Kyrsten Sinema

I'm just really proud of the Democratic caucus. I look around in our meetings, and I think we really look like America.

Hardworking families can no longer afford to wait for a Congress that gridlocks on ideology. I look forward to working with my colleagues from both parties to get things done.

My family was actually homeless for several years when I was a kid. It's a bit unusual for a member of Congress.

I remember when I was a young social worker, the first time I went to the state capital in Arizona, where I eventually served for seven years, I was so nervous to go and lobby my state legislators. Because I only had a master's degree at the time in social work.

Arizona is in the midst of a fiscal crisis. We've cut school funding. And they pass a bill questioning Obama's citizenship? For real?

The number one thing I will take with me is my experience as a social worker who saw what happened to families who couldn't find jobs, struggled to take care of their health and saw opportunity slipping away for their kids. I ran for Congress because politicians were fighting with each other instead of looking out for these families.

I didn't really have an interest in politics when I first entered the workforce. What I wanted to do was help people who grew up like me. When I was a kid growing up in Tucson, my father lost his job and we lost everything - including our home. We lived in an abandoned gas station for two years until we were able to get back on our feet.

I'm very concerned about the tone of politics in recent years. We've seen a decline in civility and bipartisanship, and a rapid increase in hostility between those who have differing opinions. I think this has led to the alienation of the public in governance, which jeopardizes democratic participation.

I have great respect for Sandra Day O'Connor. She has broken so many barriers for women in the law, and was a master negotiator and pragmatist in her days on the Supreme Court.

I spent nearly two decades as a social worker and an educator with kids. So, my whole life has been about helping middle-class families. So it's just kind of a hollow argument to say I'm not a family person.

You should never take military intervention off the table. When you do so, you give an out to a rogue nation or rogue actors.

As you know, I did not support the United States' engagement in Iraq and have long had concerns about Afghanistan... But I obviously have always been 100 percent supportive of our military.

Sometimes when troops are overseas working these incredibly long hours in a difficult situation, they're not always hearing how much they're appreciated.

I was just born involved in politics. My family is conservative Mormon, and so I was born - although the Mormon faith is not inherently political, their faith requires some political stands, and those are ones that I happen to disagree with vehemently - so I was just political from a very early age.

I'm not a member of any faith community, and I think faith is a deeply personal issue that individuals should deal with in their private lives.

I kind of grew up with a mix of two things. One was kind of this individual work ethic that my father and my stepfather and my mother all taught me, which was never depend on anyone else to do things for you, and work really hard on your own. At the same time, I benefited from the help of church and family and government my whole life.

When I first started campaigning, I was really excited. Two-thirds of the way through, I thought, 'Why am I doing this?' Then I got really excited when I realized I was going to win.

I think what endurance sports teach you is to stay dedicated, stay focused, and also to understand you're going to have ups and downs, but you need to keep running right through them.

My number 1 priority is common sense, because we don't see a lot of that in the state capitol.

I'm an environmentalist; I recycle.

I think there's this pressure to get rid of the fun that makes us human. It hasn't worked on me.

I speak my mind. I'm not really afraid of things. I actually don't think that's that unusual.

On most holidays, you'll find me in Mexico. Actually, on most holidays you won't find me. I'm at a beach, and it's wonderful.

I was not a Democrat; I was an independent. Here's the thing: You can't win that way. But I didn't know that.

I have great respect for the LDS church - their commitment to family and taking care of each other is exemplary. I just don't believe the tenets of the faith that they believe.