I know the difference a generation of young Americans in motion can make.

I was in college at a time of great political ferment and fundamental changes to our social fabric: the Civil Rights Act, the beginning of the counterculture and the passage of the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution...

It's on.

Today, Senator Boxer and I introduced our "Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act" that aims to put Americans back in charge of our energy future and our security -- doing nothing less than reinventing the way America produces and uses energy. At the same...

{crossposted at Operation Free}

On August 6, 2001, President George W. Bush famously received an intelligence briefing entitled, "Bin Laden Determined to Strike in U.S." Thirty-six days later, al Qaeda terrorists did just that.

Scientists tell us we have a 10-year window -- if even that -- before catastrophic...

When Richard Nixon first visited China back in 1972, his journey seemed far longer than the seven thousand miles that actually separate Washington from Beijing. He was bridging the gap between two worlds separated for a generation.

President Nixon understood that such a moment demanded a dramatic signal to...

Writing in this morning's Washington Post, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin wrote, "many in the national media would rather focus on the personality-driven political gossip of the day than on the gravity of these challenges."

Unfortunately, her promise to roll up her sleeves and tackle serious issues is followed by...

Today in the House there was a dramatic contrast between a Republican Party embracing the urgent need to take serious action about global climate change and one wedded to ideology.

Consider it a "Tale of Two Testimonies."

About two years ago, Newt Gingrich and I had a civil, respectful debate...

Justice may be blind, but it sure ain't always swift.

That's why I have asked the Obama administration to help me speed up reuniting two of my Massachusetts constituents, Tim Coco and his husband Genesio "Junior" Oliveira, who have been separated through no fault of their own.

The case...

To paraphrase the conservative columnist's favorite president, "There you go again, George."

George Will has been one of my favorite intellectual sparring partners for a long time, a favorite more recently because he had the guts to publicly recognize the disaster that was George W. Bush's presidency.

But in his...

An old British Prime Minister was once asked what were the greatest challenges that a statesman faces. His response was simple: "Events, dear boy, events."

This week we got a tragic and searing reminder from Mumbai, India, of the scope and scale of the challenges that President-elect Obama, his...

One thing we know about politics, you are either moving forward, or you are falling behind. The progressive movement had what we want to believe was a seismic win on election day -- but it's really only seismic if it continues to reverberate.

So -- here's the next most...

If you care about climate change, the last 24 hours provide the clearest illustration yet of the choice we face in November, and which candidate understands what we need to do.

In Detroit last night, Barack Obama took the stage with Al Gore to tell tough truths -- and propose...

Look, I've been around politics long enough to know that it's a contact sport. Words will be abused. Phrases will be taken out of context.

But the latest distortion from the GOP, frankly, shouldn't give us all pause -- it should spring us into action.

Here's the story, if you...

{cross-posted at Daily Kos}

Like me, I know you'll be following the election returns today - but it's imperative that we not lose focus on some of the issues in play that may be obscured by the election - and I can tell you that if you're watching the...

Now, I understand you all are pretty interested in a vote happening in Pennsylvania tomorrow. Not surprisingly, I'm focused on that, too -- I spent Saturday in Pennsylvania for Barack -- but there's a very important event happening tomorrow which we can't afford to have lost in the shuffle.

The...

On Monday this week, at Harvard, the FCC held a meeting on Comcast and Net Neutrality, a chance for the public to air its views over the issues.

Turns out a not so funny little thing happened on the way to the forum: Comcast tried to pack the meeting,...

I hate the term "Swiftboating." I hate how the name of the boats we honored when we were in uniform in Vietnam has become a verb for the twisted politics of Karl Rove.

But today we need to fight the right wing's tactics not just to reclaim a word, but...

The energy vote today - and the message the Roadblock Republicans risk sending far and wide across the globe - is a gigantic reminder why we're still one election away from bringing the biggest and boldest change to Washington.

Here we are, this morning, Democrats in Congress poised to...

OK, enough double-talk and obfuscations from the Republicans. Let's get it out in the open: who believes the United States should never use torture, and who does not?

No more statements like the typical Republican response, "We won't comment on specific procedures we may or may not do." Let's...

[cross-posted at JohnKerry.com]

If there's anybody left who doubts that "compassionate conservatism" is an Orwellian smokescreen for the same old Republican policies, the President's actions around SCHIP should put that to rest.

After promising he'd work on "expanding health care for children," the President has now unilaterally declared war...

Just yesterday on CNN, Wolf Blitzer asked John Boehner, the leader of the GOP in the House, this question (video on Horse's Mouth):

"The loss in blood, the Americans who are killed every month, how much longer do you think this commitment, this military commitment is going to require?"