The fact that we are here today to debate raising America's debt limit is a sign of leadership failure. America has a debt problem and a failure of leadership. Americans deserve better. I therefore intend to oppose the effort to increase America's debt.

I wish I could give you a lot of advice based on my experience of winning political debates. But I don't have that experience. My only experience is at losing them.

Earlier feminists were almost universally pro-choice and have dominated political debate until now. Having access to abortion was viewed as the only way women could have full equality with men who until recently couldn't get pregnant.

Moreover environmental health at the local level has become narrowly focused very much defined around regulations and the attendant regulatory debates.

Much of the debate over global warming is predicated on fear rather than science.

Listen if the mayor wants to have a debate about education in this city I got three words: bring it on.

Most of the debate over the cultures of death and life is about process. The debate focuses on the technology available to determine how we prolong life and how and when we end it.

One of the big questions in the climate change debate: Are humans any smarter than frogs in a pot? If you put a frog in a pot and slowly turn up the heat it won't jump out. Instead it will enjoy the nice warm bath until it is cooked to death. We humans seem to be doing pretty much the same thing.

Bill Gates is a relative newcomer to the fight against global warming but he's already shifting the debate over climate change.

Maybe one day the world will change that we'll be in a luxurious position of being able to debate whether or not it's inherently wrong to eat animals but the question doesn't matter right now.