The reality, sitting ten thousand miles away, is that we remain the country that inspires. We remain that shining city on a hill.
I’m not competing in Iowa for a reason.
We’re fighting an enemy that is far different than any we have got before. It’s a nontraditional kind of war, and I think we need to step back, recalibrate how we go about protecting our borders and protecting our people, and resetting our position in the world.
I respect the president. He and I have a difference of opinion on how to help the country we both love. But the question each of us wants the voters to answer is who will be the better president, not who is the better American.
People truly reaching across boundaries – be they religious or race, political or geographic. A state that is sincerely civil and respectful of each individual’s pathway toward life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness will be our goal.
I’ve been married for 29 years. My marriage has been the greatest joy of my life. There is nothing conservative about denying other Americans the ability to forge that same relationship with the person they love.
I don’t think you need to run down someone’s reputation in order to run for the office of president.
I come from a long line of saloon keepers and proselytizers, and I draw from both sides.
The real secret about diplomats is that we’re trained to say something, when there is nothing to say, and to say nothing when there is something to say.
Our political debates today are corrosive and not reflective of the belief that Abe Lincoln espoused back in his day: that we are a great country because we are a good country.
Politics is a lot of serendipity. You’re in the right place and the right time and you’ve got the right message, and it either connects for you or, or it doesn’t.
My father, one of the great entrepreneurs and philanthropists of this state, taught me that capital – monetary or political – is to be used to benefit others. I intend to continue that tradition.
It’s taken a lot of presidents to get us where we are today, a lot of deployments, a lot of wars, a lot engagements. You add them all up.
If we can’t find cuts in the defense budget, we’re not looking carefully enough.
And the trajectory that our debt is taking now beyond $14 trillion is going to have an impact on our currency. It goes south, and our currency’s going to have an impact on our standard of living and affect every family in this country, and over time, our international competitiveness.
Today, I’m a candidate for the office of president of the United States of America. My kids can’t believe I just said that.
I love music, I love all kinds of music, particularly jazz. Jazz is an extension of America. There’s no other country in the world that could have produced jazz.
This is a time when the United States should be standing tall. There is no other leader in the world today. We shouldn’t be approaching conflicts as a team sport. We either get in an we lead and we do a good job, or you don’t get in at all.
It’s a tribal state, and it always will be. Whether we like it or not, whenever we withdraw from Afghanistan, whether it’s now or years from now, we’ll have an incendiary situation. Should we stay and play traffic cop? I don’t think that serves our strategic interests.
I would vote to increase the debt limit if there was a corresponding level of cuts. And if there was some serious talk about a balanced budget amendment, which we as governors always had to deal with.