“It has been 51 years since President Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act into law, affirming women’s right to equal pay for equal work, and taking an important first step to ending the injustice of paying women less than men for the same work. In the decades since, our nation has continued to take steps towards paycheck fairness, including the landmark Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, the first bill President Obama signed into law in 2009. However, there is still much, much more to be done.”

“There are so many things that I want to tell you. But I just thought I would tell you this one story to show you just how far things have come. When I was a brand new Member of Congress, my whole issue was HIV/AIDS. When I came to the Congress – since you’re historians, I thought you might like to know this story: so, lo and behold, we have the quilt that wants to come to Washington, D.C. So I go to the Park Service and say: ‘The quilt is coming to Washington, D.C., and we want permission to be able to display it on the Mall.’ And they said: ‘Absolutely out of the question. It’s just not going to happen.’ And I said: ‘You don’t understand. ‘No’ is not a possibility for us.’”

“Today, the number of Americans who have lost this vital emergency support hit three million. This milestone is a heartbreaking reminder of House Republicans’ shameless disregard for the hardship facing these families – men and women who worked hard and played by the rules, who lost their jobs through no fault of their own, and who are now forced to brave the crisis of long-term unemployment without this essential lifeline. As long as Republicans continue to abdicate their responsibility to the American people, families will suffer and our economy will lose jobs.”

“Education is the best investment we can make in our children, in ourselves, and in our nation’s future. Yet growing student loan debt is holding back a generation of Americans – hurting our economy and weighing on the lives of millions of young people. Reducing the burden of these loans is critical to strengthening our economy and ensuring that all Americans have access to the quality, affordable education they need to succeed.”

Time is of the essence. Our broken immigration system is not fixing itself, and things are only getting worse. The American people are demanding serious and bipartisan action from their leaders – when will House Republicans start listening?

“Our economy continues to make progress. But there is more we can and should be doing to create jobs, strengthen the middle class, and build an economy that works for everyone, not just the wealthy.”

“On June 6, 1944, more than 150,000 troops headed across the English Channel to seize a fragile beachhead from which the Allies could drive Hitler’s armies back into Germany. They jumped from planes, glided into fields, and charged up beaches under long odds and withering fire. They fought for democracy, they fought for freedom, they fought for loved ones and liberation, and they fought that the world might once more know peace.”

A new Gallup poll released this week underscores what we’ve known all along: the Affordable Care Act works. Americans are getting quality health coverage – and the numbers prove it, with uninsured rates plummeting unexpectedly to record lows across demographic groups.

“Seven decades later, we are still humbled and awed by the audacity, the bravery and the sacrifice of the Normandy landings,” said Leader Pelosi. “Neither our nation, nor any nation that cherishes the blessings of liberty fought for, bled for and died for on D-Day can ever forget its memory. We continue to owe the heroes of that courageous day a great debt, and our Congressional delegation is honored to help pay tribute to them.”

The threat of climate change is real. Its impact is astounding. And, rather than denying its existence, Republicans should work with the Obama Administration and Congressional Democrats to strengthen public health, create new jobs, and spur innovation.