My parents were very poor, but we never felt any sense of need or want. It was a very close, loving, tightly-knit family growing up, and I never felt any sense of deprivation or anything like that.

I had been involved in U.S. intelligence in Berlin, Germany, while in the military and had worked with a contact with the Central Intelligence Agency office there.

I got a job with a law firm in Portland after a couple of years with Senator Muskie. But by then, my interest in politics had been sparked, through meeting Senator Muskie, through seeing what he did.

When I went to college, my goal was to be a college history teacher. I majored in history.

What good is my parents' wealth and education and upbringing if I'm not contributing to the world?

It was 1939. There was no money or jobs around. I did my parents a favor and joined the Navy.

Politicians - in both political parties - spend too much money. And they forget to focus on what matters most: fixing the economic mess they created and putting people back to work.

Yes, I have a website that puts out conservative news. Yes, I am part owner of a gun company. Yes, I'm a Republican who was cast into the limelight for having the temerity to confront Barack Obama on the question of redistributing wealth... But I'm a working man, and I'm working.