There is a growing sense among Americans outside the Beltway that while President Obama may be a good talker, he is a lousy manager.

The president doesn't order the military to seize political opponents. He doesn't order his intelligence community to lie about national security for political purposes. He uses the military or intelligence communities to protect the United States and our citizens, not to help him win elections.

Every president, as he nears the end of his final term in office, thinks about his place in history.

As long as the United States - and the world - gets its oil from the Middle East, we will be drawn into the endless crises that seem endemic to the region. American energy independence would not only liberate us, it would also drive down the worldwide price of oil.

The leaders come up from the volunteers that do the work, and it's amazing because then they do these incredible things in their community that they never thought they had the power to make that happen.

There's two parts of leadership. You've got to be a good leader - you've got to be somebody that people want to emulate and care about the other people. But the other guys that you have have to accept their leadership. They have to respond to it. That's the chemistry that you never know how that is going to happen.

Micky Arison is a fantastic owner and a great leader, and we've always had a special relationship.

I am confident that, as elected officials, we can work together with religious, business and civic leaders, as well as the LGBT community, to develop policies that treat all people with dignity and respect.