On the recordMarch 26, 2014
As I have mentioned a few times when I have come to the floor in the last 14 months now, I am a member of the freshman class, elected in 2012. I am proud of that fact. I am proud of it for several reasons, but one of the things that is significant about this class, particularly on our side of the aisle here as Democrats, is that it is the most diverse group of individuals ever elected to the United States Congress in a single class. In fact, its diversity is such that it is made up of a majority of minorities, women, and LGBT members--a majority minority class. Its diversity gives us tremendous strength. As I sit with my colleagues, it is amazing to me the vast perspectives that we bring, and I think it has brought to us much better opportunity and a much better ability to see the needs of this country and to address them. It is the diversity of this Congress, and especially of this Congress elected in 2012, that is its principal strength. I say that because it is my view that it is the diversity of our Nation that is our greatest strength. What makes America exceptional is its diversity, and that diversity is the result of a culture and of values that have been welcoming to people from all corners of the world to come here and make the U.S. home--to build businesses, to bring their families, to invest in community--and to be a part of something that we have never seen before on the face of the planet, which is a nation of immigrants.…
