stuff on Twitter.

If you look at my career over the past twenty years, I've always been trying to look around corners for low-income communities of color.

I'm only 42, and I've got a lot more tricks up my sleeve.

Mr. Vice President, the most fiscally conservative thing this government has ever done, is to invest massively in the green part of the recovery. Because those green dollars are the hardest working dollars in the history of American politics. That same dollar that is being used to cut energy bills, is also cutting global warming gas emissions, is also cutting unemployment, is also cutting poverty, through retrofits it's also raising the value of homes, is also by cleaning the air, cutting asthma rates.