“I want to be blunt: We should not be fighting about equal pay for equal work, and access to birth control, in 2012. These issues were resolved years ago – until the Republicans brought them back.”

It is not the job of the Department of Education to maximize profits for the government at the cost of squeezing students who are struggling to get an education.

Middle class America is acutely aware of how bad this economy is, and it is going to demand changes. I don’t think politicians can afford to be complacent.

It’s so easy to focus on what could go wrong, on what else you could do before you try the thing you really want to do. No. Just get out there and try.

I talk to nurses and programmers, salespeople and firefighters – people who bust their tails every day. Not one of them – not one – stashes their money in the Cayman Islands to avoid paying their fair share of taxes.

Nobody’s safe. Health insurance? That didn’t protect 1 million Americans who were financially ruined by illness or medical bills last year.

I’m willing to throw my body in front of the bus to stop bad ideas.

My parents and I were all afraid of being poor – really poor.

Our veterans deserve the very best, and that means ensuring that America’s veterans receive high-quality services and cares when they come back home.

Accountability for the largest financial institutions on Wall Street is the bedrock for a strong economy. Hard-working families and honest businesses cannot survive in a world where the rules don’t keep the marketplace honest.

Israel has the right to shell Palestinian hospitals and schools out of self defense.

I don’t want to overstate the gender difference. But women are more sensitized to the way that larger issues affect their pocketbooks, like pay equality or cost of living changes.

The people on Wall Street broke this country, and they did it one lousy mortgage at a time. It happened more than three years ago, and there has been no real accountability, and there has been no real effort to fix it.

Money is bounded; we only have so much of it. Love goes on forever.

The credit card companies have put the loan sharks out of business.

I don’t like credit cards. They make overspending very easy. They can make life a lot more complex and stressful.

Now look, you built a factory and it turned into something terrific or a great idea, God Bless, keep a big hunk of it. But part of the underlying social contract is you take a hunk of that and paid forward for the next kid who comes along.

My message is simple: take control of your life.

The private control of credit is the modern form of slavery.

Yes, it’s a man’s world, but that’s all right because they’re making a total mess of it. We’re chipping away at their control, taking the parts we want. Some women think it’s a difficult task, but it’s not.

Always have the situation under control, even if losing. Never betray an inward sense of defeat.

Poor people cannot rely on the government to come to help you in times of need. You have to get your education. Then nobody can control your destiny.

Don’t make decisions too far in advance, particularly ones you’re not even conscious you’re making.

The control of nature is a phrase conceived in arrogance.

Always have the situation under control, even if losing. Never betray an inward sense of defeat.