I have a pretty terrible sweet tooth.
I have a hard time understanding how cutting the program in our country that provides healthcare to working families by $800 billion can be classified as mercy.
Whether it's raising the minimum wage, fixing our broken immigration system or supporting an economic climate that gives our businesses that chance to succeed, I hope to continue to fight these important battles on behalf of my constituents.
I believe this country was built on a simple promise: that each of us deserves a fair shot.
There is no mercy in a system that makes health care a luxury. There is no mercy in a country that turns their back on those most in need of protection: the elderly, the poor, the sick, and the suffering.
Humanity does not come with citizenship or a green card.
You can see what happens when people don't feel they have a chance. You can see the ramifications of that.
My family means different things to different folks. I think, for most people, they have very fond memories and believe my family made important contributions to the country.
Bullies may land a punch. They might leave a mark. But they have never, not once, in the history of our United States, managed to match the strength and spirit of a people united in defense of their future.
I have gotten tubes of Chapstick from every damn corner of the country.
People care for their community and will invest in their community and will look out for each other if they are challenged to do so.
There's an old rule of thumb in politics that 90 percent of all 90 year-olds vote and 25 percent of all 25 year-olds vote.
My decision to look seriously at elected office is grounded in a deep commitment to public service and my experience - both my own and that of my family - in finding just, practical, and bipartisan solutions to difficult challenges.
It's my name on the ballot, and it's me running this race. I'm the one doing this. Not my father and not my grandfather and not my great-uncle and not President Kennedy.
I'm extremely proud of my family's record of public service to Massachusetts and the nation.
My family has been around campaigns for a long time. It's something you really have to be sure that you alone want to do. Because if not, if you don't want to do it, that will just blow through the surface at some point, and people can tell. And when people can tell, it's all over.
Republicans aren't bad people. They've got some views that are legitimate... and I'd like to think they believe the same of me.
Elective office and public service are obviously something that have long ties with my family, and something I'm definitely interested in.
Every member of my family knows that running for office is a personal decision.
It's really important for me to do the fundamentals of this job really, really well. And to let people know that I think the core responsibilities of a member of Congress aren't seeking the national headlines or being the spokesperson on this issue or that issue when you just get there.
