“As someone who is in awe and grateful every day to be in a country where freedom of the press, free speech and free elections are a way of life, I am wowed, amazed and excited by the opportunity to moderate a 2012 presidential debate.”

“Don't plan too hard, because something much better might be out there.”

“Have I ever made a mistake? I am sure. Do I think I can stand on my record? I do.”

“I am a hard-news journalist. That is what I do.”

“I feel great physically. I feel really good.”

“I mean, if a camera's on you all the time, you don't get real moments.”

“I sometimes look around that studio in the middle of commercials and think, 'Really?'”

“I still get mad. I still get upset. But I let it go more quickly.”

“I think whenever you see what may be the seeds of a third party, you need to be very skeptical because there's not a very good track record for third parties.”

“I was born in the Midwest, where 'salad' was cherry Jell-O with bananas in it. Now children are more aware of healthy foods.”

“I'd love to have William Faulkner, Beethoven and Bach over. I want to find out what makes those guys tick!”

“I'm a mac and cheese freak. Homemade or from the blue box, I'm not picky!”

“I'm a vegetarian who doesn't like eggplant parmesan. Isn't that awful? I'm also sick of portobello mushrooms. People are like, 'A vegetarian's coming to dinner,' so they serve those.”

“I'm lighter now in a lot of ways.”

“It's important to know what motivates you, not what motivates somebody else.”

“People always used to say to me, 'Don't you want your own show? That'd be so cool if you had your own show.' I said, 'You know, it's not gonna happen. So - no.'”

“Usually you kind of give the President a pass on leaking confidential stuff.”