I never traced my roots, man. I only know that I'm a brother with a big heart - and that somebody brought my roots over here by way of boat.
The most influential people in my life are deceased. These include my parents, George Dunne, and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., my minister in college.
I find it reprehensible that anyone would seek to denigrate the legacy of Dr. King in any way.
I'm a disciplinarian. And I've always been disciplined. I like to be on time. If I have a job to do, I'm going to see it from its beginning to its conclusion. No excuses, no alibis. That's how I run my life. It's called self-tough love.
We try to instill a sense of fair play, a sense of honesty.
I don't just work with these kids to make them good tumblers or good dancers. I'm working with them to make them good citizens - to become taxpayers, not tax-eaters. I teach them to say please and thank you. I show them how to use a knife and fork and how to fold a napkin.
My parents made a great sacrifice to make sure that we had something wonderful at Christmas, and through the help of the state and others, we were able to have a good meal.
During the holiday season, we've asked everyone within the sound of my voice that if you're going to celebrate, celebrate in a responsible manner.
We just want to make sure individuals who drive on our roads are not impaired and they are a responsible person behind a motor vehicle.
I tell the people that hire us, if we don't get a standing ovation when we're finished with our performance, it's free - and we've always been paid.
This is a great country, and it's a melting pot. People shouldn't judge other people by the color of their skin, their church, or the area where they reside.
I first met Dr. King in 1954 when I was a student at Alabama State University and a member of a local church down there. He was in town to organize a rally against public transportation. Rosa Parks had been arrested for refusing to give up her seat to a white man, which was illegal back then.
Instead of going to spring training, I went to basic training.
I just thank the people who took part in our graduated drivers task force, who came with their thoughts and ideas as to how we can best keep our roads safe, and it has paid off.
My top goal as your Secretary of State is to save lives by reducing fatal traffic crashes. When I established the Teen Driver Safety Task Force, the goal was to improve Illinois' graduated driver licensing law and, even more importantly, to save lives.
I used to jump out of airplanes. I was a member of the 101st Airborne Division. When parachuting, you never look down at the ground. You feel for it with your legs. Your knees are your shock absorbers - you cannot tighten them. Same as skiing.
