Leon Panetta

And yes, they had their politics.

Yes, they played politics.

They fought each other in elections.

But when it came to those big issues, and Lyndon Johnson was the president at the time, when it came to big issues, they said, we really do have to work together.

And they created landmark legislation in civil rights, in energy, in the environment, in education, in health care.

All of that was produced because they were willing to work together on behalf of the country.

And when I was elected to Congress, Tip O'Neill was the Speaker of the House.

A guy named Bob Michael was the Minority Leader in Illinois.

They fought each other politically, but when it came to issues that they thought were important for the country, they were willing to work together.

We need to get back to that.

This country needs to work together to solve those problems.

You have to be an optimist when you're in this business, otherwise you wind up jumping in the Potomac.

My view frankly is, and look, as Secretary of Defense,

I saw the men and women in uniform that go out there, put their lives on the line, fight and die for this country, fight to protect it, die to protect it.

And I look at that courage, and I look at that willingness to make that sacrifice, and I ask myself, why can't the leadership in this country maybe take a little bit of that risk in order to govern?