I speak directly to the people and I know that the people of California want to have better leadership. They want to have great leadership. They want to have somebody that will represent them. And it doesn't matter if you're a Democrat or a Republican young or old.

I am a leader. Leaders always get heat. They're always going against the grain. Jimi Hendrix got heat Bob Marley got heat Miles Davis got heat. Every great artist got heat. Heat means you're doing something right.

A leader takes people where they want to go. A great leader takes people where they don't necessarily want to go but ought to be.

All of the great leaders have had one characteristic in common: it was the willingness to confront unequivocally the major anxiety of their people in their time. This and not much else is the essence of leadership.

In other words don't expect to always be great. Disappointments failures and setbacks are a normal part of the lifecycle of a unit or a company and what the leader has to do is constantly be up and say 'we have a problem let's go and get it'.

I'm sad to report that in the past few years ever since uncertainty became our insistent 21st century companion leadership has taken a great leap backwards to the familiar territory of command and control.

There are many qualities that make a great leader. But having strong beliefs being able to stick with them through popular and unpopular times is the most important characteristic of a great leader.

Through mutual understanding sincerity and goodwill and with great wisdom and broad views the leaders on both sides should jointly initiate new opportunities for peace stability cooperation and mutual benefit.

Great leaders are almost always great simplifiers who can cut through argument debate and doubt to offer a solution everybody can understand.

The principles that made this nation a great and powerful leader of the world have not lost their meaning. They never will. We know we can bring this country back. I'm Mitt Romney. I believe in America. And I'm running for president of the United States.