If I had quietly retired as governor in 2007 and went into banking or something of that nature, I would have been, at most, a footnote in the story and probably never mentioned.

I'm a strong advocate for music. I think guitars are wonderful.

The best way is to say that as a Christian for me the essence of Christian faith is that you treat others as if you wish to be treated.

I've always suggested if you can't stand the sight of your own blood, don't run for office.

For me, running for office is never about trying to destroy an opponent, be it Democratic or Republican. It really ought to be about how can we solve some problems that we're facing.

Well, for me the pro-life issue has been something I've been very passionate about since the '70s, and I have been very involved in the pro-life community since long before politics.

Politics has become unbelievably and unfortunately way too much about how much money is involved rather than what kind of ideas are involved.

A Republican in my state of Arkansas feels about as out of place as Michael Vick at the West Minister dog show.

Do you realize that if we could increase just by 50 percent the number of adults who have a college degree, it would add $5 billion to the economy and it would result in a net income to the state of Arkansas of $340 million a year?

How could I get up there and say, 'People, we've got to do better,' when I was the poster child for everything that was wrong? I've always believed leaders don't ask others to do what they're unwilling to do.

No one is more important to the future of our state than our teachers.

One thing governors feel, Democrats and Republicans alike, is that we have a health care system that, if you're on Medicaid, you have unlimited access to health care, at unlimited levels, at no cost. No wonder it's running away.

If the Democrats want to insult women by making them believe that they are helpless without Uncle Sugar coming in and providing for them a prescription each month for birth control because they cannot control their libido or their reproductive system without the help of the government, then so be it.

If consumers make better choices, the marketplace will change.

I never, ever, had a person who could come up with the name of a person who could not get a job because an illegal immigrant had stepped in front of them, because it was either a job that person didn't want to do or didn't exist.

I hurt my knee, and that messed up my running, and boy did that ever just have a cascade effect. I've gained about thirty pounds that my doctors have screamed at me about. I've got to get that off, and I know that.

I'm not against gifts that entertain, but I really believe that some of the most valuable gifts that we can give are the things that help us to develop a skill and be entertaining.

I'm not against anybody. I'm really not. I'm not a hater. I'm not homophobic. I honestly don't care what people do personally in their individual lives.

I've twice run against women opponents, and it's a very different kind of approach. For those of us who have some chivalry left, there's a level of respect... You treat some things as a special treasure; you treat other things as common.

Barack Obama seems intent on enrolling more people on food stamps. Mitt Romney's focus is going to be on generating more jobs that will make food-stamps unnecessary for them.

Don't Mormons believe that Jesus and the devil are brothers?

Doesn't matter whether it's a teen girl who's pregnant, hasn't told her parents, or an elderly couple dealing with one of them being diagnosed with Alzheimer's. Those are real people to me. Those are the people I dealt with every single day.

I did every diet: Atkins. Cabbage-soup diet. Dean Ornish. But I couldn't live the rest of my life like a rabbit.

Now, have I ever been tempted to break into a Krispy Kreme doughnut store in the middle of the night? Oh, yeah. God help us if I had a minibar stocked with cheesecake and chicken-fried steak.