There are more than 300 000 families in the Gulf region that lost their homes and are waiting for peace of mind. The hurricane exposed the sad reality of poverty in America. We saw in all its horrific detail the vulnerabilities of living in inadequate housing and the heartbreak of losing one's home.

With the perspective afforded by the passage of time where does 9/11 rank as a turning point in our national history? For the victims and their families innocents going about their lives suddenly and brutally murdered no other day can ever matter as much.

What is sad for women of my generation is that they weren't supposed to work if they had families. What were they going to do when the children are grown - watch the raindrops coming down the window pane?

The H-1B visa program which helps sustain our rapidly growing economy and also helps meet the health care needs of families living in rural New Mexico.

Whether it's making sure that families have access to quality health care and child care or making sure that our children receive the best educational opportunities we can give them we must remain committed to these needs because our children are our future.

The truth is women use contraception not only as a way to prevent unintended pregnancies but also to improve their health and the health of their families. Increased access to contraception is directly linked to declines in maternal and infant mortality.

Every day families in the United States face the stark choice between a roof over their heads and food on the table. Buying health insurance owning a home and saving up for college are just too far out of their reach.

We want to repeal the ObamaCare tax. We want to save middle class families from European health care. And that's what we're going to do as a party and that's what Mitt Romney will do on day one.

We can all agree that no American should lose their life savings or their home because of illness or injury and that the rising cost of health care severely burdens individuals families and businesses.

Jobs are disappearing from every sector of the economy from engineering to health care workers forcing hundreds of thousands of families into unemployment and low-paying jobs.