It's hard to pin down what it means to be an evangelical today. It's been diluted quite a bit. It is a powerful voting bloc, no question, but they're liberal as well as conservative - and they're made of Latinos, blacks, whites.

Syria, for all its problems, at least has a constitution that guarantees equal protection of citizens. Around the world, we have seen that this is essential where Christians are a minority and are not protected.

We're in a sick world.

I think Newt Gingrich is a Christian; at least, he told me he is.

I always try to see the good in everything, and that gives me strength. Even when I lost in the London Olympics quarterfinals, I said to myself, 'Don't lose heart, God has his own plans.' Actually, life just goes on; you have to accept whatever challenge you face and become stronger.

I had years of partying, and I was kind of surprised and happy I survived it all. Now, being a parent, I look back on it thinking, Oh God, the things you did!

Being afraid to tell the truth because of the projected consequences, whatever it may be, shows a lack of faith and an abundance of fear.

If I advocate cautious optimism it is not because I do not have faith in the future but because I do not want to encourage blind faith.