Americans donate blood every day - on high school and college campuses during blood drives, in workplaces after a coworker falls ill, and in hospitals as loved ones prepare for surgery.
Illinois and Chicago have shown they can compete on the world stage, and we will continue to answer the challenge.
Despite its challenges, globalization has led to one of the most peaceful and productive times in world history.
For decades, allies have counted on the U.S. to step up to the plate to work with them to protect the shared values we hold dear. As we face numerous international challenges, both old and new, we need to put more faith and investment in our international and diplomatic institutions, not weaken them.
Too often, advances in civil rights or women's rights are undermined by wrong-headed legislation or weak-kneed political leadership.
The FDA first began prohibiting gay and bisexual men from donating blood in the early 1980s, at the height of the AIDS crisis, when the risk from blood transfusion was just beginning to be understood. In the decades to follow, the 'lifetime ban' was left largely unchanged.
