Gary Locke Quotations

China's history is marked by thousands of years of world-changing innovations: from the compass and gunpowder to acupuncture and the printing press. No one should be surprised that China has re-emerged as an economic superpower.

If we expose the Chinese to our freedoms, it may create a greater hunger for democracy, reform and liberties in China.

Diversity of thought and culture and religion and ideas has been the strength of America.

We welcome Chinese investment in the United States with open arms.

Americans are very easygoing people. If the added attention and great visibility that I have been able to generate can help open doors and expose more Chinese to American values and the American way of life, that is great.

I think that there is a concern, a question mark, by people all around the world and governments all around the world, as to what China's intentions are.

I've been through WTO riots in Seattle, massive earthquakes, major floods... forest fires. I just try to be as even-keeled and calm as possible.

China's own recent history proves that when it opens itself, there is nothing its people cannot accomplish. A more open China will lead to a more prosperous and stable China. That's good for China, the United States and, indeed, the entire world.

The explosive growth in places like Shanghai has helped lift hundreds of millions of people out of poverty and into a thriving new middle class. What China has done is nothing short of an economic transformation, and the citizens of this country have every right to be proud.

The human rights record within China seems to rise and fall over time, but it's very clear that in the run up to the 2008 Beijing Olympics and since then, there's been a greater intolerance of dissent and the human rights record of China has been going in the wrong direction.

As President Obama clearly said just a few months ago, China must play by the international rules, the international trading system from which they've benefited so much.

I'm so proud of my Chinese ancestry, but I was born and raised in America, and I really believe in American values, our American system, our freedom, our liberties.

My dad, of course, like a lot of Asian parents, wanted me to be an engineer or doctor and never could understand why I would want to be a lawyer. And then, when I first said I wanted to run for office, he thought that was absolutely insane.

The constant influx of new cultures, new ideas and new ways of looking at old problems is a big part of the reason why America has been the most dynamic economy in the world for well over a century.

The growth model China has relied on for the last 30 years - one predicated on low-cost exports to the rest of the world and investment in resource intensive heavy manufacturing - is unlikely to serve it well in the next 30 years.

We've come a long way since Nixon's first visit to China, or Carter's reestablishment of diplomatic relations.

All the states are required, either by constitution or by statute, to have balanced budgets - they're not able to print money. So they have to focus on establishing priorities.

I'm somewhat overwhelmed by the microblogging that takes place in China, and the smartphones and all the people that want to take pictures of myself and my family.

One of the last books I read was 'Game Change: Obama and the Clintons, McCain and Palin, and the Race of a Lifetime' by John Heilemann and Mark Halperin. It gives a really good behind-the-scenes look at the campaigns. I didn't ask the president how accurate it was. I wouldn't ask him that.

I think that people always just assumed that I was a liberal because I came from Southeast Seattle.

In rural parts of China, it's like stepping back into the era of my grandfather or great-grandfather - not much has changed.

We strongly disagree with the judge's findings. Microsoft products have greatly benefited consumers.

We want to promote people-to-people exchanges so that China and the United States can really join together, not just to solve the problems of China or the United States, but some of the big problems facing the entire world. From climate change to famine to even terrorism.

Sixty percent of our general budget goes to education. It would be ironic if electronic commerce erodes the science and math education that the visionary leaders of tomorrow need to keep this industry going.

China is a country, still, of great contrast. While hundreds of millions of people are part of the middle class and yearn for things made in America - American brands, movies, music - there are other hundreds of millions of people throughout China who are living on the equivalent of one U.S. dollar a day.

If the Chinese can't buy U.S. products, they'll buy them from European countries and then develop stronger economic ties with France and Germany and perhaps side more with those countries when international issues flare up.

We support Microsoft and expect Microsoft ultimately will prevail in these legal proceedings.

I think that it's a cut in the budget that is not wise, ... We've seen the benefits of that type of preparation and public education to both businesses, homeowners and governments, so I think we ought to keep that money because it can save lives and cut down on future losses.

