President Reagan was a leader at a time when the American people most needed leadership. He outlined a vision that captured the imagination of the free world a vision that toppled the Communist empire and freed countless millions.

Cynicism and naivety lie cheek by jowl in the American imagination if the United States is one of the most venal nations on Earth it is also one of the most earnestly idealistic.

The face of nature and civilization in this our country is to a certain point a very sufficient literary field. But it will yield its secrets only to a really grasping imagination. To write well and worthily of American things one need even more than elsewhere to be a master.

Our democracy our constitutional framework is really a kind of software for harnessing the creativity and political imagination for all of our people. The American democratic system was an early political version of Napster.

You may be sure that the Americans will commit all the stupidities they can think of plus some that are beyond imagination.

We are really living the American dream to be a successful brand in the States and in Europe and to steep ourselves in our heritage. But we do it with a sense of humor. We don't take ourselves too seriously in fashion.

I think at its best the American sense of humor is the same as the British sense of humor at its best which is to be wry and ironic and self deprecating.

I mean yeah I'm sure that Python and the other things have paved the way for a greater understanding of the British sense of humor but I don't think it's all that different than the American sense of humor.

Sometimes Americans don't quite get my sense of humor. My good ol' British sarcasm seems to go over their heads.

Bob Hope like Mark Twain had a sense of humor that was uniquely American and like Twain we'll likely not see another like him.

I think Canadian humor is a little less broad than American humor.

I don't know if my sense of humor goes over Americans' heads.

I love the diversity of America. I love the plain normal sense of humor Americans have. It is not wicked like in some countries. And I also love how new America is.

If this humor be the safety of our race then it is due largely to the infusion into the American people of the Irish brain.

I always thought the biggest failing of Americans was their lack of irony. They are very serious there! Naturally there are exceptions... the Jewish Italian and Irish humor of the East Coast.

Whatever else an American believes or disbelieves about himself he is absolutely sure he has a sense of humor.

Wit - the salt with which the American humorist spoils his intellectual cookery by leaving it out.

As the war on terror continues Americans must honor the brave men and women who gave their lives for the protection of this nation and the hope of peace.

Our democracy is the centerpiece of who we are as a nation. And it is the fondest hope of all Americans that we can help bring democracy to every corner of the world.

You can always get the truth from an American statesman after he has turned seventy or given up all hope of the Presidency.

Ironically Latin American countries in their instability give writers and intellectuals the hope that they are needed.

Most American fascists are enthusiastically supporting the war effort. They are doing this even in those cases where they hope to have profitable connections with German chemical firms after the war ends.

Americans appreciate the way our friends around the world are sticking by us and we all hope for their continued support in what's going to be some very trying times.

I hope that as the Senate and American people learn more about me they will see that I am an ordinary person who has been blessed with extraordinary opportunities and experiences.