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I felt that what you should do is really take the best from each party's agenda and come to a solution somewhere above the positions of each party. So from the Left, take the idea that we need day care and food supplements for people on welfare. From the Right, take the idea that they have to work for a living and that there are time limits.

Good ideas are the backbone of good government.

One of the problems the Republican Party has had is that we're too fast to compromise. You can compromise on the little stuff, but you can't compromise on your core principles.

What I say is I am somebody who cares about conservative ideas. I want to see them implemented in governance.

The most important political task facing the out-of-power party - the Democrats for now - is creating a villain to run against. It's certainly easier than developing some grand new ideas or policies on which to campaign.

I'd like to see a Republican Party that embraces a lot of the libertarian ideas.

My deal is you start as far to the right as you can get, and go to the conference committee with the Senate, and hopefully end up with something you can live with.

I've thought about it, not a lot, but I thought my relationship with Congress - the Democrats and Republicans - would help me get some things done. Not everything, but at least they'd be willing to try.

I don't want foreign policy developed just by one party and ride roughshod over the other party.

What I'm hoping to do is see Democrats get elected. That's what I'm trying to contribute to.