Vetting and verifying information is one thing. Having our government sending out conflicting messages to the American people when conflict can be avoided is another.

The Staten Island Ferry remains a potential terrorist target.

Russia under President Putin is less democratic and less free today than when he assumed office. If Russia cannot fulfill its obligation to the G-8 and maintain a high standard of democratic governance then its membership should be suspended.

The sad fact is that the same terrorist scenarios, if they occurred in five different States, there could be five different sets of responses to the American people. We need, at a minimum, a level of coordination on communicating threats to the public.

We are losing the democracy that we're trying to sell in the Mideast and everywhere else right here in our own nation.

Historically, it has required a combination of favorable employment trends and active government intervention to lower the percentage of people in poverty and raise living standards for the working middle class.

If we had known that one of those terrorist attacks was coming, could our government have electronically eavesdropped on the attackers without a warrant?

We believe that business is the engine that drives the car. You've got to build your business base. That means creating more jobs, better paying jobs - that's how you raise your standard of living. That's how you raise your quality of life. That's what funds all the other services people want from government.