People ask about love. Real love. I was never in love; the people around me didn't love me. They were just along for the ride.

I've been performing since 1955. I'm going to have to keep performing till I die because I'm not going to die in some rocking chair with a big ol' beer belly.

I make jokes because humor is the greatest healing factor that there is.

I smashed my tailbone and couldn't sit for five years, and I broke my clavicle because I thought I was a great surfer, and of course, I could be a great snowboarder, too. Man, was I wiped out!

I don't like to use the word 'fans;' I call them 'Dick Dale music lovers.'

With every problem comes a gift in hand.

I'm not one of these guys who is dedicated to playing or performing - that's just one facet of my life.

I answer number one to myself, because I know myself. I answer to my fans, because they know me. My mother knows me and God knows me, and that's where it's at.

When I come onstage, I'm exploding.

I've been called 'the father of loud.'

I may play the same songs night to night, but I never play them the same way.

I like to say, 'I hit every type of music in a show, and I play the people, not the instruments.'

Whatever you do, don't take shortcuts. It's great advice to take and live by.

If I ever wrote a book, people would never believe it.

My father never put me on his lap and said he loved me.

I've never taken a lesson in my life, and I can play every instrument there is. I play by ear, but I can fool anybody into thinking I went to some conservatory of music.

I do not play to musicians. I play to the people.

What I play now isn't surf music. It's too powerful. I used to go through paper bags; now I go through brick walls. I play hard.

When my guitar was growling, playing surf beat, you could hear it; you could feel it.

My philosophy is that on a scale of 1 to 10, I will go to 15. No matter what!

As I'd go out learning to surf, I'd feel the power of waves coming over my body. It's like you're with God.

Springsteen - he's the Lord God.

Millions of Americans take vitamins safely every day, including me. Vitamins and mineral supplements taken in recommended doses are safe. It's the designer supplements that are worrisome.

We believe that there are aspects of border security that Democrats and Republicans can agree on.

Flint is to the lead issue what Three Mile Island was to nuclear power. People are stepping back and thinking, 'There still is lead in my home?'

Our party is a diverse one, as is my home state of Illinois.

We will have health care reform in America.

When President Donald Trump nominated Judge Neil Gorsuch to serve on the Supreme Court, I said that he deserved a fair hearing and a vote. I said this even though Senate Republicans filibustered dozens of President Obama's judicial nominees and then stopped President Obama's Supreme Court nominee, Judge Merrick Garland.

Let me tell you the first president to recognize the state of Israel was Harry Truman, a Democrat and every president since, Democrat and Republican, has stood closely with Israel.

I've been impressed with Rick Guzman and his commitment to the residents of Aurora since I first met him many years ago.

Across the VA's system in our state, the wait times are entirely too long on average.

The swipe fee reform law that Congress enacted in 2010 was a huge step forward in bringing transparency, competition, and choice to a debit card system that had been rigged by Visa, MasterCard, and the banks.

If the Department of Education is serious about fighting for students and protecting taxpayers, a full ban of mandatory arbitration clauses is a no-brainer.

In July of 2006, I visited the military detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. It was important for me to see Guantanamo firsthand and to meet the military personnel who are doing such a great job for our country.

Reducing and removing greenhouse gas emissions spares our planet from the well-documented degradation that we are witnessing on a global basis.

Until we make campaigns affordable, then we're going to have too many members of Congress out rattling the cup with special interest groups.

DACA, to me personally, and the DREAM Act are very personal and mean an awful lot.

Osama bin Laden is gone. The war in Iraq is over. Afghanistan is coming to a close.

America wins when the voiceless have a seat at the table, when the vulnerable are protected, and when working families have the same political clout as the wealthy.

There is no question that tobacco is addictive and that tobacco kills.

Sunlight is better than secrecy when it comes to making laws.

Social Security is the most important social program in America.

When I hear my friend John Boehner say that we have the best health care in the world, I don't dispute it for a moment. If I were sick, this is the country I want to be in, with these doctors, these hospitals, and these medical professionals.

We all join the President in applauding the sacrifices made by our brave men and women in uniform. But we must continue to provide them the tools they need to accomplish the difficult tasks they face.

Borrowing 40 cents out of every dollar we spend for missiles or food stamps is unsustainable. And being indebted for generations to China and OPEC does not make American a stronger nation.

We need to provide support to those that are fighting ISIS. And we can provide that support: logistically, training, intelligence, air cover. There are many things we have already accomplished successfully. But the notion of sending in rotational troops, as we saw in Iraq in the past, and in Afghanistan, I think we have learned our lesson.

There are only two honest ways to reduce our debt: cut spending or raise revenues.

If we're going to have tax cuts, let's focus on those in lower and middle income groups. Make sure that they get the breaks they need to continue to try to provide for their families.

'Stand your ground' laws based on the ALEC model have had harmful consequences and need to be reconsidered.

God is not a franchise of the Republican Party.