We, the people, still believe that our obligations as Americans are not just to ourselves, but to all posterity.

The thing that has disturbed me most about the Russian hacking episode is - and the thing that surprised me most has not been the fact of Russian hacking. The cyber world is full of information gathering, you know, propaganda, et cetera. I have been concerned about the degree to which, in some circles, you've seen people suggest that Vladimir Putin has more credibility than the U.S. government. I think that's something new.

Our unalienable right to life and liberty and the pursuit of happiness, those rights were stripped from college kids in Blackburg and Santa Barbara, and from high schoolers at Columbine. And, and from first graders in Newtown, first graders.

My hope is that the president-elect [Donald Trump] coming in takes a similarly constructive approach, finding areas where we can cooperate with Russia, where our values and interests align. But that the president-elect also is willing to stand up to Russia where they are deviating from our values and international norms.

My sister is a teacher, so I am a strong support of teachers, but I'm not going to be bound by just a certain way of talking about these things, in order for us to move forward on behalf of our kids.

We can get this done! Take a vote, and send me that bill.

The problem is, that we've got a position, often times by the NRA that says any regulation whatsoever is the camel's nose under the tent. And that, I think, is not where the American people are at.