Given the professionalism of Michigan teachers, I think they're not teaching because of the financial rewards.

I think we've got outstanding teaching in Michigan classrooms.

The greatest luck that I've had has been the ability to find men and women who came into my administration who worked with me and brought extraordinary talents that we were able to take full advantage of.

Manufacturers account for nearly 60 percent of all industrial research and development.

I've been in the legislative branch and now the executive branch and in each case I felt it was important we use our constitutional responsibilities to the fullest.

I'm very pleased with the job President Bush is doing and he's off to a terrific start.

The parent knows instinctively that if they're working and setting an example for their child that means that child is more likely to be in school, more likely to stay out of trouble and more likely to complete their education.

I've gone from being one of the youngest governors to now the longest consecutive serving governor in the country.

Believe me, I'm not going to try to get into testing.

I had made a decision early on that we were going to do the right things and that if they worked we were going to be very successful. And if for some reason they didn't, all the claims and the protestations and the excuses wouldn't make any difference.

All 50 states had the same national economy. And on virtually any measurement you wish to look at, Michigan has moved up and improved against the others.

I don't put labels on myself.

I wish we could have acted quicker on Detroit or other failing schools.

We didn't pass any constitutional amendments that affected the executive branch while I was governor.

As governor, I learned the importance of having an agenda.

Given the professionalism of Michigan teachers, I think they're not teaching because of the financial rewards.

Nobody gets any guarantees.

I expect my next job to be outside government.

I created no authority that wasn't already there under the constitution.

Redistricting is one of the purest actions a legislative body can take.

The Clean Michigan Initiative has been and continues to be a success.

And there should not be a limit on the creation of new public schools. We ought to expand choices for parents.

I care about the children of Detroit.

The asbestos problem impacts everyone.

Sometimes it is better to begin the journey, to get under way, then it is to sit back and wait until such time that you're convinced that all conditions are perfect and that there'll be no surprises along the route.

While America's infrastructure needs are substantial, there is no reason to delay completion of the highway bill. Every day of delay means jobs lost, investment opportunities missed and growth sacrificed.

I have an old saying that the harder I work, the luckier I get.

You win by working hard, making tough decisions and building coalitions.

We have broken the cycle of dependency. People have found out they're better off working.

Very few charter schools are being created in some of the best school districts in the state. If you're an educational innovator, that isn't where the greatest need is.

Despite these hurdles, manufacturers in the U.S. and their employees are doing remarkable work.

I just have a position that any child that's in a failing school should be able to get out, or be in a position to have that school fixed.

I'm a compassionate conservative.

As you look around the country there are still a significant number of states where their whole school debate is over school funding and we've been focused on the quality debate for most of the '90s.

Michigan is also the only industrial state that has a AAA credit rating.

The current Michigan Constitution was written in 1961 and '62.

I kept telling everyone I wasn't going to Washington to stay. I go to visit.

Manufacturers employ more than 14 million Americans doing what Americans do best, making things, building things, transforming raw materials into finished products.

Our strength in finance has led us to set up an international financial centre with medium and long-term objectives, especially to develop Islamic financial and insurance services.

So, for example, a country was into recession right after I was sworn in, a dot-com bust had taken place. Then the attacks of September the 11th, and then of course the great financial meltdown in the -the fundamental question facing any presidency is how do you deal with the hand you're dealt?

I take great pride in having been able to overcome the Asian financial crisis and seeking the opportunities available to bring about an unprecedented growth in the economy.

I've been a financial journalist for 30 years.

Over and over again, financial experts and wonkish talking heads endeavor to explain these mysterious, 'toxic' financial instruments to us lay folk. Over and over, they ignobly fail, because we all know that no one understands credit default obligations and derivatives, except perhaps Mr. Buffett and the computers who created them.

I believe my publisher has shown a great deal of faith in me over a lot of years but I'm not prepared to be so arrogant to say that the long-term literary value of my work would compensate them for a financial failure.

We have, unlike many of our competitors, continued to meet our various financial obligations.

I kept an interested eye on the transfer window in England, which opened and closed last month, and the lack of frantic activity just goes to show the current financial state of the game right now.

I finally know what distinguishes man from the other beasts: financial worries.

One of the special characteristics of New York is that it is different from a London or a Paris because it's the financial capital, and the cultural capital, but not the political capital.

It's hard to exaggerate the importance of preserving the financial integrity of Social Security.