I think my background, coming from Iran, which is a great country but is going through its share of troubles, really allows me to appreciate what we have here.

Desperation sometimes drives innovation.

I think I wanted to be a doctor. In Iran, the engineering and medical professions are worshipped. My father very much wanted me to be a doctor. I was certainly eager to please as a young man - as a kid, I should say.

One of the early lessons that I learned in leadership is that it's the leader's job to always go against the flow.

Traditions are always puzzling to those who don't share them. I'm Jewish, so the idea of a 'perfect family Christmas' is foreign to me.

I could easily vote for things that benefit me taxwise, but the rest of my family is not in this tax bracket. So when I vote, I try to keep in mind my family and my community and what I think is best for the nation as a whole.

I am basically in awe of every family's ability to make decisions for their kids.

I started playing bluegrass with my family, so there were the G, C and D chords. I was playing a Martin acoustic because that's what Carter Stanley of the Stanley Brothers played. Then I got into the really raw blues of Hound Dog Taylor and started on electric guitar.