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.
Joe Kennedy III
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.
Ending gun violence isn't political. This is personal.
Every member of my family knows that running for office is a personal decision.
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.
I believe this country was built on a simple promise: that each of us deserves a fair shot.
There is nothing so humbling as being a parent to young children!
I have gotten tubes of Chapstick from every damn corner of the country.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
I definitely swear more than I should.
People always ask what's it like to grow up as a Kennedy. It's a family. It's big, it's large, it's amazing. You've got strong personalities with strong opinions. And we'll come out differently on some of those opinions.
The American public will give you an awful lot of slack on how you voted on one issue or another if they feel like you have a reason.
What will get you elected through a tough election cycle and what will get you kicked out when you should have won is whether your constituents feel like their Member of Congress respects them or not.
Somewhere down the road, if a Senate seat were to open, yeah, it's something I'd certainly take a look at. But that's got to be right in time for me and my family.
Your ally today could be your adversary tomorrow and your ally the next day. Work hard, be polite, be respectful, and don't take it personally.
I don't give a whole lot of thought or credence to questions about what comes on next, what goes on next.
I'm pretty boring, as it turns out.
This is our country and our home and our families. We can decide that one person's right to bear arms does not come at the expense of a neighbor's right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
The strongest, richest, greatest nation in the world shouldn't leave anyone behind.
Politicians can be cheered for the promises they make. Our country will be judged by the promises we keep.
I'm not going to vote for or against somebody because they're old or young.
I realize that some folks might not believe me in this - I didn't run for Congress on the hopes that one day you're going to run for something else.
I have worked very, very hard over the course of my time in Congress to make sure that everybody does get access to quality, affordable, accessible health care.
If you believe that the greatest challenge you've got is credibility, then the way you get that is you earn it, right? That's not something that any set of policy makers can bestow.
To me, that's what the Peace Corps is all about - the impact that simple acts of service can have across borders, generations, and time. It's a lesson I carry with me every day.
There's been a lot written and said about my family. A lot of specials, a lot of movies. I essentially don't watch any of them. I don't read any of them. I keep that away.
You have a person there in Senator McCain that has an integrity in him and will stand up for the political process.
The time for me in the Peace Corps was easily the most formative experience I've had in my life.
I think if I have learned one thing from all of my family members, both sides of it - my mom's side, my dad's side and everyone else - it's that every one of us has a responsibility to do what we can to contribute back and make our communities and our country a better place.
I have been extraordinarily fortunate in my life, luckier than almost anybody on this planet. And whenever I ran into challenges, my parents did everything they could so that I could maximize my own potential.
People think my family pushed me into running for office. The person who pushed me most not to run for office was my father.
There are ways that we, as a society, the laws that we write and the contracts we build, can try to actually increase people's ability to reap the reward from their own potential. But we put barriers in front of them.
'Compromise' isn't supposed to be a dirty word. It is, in fact, how representative democracy works.