Our hearts go out to the hundreds of people whose homes have been endangered by floods and mudslides.

That was good to see. Last season was a bit stop and start for 'Sticky' but I think we will now see him go from strength to strength because he has class.

While costly fantasies of this kind present a mouthwatering bonanza to software manufacturers and other corporate sponsors, what they bode for education is nothing short of disastrous, ... Education is not reducible to the downloading of information.

We really need to look at trade in general between the United States and all countries in the world, not just one particular country.

We've made great strides in raising academic achievement during the past seven years. I am especially proud that Washington led the nation last year in reading scores for African-American fourth graders. African-American eighth graders in Washington scored better in math than in all but three states. We are closing the achievement gap.

We need the private sector to succeed, because if the private sector succeeds, America succeeds. Because it's not the government that produces jobs, it's the private sector.

We are in dire straits come this January, ... If they're (California) telling us now they will not be able to give us any bit of electricity, we have a major crisis coming up.

We got in there and knocked it down in about five minutes. We were fortunate.

We think it's upside-down economics: It does too little to stimulate the economy now and it does too much to weaken our economic future.

federal officials assured us that Washington state is not under any credible threat.

Every year, some 65,000 high school students - many of them star students and leaders in their communities - are unable to go to college or get a good job because they have no legal status.

I understand that in these difficult economic times, the potential for any additional expense is not welcomed by American businesses. But in the long run, the health insurance reform law promises to cut health-care costs for U.S. businesses, not expand them.

These are the win-win opportunities we here in the U.S. should be pursuing in China.

People should call us and let us know if they're going to do some burning. That way we know what's going on if we get fire calls.

On top of my to-do list in preparing for Beijing is 'On China' by Henry Kissinger, who has had firsthand experience with every top Chinese leader since Mao, so his insights are valuable and his access is perhaps unrivaled.

That office was pretty well destroyed. The hallway had some stuff on the walls that had melted from the heat and some smoke got into the rest of the building.

You may not even see them, but they will be there.

The U.S. tries to provide immigrants who grow up here with a world-class education and imbue them with the can-do attitude that has long defined American innovation.

They spoke Chinese... He was very impressed that the parents were keeping Chinese customs and culture alive.

A lot of overpasses and roads ... have sunk,

It's not legal to burn trash under Indiana law.

For generations, people have come to U.S. shores to seek opportunity. It's what my grandfather did a century ago, when he came to Seattle, and worked as a houseboy just one mile from the Washington State governor's mansion that I was privileged to inhabit for eight years.

It's funny, when I speak to people they can't believe I'm only 30. It's probably because of all the wrinkles on my face.

Everybody simply wants to be reunited with their family members, their loved ones,

They just wanted the Chinese to know and the family of the Chinese pilot to know that they care about that family as well, ... And they're all families, whether you're Chinese or American, people are concerned about their loved ones.

I'm proposing increases that amount to a nickel on a can of pop or beer - and you all know that I love soda pop. I drink Pepsis all the time and I'm willing to pay 5 cents more. We're proposing a quarter on a good bottle of wine and less than $1.50 on a fifth of hard liquor, the good stuff.

In the Pacific Northwest we have a greater appreciation of the importance of trade with Asian countries because we have large Asian populations.

I am not going to get too carried away, ... But it is a good three points and we have made a pleasing start to the season. We have a lot of cracking young players who can only go on to achieve bigger and better things.

I consider myself a D.I.Y. home improvement guy. In a prior life, I completely gutted a house - redid the plumbing, wiring, moved sewage pipes, knocked down walls, everything.

I confess to loving a good murder mystery - anything by Scott Turow or John Grisham. Maybe it's a holdover from my days as a criminal prosecutor in Seattle.

You, Captain Yee, are a testament to what America is all about. You are indeed an American hero.

You, Captain Yee, are a testament to what America is all about, ... You are indeed an American hero.

This is a large, fast-moving fire that already has caused at least $1 million in damage, ... More than 600 men and women have been fighting it ... and now we need to give them help urgently.