John W. Hickenlooper

“On Monday, Tina Peters walked out of prison. The convicted felon and former county clerk is free after serving less than a quarter of her sentence, a sentence she earned when she violated her oath and tried to undermine Colorado's free and fair elections. That doesn't just make her a conspiracy theorist; it makes her a criminal. Tina Peters had her day in court. She was prosecuted by a Republican district attorney and convicted by a jury of her peers in a Republican stronghold. The verdict was unanimous. Tina Peters was guilty as sin.”

“June 27 was one of the worst days in recent Colorado history. As the Knowles fire rolled along the Colorado- Utah border, the Rifle Helitack team put on their uniforms and rushed toward danger. While battling the blaze, one firefighter was badly injured and four others--Nick Hutcherson, Emily Barker, Sydney Watson, and Nathan Matthews--ultimately lost their lives. There is bravery--and then there is wildland firefighting. The word ``hero'' gets used a lot. Nick, Emily, Sydney, and Nathan embodied that word.”

“I also would be remiss if I didn't recognize, once again, the incredible partners that have been behind these Down syndrome advocacy, research, and medical care--primarily the Global Down Syndrome Foundation, but also the Linda Crnic Institute for Down Syndrome, the Alzheimer's and Cognition Center, and the Sie Center at Children's Hospital Colorado. I yield the floor.”

“The Senate is currently considering the nomination of Todd Blanche to serve as Attorney General of the United States. The Attorney General is one of the most important positions in the U.S. Government. Not only does the Attorney General serve as a trusted member of the President's Cabinet, but he also leads the Department of Justice, the Agency responsible for enforcing the laws of the land and, hopefully-- traditionally--enforcing them in a nonpartisan way.”

“I am going to talk for a moment about my path towards science and what it meant. A lot of people know my mother was widowed twice before she turned 40. My father died when I was 8. I was the youngest kid. I had really thick glasses and acne, and I was let's just say marginalized when I was in third and fourth grade, the butt of many jokes. I was bullied on a regular basis. But it is funny, as I went through school, I did have this natural curiosity. I mean, I loved sports, but it didn't keep me from doing schoolwork around discovery.”