I think the press are good people; I think they're educated people.

I met Barack Obama, I read his book, I like him a great deal. I disagree with him on very fundamental issues.

Who the hell ever dreamed up a tie? It's just such a weird idea, and yet it has been literally hanging around forever as the one constant and boring men's fashion staple.

What strikes me when I leave Washington is the extent to which there's a huge disconnect between Washington and the rest of the country. The rest of the country is not hyper partisan.

I think Barack Obama is one of the most exciting politicians to come along in a long time.

News is virtual now. It is not 24-hour news cycles; it is instant news cycles. It is live. News is live all the time, around the clock.

I'll tell you, Liz Cheney is going to be a very good candidate. I worked with her during the Bush campaigns. She's smart, she's focused, she's disciplined - and she's got a great back story. She's got a large family. She's a great mom. And she's a hard worker. I think she's going to be a very effective campaigner.

The initial attraction of a political convention was that often the outcome was not preordained. There was at least some element of surprise. But, now it's like tuning in to a movie where you already know the plot and the ending. It's just not that interesting.

You know, Republicans should have a consistent philosophy. And if your philosophy is about limited government and not intruding in people's lives, you shouldn't just inconveniently take a social issue like gay marriage and say, 'Well, unless we think - actually we should be intruding your life.'

You know, the Tea Party is a - first of all, it is a significant movement, and I think the media and some pundits have tried to write it off as a bunch of cranks or something. But, in fact, it's really a very legitimate and fairly significant swath of voters out there.

It's rare when a president wins the campaign without winning independents.

Mention the name George W. Bush in mixed company, and you're likely to spark a lot of debate and emotion - hot and cold, good and bad. Not a lot of neutral reaction. He was elected in the most controversial contest in American electoral history and governed during one of the most tumultuous decades.

War is often about making the least-worst decision. The same could be said about politics. But the stakes are higher in war, when the commander-in-chief is called upon to defend the nation.

In Texas money goes further, with one of the lowest costs of living, one of the lightest tax burdens as a percent of income, and one of the lowest debt-per-capita ratios.

Limited government, low taxes, controlled spending and debt, and a restrained regulatory environment make Texas work.

Democracy is but an experiment in the long history of the world.

I'm no economist. I don't even play one on TV. I'm just a husband, a father, a taxpayer.

Washington doesn't have just a spending problem, or just an entitlement problem, or just a taxing problem. We have a leadership problem. Fix that, and the first three problems are solved.

The Newtown massacre created a tipping point on the gun debate in America.

The world is still changing. Faster than ever. And so should the Republican Party. Or condemn itself to a smaller and smaller base of core supporters and permanent minority status.

A competition of the best ideas - that should be what Congress is about.

Immigration reform almost happened under President George W. Bush. Twice. And it was comprehensive.

I don't really care how or why Obama got to the right place on gay marriage. I'm just glad he got there.

There's no question that many factors contribute to voters' perceptions about debates and who wins and who loses.

The office of the president is the most powerful in the world. It is also, at times, the most powerless.

Outside events can change a presidential campaign, a president, and the history of the nation: the Iranian hostage crisis, the bombing of the Marine barracks in Beirut, the downing of the helicopter in Mogadishu, Somalia, the suicide attack on the USS Cole, and, of course, the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

In politics, not all lies are all lies. And not all truths are complete.

Conservative women in politics run a punishing gauntlet. They endure psychological evaluations and near-gynecological exams their male and liberal counterparts do not.

The job of elected leaders is to deliver results that represent the interests of the citizens who placed them in a position of authority with their voice, their vote. But these days, money talks louder.

Wages, investments, and home values are the three legs of the economic stool for most Americans.

Temporary tax cuts don't create permanent confidence, nor permanent jobs.

Infrastructure spending does not create immediate jobs, and more than half of those jobs will pull from the pool of the already employed.

A true relief effort for hurricane victims is not a partisan issue. However, in Washington we are notorious for making our jobs far more difficult than they need to be.

Putting aid for Harvey victims in limbo because of our own inability to handle pressing deadlines in a timely manner is not only inappropriate, but it sends the wrong message to millions of Americans in Texas and millions more who put us in Washington to do a job. We owe them better.

Congress is the world's oldest deliberative body in the world's oldest democracy. The result of that democracy, and the Constitution on which it rests, are America's laws.

Gun control is not the answer. The best and most effective path forward, I believe, is one that safeguards our schools from becoming 'soft targets.'

As a legislator, I was elected to make the tough decisions and produce solutions to the problems facing our country.

Regrettably, the Obama administration has chosen to take a lackadaisical approach to religious freedom, and allowed IRFA to fade into the background.

We should really focus on an American First agenda, and these climate pacts and climate regulations have been designed to not necessarily give American workers and the American environment a head start. It really gives our competition a greater ability to compete internationally and disadvantage American companies.

The American people must be assured that no federal agency can trample their First Amendment rights.

Granting amnesty to those who willfully broke the law makes a mockery of our legal system and encourages even more lawlessness - potentially more severe crimes than entering the U.S. illegally.

Donald Trump has made outstanding picks for his Cabinet.

The IRS isn't the only agency using taxpayer dollars for big bonuses.

Spying on the prime minister of Israel and Congress has nothing to do with national security - only politics.

To suggest that all members of the Republican conference represent their district in a manner that's reflective of the makeup of their district would not be accurate.

Roy Moore is a man of faith.

For years, President Obama has chastised Republicans, used immigrants as props for political purposes, and time and again deflected responsibility from his own party's failure to act on immigration reform.

I know Judge Roy Moore to be not only be a man of character in spite of the tens of millions of dollars that are flowing into Alabama to suggest otherwise.

Hezbollah is notorious for using charities and front organizations to hide its funding sources.

I want to make sure that we have a tax code that makes sure that everyone benefits, including those in poverty and those middle-income wage earners and those that have already lived the American dream as well as making sure that everyone can receive the benefits of a robust economy and not just the select few.