Citizen service is the very American idea that we meet our challenges not as isolated individuals but as members of a true community, with all of us working together. Our mission is nothing less than to spark a renewed sense of obligation, a new sense of duty, a new season of service.

The world economy, the world environment, the world AIDS crisis, the world arms race: they affect us all.

When I was a younger man and had a life, I owned an El Camino pickup in the '70s. It was a real sort of Southern deal. I had Astroturf in the back.

We know that when we protect our oceans we're protecting our future.

I mean, when's the last time we elected a president based on one year of service in the Senate before he started running? I mean, he will have been a senator longer by the time he's inaugurated, but essentially once you start running for president full time you don't have time to do much else.

You know, by the time you become the leader of a country, someone else makes all the decisions. ... You may find you can get away with virtual presidents, virtual prime ministers, virtual everything.

The purpose of politics is to give people tools to make the most of their lives.