The worst excesses of the Congress of the 1980s pale in comparison with what is going on in Washington today.

Regrettably, it has become clear that torture of detainees in United States custody is not limited to Abu Ghraib or even Iraq. Since Abu Ghraib, there have been increasing reports of torture.

Black History Month must be more than just a month of remembrance; it should be a tribute to our history and reminder of the work that lies in the months and years ahead.

Real lobbying reform must end the practice of corporate lobbyists writing our laws.

As we celebrate Black History Month we should be grateful for the achievements they made and inspired by their legacies to continue their work.

It is never too late to regain our credibility around the world.

We need a tougher enforcement program and, most importantly, we need to fix the badly broken ethics system.

Over the past few years special interests have had a larger and larger say over who gets what in America, and the voices of average citizens are being shut out.

The poorest residents of the gulf coast were most affected by the devastating hurricanes, and the poorest Americans have shouldered a disproportionate share of the burden in Iraq.

What's interesting is there are $12 billion of breaks in the energy bill that passed, yet we see that the sixth major oil companies in America last year made $1.1 trillion.

Parts of the Voting Rights Act are due to expire next year if Congress doesn't extend them, including the section that guarantees that voting rights will be protected by the federal government.

I travel all over the country speaking to young people, and I am always amazed at how engaged in environmental conservation they are.

I will never shave off my beard and moustache. I did once, for charity, but my wife said, 'Good grief, how awful, you look like an American car with all the chrome removed.'

I cannot help it - in spite of myself, infinity torments me.

I get off on hearing other people's voices. I like voices: they're my favourite things on records.

Where can one find a profounder desolation than in the poor child who has lost its mother?

The ice sheets seem to be shrinking 100 years ahead of schedule.

The fact is that Harold Wilson is a person no one can like, a person without friends.

[As in the case of] alcohol prohibition, illegality has driven organized crime, sent countless people to jail, and killed many thousands. Repression does not work.

I say I drownin' in river. She don't look me like I'm crazy but say, If you just sit there the river gonna rise up drown you! Writing could be the boat carry you to the other side. (97)