It's a model that can expand the brand into new markets, with less investment by the developer.

Each of our hotels and their team members work extremely hard to deliver the ultimate in guest satisfaction for which the Embassy brand is known. Everything they do -- from providing a hot, cooked to order breakfast each morning to a comfortable bed for travelers each night, and highly valued services in between that enable guests to be more productive -- helps ensure guest loyalty. We are pleased to honor the Embassy Suites Hotels that epitomize what our brand is all about -- guest satisfaction and a high level of customer service.

We have been looking at Hertz for more than three years and believe it fits squarely within our investment strategy — a complex corporate divestiture of a market-leading business with a powerful franchise and opportunities for profitable growth.

Rebuilding stronger and safer and more flood-resistant is a wise investment of tax dollars. There recently has been an independent study by the Mitigation Hazard Council that has indicated that each dollar spent on disaster mitigation saves society on the average of $4.

The tax tail should never wag the investment dog.

The shareholders have done very well since he left. We probably tripled our original investment over seven years.