House Republican Conference Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington mentioned her son in last night's Republican response to the State of the Union Address.

"Three days after we gave birth to our son, Cole, we got news no parent expects: Cole was diagnosed with Down syndrome," she said. "The doctors told us he could have endless complications, heart defects, even early Alzheimer's."

"They told us all the problems," she said. "But when we looked at our son, we saw only possibilities."

"We saw a gift from God," added Rodgers, who is a member of the Congressional Down Syndrome Caucus.

Today, Rodgers said, six-year-old Cole "dances to Bruce Springsteen," "reads above grade level," and "is the best big brother in the world."
Rodgers said Cole and his sisters, Grace and Brynn, "have only made me more determined to see the potential in every human life."

Far from a burden or a punishment who should be aborted, Rodgers implied that Cole speaks to the very heart of the American dream.

"Whether we are born with an extra 21st chromosome or without a dollar to our name, we are not defined by our limits but by our potential," she said. "Our mission—not only as Republicans, but as Americans, is to once again ensure that we are not bound by where we come from, but empowered by what we can become."

She concluded with a prayer for "the American family," that "with the guidance of God, we may prove worthy of His blessings of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."

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