We can no more condone the wastefulness of self-serving company executives than we can the sacrifice of the lives of our citizens in a senseless war.
— Jared Polis
I support offering the public option to members of Congress, and as soon as I'm given the chance, I intend to go on it.
To have hundreds of people from every political and demographic group you can imagine coming out day after day to take part in the national health care debate is fantastic.
My district is centered around the progressive college town of Boulder, Colorado, and the high-tech U.S. 36 corridor. It goes from the well-established suburbs of northwest Denver in Adams County to the beautiful mountain towns of Vail and Breckenridge and the majestic Western Slope of the Rocky Mountains.
I remember well my first 300 baud modem, which dialed up and scrolled text at an agonizingly slow speed.
Only Congress can treat the gaping wound that is our broken immigration system.
Too often, our most vulnerable students - English-language learners, immigrants, poor kids, teenage parents, students with behavioral problems and learning disabilities - fall through the cracks.
No American should have to live in constant fear that their employer can fire them just because of their sexual orientation or gender identity.
I am committed to leveling the playing field and expanding opportunity to all.
I am a Democrat. But first and foremost, I am a Coloradan and an American who wants government to function and solve the challenges we face as a country, then make way for people to pursue their dreams without interference.
I try to treat my orientation the same way I would if I was straight, which is to talk about it when it's relevant.
The federal government has an exceptionally poor record of behaving responsibly with Americans' personal information when entrusted with it.
I am from Colorado. I know Colorado inside and out.
I always try to follow my moral compass.
I can be happy in the private sector, the non-profit sector, or the public sector.
I have a horrible sense of direction.
If my son had a baseless accusation made against him at a university, and it was making his life there miserable, I would suggest he transfer or take courses online.
If our country is to advance, let it be upon the legs of lessons well-learned.
Some people trust an insurance company over the government, while others trust the government over insurance companies.
I've started several small businesses myself and know that it is tough out there for the little guy in the global economy. I came to the conclusion that, oftentimes, the best thing the government can do for small business is to stay out of the way.
Members of Congress wear two hats: one as Washington legislator, the other as listener and community leader back home.
My constituents want me to be outspoken - it's part of the reason they elected me - and the inevitable side effect of being outspoken is that, occasionally, you put your foot in your mouth.
That's why I created the New America School - to fill the cracks in our public education system.
Having to censor yourself - whether it's lying at the water cooler about how you spent your weekend, scrubbing your Facebook page of any revealing facts, or pretending to be with someone you aren't - is the antithesis of our foundation as a nation based on freedom of expression and association.
The need for a national Employment Non-Discrimination Act a critical part of the LGBT community's struggle for equality.
I have taken my outside-the-box, innovative, and sometimes unorthodox approach to Congress.
Senators, representatives too often, we hear from our base, don't talk to the other side, don't with work with them.
It's insulting when somebody who is not a member of our community feels like they have a great understanding of what it's like to grow up gay in this country.
Too many public and private entities simply don't take advantage of tools already at their disposal to protect themselves from hackers. No amount of information sharing will help solve that problem.
I want to make a difference.
What I care most about is representing my constituents. If that ruffles a few feathers along the way, so be it.
In general, I think it's an advantage politically to keep people guessing.
Someone who is wrongfully accused needs to do their best to put it behind them and move on.
Pizza certainly has its place in school meals, but equating it with broccoli, carrots and celery seriously undermines this nation's efforts to support children's health and their ability to learn because of better school nutrition.
Businesses have no place being 'too big to fail.'
In my opinion, real reform, which lowers costs and ensures all Americans get the quality, affordable health care that they deserve, cannot be accomplished without a robust public option.
My constituents include CU Buffs, ski bums, techies, artists, suburban soccer moms, and proud, hard-working Colorado families.
While still in college, I started my first Internet company - American Information Systems - a dial-up Internet provider in the Internet's formative years.
For me, blogging is just like talking.
Our students are the best investment we can make for our country and our future economic prosperity. It's in our best interest to ensure they're receiving the best education possible and maximizing their potential.
Members of the LGBT community should feel welcome and know their rights are protected regardless of what state they reside in.
We have to find a way that every Coloradan can participate in our economic growth and feel that all the changes that are occurring are working to their benefit rather than their detriment.
Before running for Congress, I was an innovator and entrepreneur who founded several high-tech businesses that created hundreds of jobs and schools that found ways to serve those children that traditional schools couldn't.
Democratic, Republican members of Congress get along fine. But what you have is this institutional Hatfield and McCoy sentiment coming from our constituents, where the base of both sides doesn't want people to get along. But the majority of Americans, I feel, the majority, they are in the middle. They actually do want both sides to get together.
The NSA has broken privacy rules or overstepped its legal authority thousands of times a year since Congress gave it broad new powers in 2008.
Lawmakers who support CISA will tell you the bill includes some privacy protections. They're right. But these 'protections' are superficial and include broad loopholes that are so far-reaching as to render the protections meaningless.
With the policymaking process, you have an idea, and you try to sell other stakeholders on the idea. That's not much different than in business, where you're trying to find capital to make your idea a reality.
You have 435 people in the United States House of Representatives trying to get along.
I don't particularly care what people think of me as long as I know what I'm doing is right.
It can be a living hell to go through endless campus investigations. I've seen this go down, and there really is no winning once the accusation is made, even if the process provides formal vindication.
