"Politics isn't about big money or power games it's about the improvement of people's lives."

"We can and must move U.S. politics forward by means of committed participation."

"What makes community organizing especially attractive is the faith it places in the ability of the poor to make decisions for themselves."

"The only way to change is to vote. People are responsible."

"But for every hour and a half on stage, you have a five hour long bus ride, waiting for five hours at the airport, five hours of interviews... I know, it's part of the job, but that doesn't imply I have to like it."

"Writing became an obsessive compulsive habit but I had almost no money so I thought about being an urban firefighter and having lots of free time in which to write or becoming an English teacher and thinking about books and writers on a daily basis. That swayed me."

"My wish for the new millennium is for all children... to grow up wiser, and stronger and more prosperous for the future than ever before."

"The present times require the vigor and the activity of the prime of life; but I feel the increasing infirmities of age to such a degree, that I am conscious I cannot serve you to advantage."