Politicians in Washington work in a small, sheltered world where they lurch from crisis to crisis that they create, nurture and use as ideological triggers in their selfish pursuit of re-election.

In Washington, politicians worry about their 'base.' About polls. About ideology. About raising money. About re-election. They measure their future in two- or six-year increments.

That's why we need to keep the pressure on and send a clear message to the politicians in Washington that we need a just immigration reform that includes provisions for 12 million immigrants who work and build America every day.

We live in a culture where everyone's opinion, view, and assessment of situations and people spill across social media, a lot of it anonymously, much of it shaped by mindless meanness and ignorance.

Baseball is a movable conversation across nine innings. It is eye contact with the person seated next to you in a park where the pitcher is separated from the batter by 60 feet, six inches or in a family room where a 60-inch TV screen hangs on the wall.

An election is like throwing a coin to a wishing well. We can only wish that our wishes will come true. We wish to elect a true leader but the true leadership of an elected leader can only be tested in times of crisis.