It is not acceptable that we continue to see thousands of acres burn because of forest fires, because of poor management on our forests, big kill, and we have these catastrophic situations take place when we are not able to take action.
The ADA gave more than 50 million Americans with disabilities, just like my son Cole, the chance to live the American Dream and be defined only by their potential - not their limitations.
My top three priorities for my first term in Congress are growing our economy; providing for quality, affordable health care; and keeping our nation and communities safe.
I do see women voters shifting to the Republican Party and doing so significantly. And the issue that's doing this is the fear the federal government will prevail in making the Affordable Health Care Act permanent law and how that will hurt small businesses.
States know better than the federal government how to allocate and manage resources to address the needs of their people.
The American people know that our economy is struggling right now, partly because of the debt that is impacting American families, hardworking taxpayers all across this country.
With the right policies and regulations, the opportunities for American medical advancement and scientific innovation are boundless.
I have a supportive family and an outstanding team, but I also have a flexible work schedule that allows me, at least some of the time, to get to the kids' school program or the doctor visits when I need to. So family-friendly work schedules have become more of a passion of mine, and the cost of childcare is also a huge issue.
I think we should be looking at ways that we can make childcare more available at the place of employment.
We must remember that although we come from different backgrounds and ideologies, we're all part of this great experiment in self-governance. We're all united by common values of liberty, justice, and equality of opportunity, even if we don't always agree on how to achieve them.
This year I hope to introduce legislation that would require Power Administrations to list direct and indirect costs associated with ESA compliance as a line item on customer's power bills.
Any Supreme Court confirmation needs to be a thoughtful process, with full respect for the separation of powers outlined in the Constitution.
In order for America to remain the leader in medical innovation, we must reduce costs, ease regulatory burdens, and increase the efficacy of producing new treatments and cures here in the U.S.
Salmon recovery in the Northwest is a complex issue and requires a comprehensive regionwide effort. Dam removal is not the answer. It would have a devastating impact on our region's energy and transportation infrastructure and may do little to even help salmon listed as threatened or endangered.
We depend on our rivers and dams for energy, transportation, irrigation and recreation and I will continue this year to fight for what's best for the Pacific Northwest.
The Pacific Northwest depends on inexpensive renewable energy from our dams.
When President Obama was in the Senate, when he was a U.S. senator, he voted against raising the debt ceiling. And he said it was a lack of leadership that had brought us to this point.
We need to work together to support common-sense solutions to establish and maintain regulatory certainty and predictability for the mining industry and reduce excessive, duplicative, and expensive permitting delays.
The significant disparity in work opportunities for people with disabilities is the direct result of government programs and policies that propagate dependency.
If you look at the architecture of Washington, D.C., it is not by mistake that the dome over the Capitol is the very center of the federal city. The White House and the Supreme Court are set about us, satellites to the supreme power of the people expressed in the legislative authority of Congress.
