Democracy is messy, and it's hard. It's never easy.

Life is just so painful and messy and hard and worth it and all that stuff.

At the time of the Civil War, there were six democracies in the face of the planet. Today, there's 120 and they've been inspired by the American exceptionalism.

Democracy is about institutions: it's about having things like schools and judiciary and the Ford Foundation, or 'The Nation' magazine - you need progressive institutions, you know what I mean? Those are important institutions to make sure that the government functions.

If you work hard at anything, you're going to experience some success. And the greatest gift is when you have something you really love to do and you can integrate that into your work life. I feel like it's a real privilege that I get to do something that is good for my community and good for the world. But it's also pleasurable for me.

Elections remind us not only of the rights but the responsibilities of citizenship in a democracy.