Washington has been ignoring this issue for too long.

There's a kind of sick security some people get out of keeping away from people with disabilities. They are running away from any situation that's not totally pure and all-American and that requires them to do any thinking.

Technology tools such as laptops are the kind of help that we need. A program that provides laptops for all youngsters would close a gap that most of us are not aware of, or will not admit to, which is a tremendous gap in the poor communities.

We need to get ready for a world where terrorism will not ever fully go away.

It was the best route to get folks to understand segregation fast. Civil rights and women's rights had a clear history. Making the transition to rights for people with disabilities became easier because we had the history of the other two.

We can do it better, more consistently, and in the end, it will cost us less because the students that we produce will be superior to those without technology experience.

It is very difficult to get legislation passed. But then the danger always is that you have no power at all if you do not exercise constant power.