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Turn on the news or open up the paper today and there’s a good chance you might see a story that says bipartisanship is dead in Congress. As someone who serves in Congress, I don’t believe that to be so. For the past five years, I’ve had success in working with my colleagues, on both sides of the aisle, to make meaningful progress for Nebraska families.

My working relationship with Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey is one example. Senator Booker and I are different people and we represent different states. He’s a Democrat and a vegan from New Jersey. I’m a Republican and a cattle rancher from Nebraska. When I was a Nebraska state senator, my legislative district was the size of New Jersey.

Despite our differences, Senator Booker and I have developed a strong, bipartisan partnership in the Senate. I am the chairman of the Senate Surface Transportation Subcommittee; he is the top Democrat or “ranking member.” Together in this committee, we’ve had legislative successes on a wide-range of issues. Increasing pipeline safety and improving our maritime transportation system are two of them.

We also work together on new technology issues, particularly on the “Internet of Things.”

What is the Internet of Things? It’s the rapidly developing, global network of connected technology that can change our lives. In fact, it already does. Fitbits can track our activity, refrigerators can tell us when we need more milk from the store, and thermostats let us control the temperature away from home.

Senator Booker and I recently spoke together at an event on Capitol Hill on this topic. Specifically, our discussion focused on this central question: is government taking the right steps to make America a world leader in the Internet of Things?

We both agree Congress should do more to clear obstacles for the people who will make us that world leader.

Those people work in Lincoln, Nebraska, in the Haymarket District, and in Omaha’s Old Market, two cities where the tech industry is doing so well it’s called “Silicon Prairie.” They are the innovators, inventors, programmers, coders, and restless dreamers who like to solve technical problems. They are also the millions who support them, by rewarding their ingenuity, by buying their products or stock, and by keeping alive that spirit of innovative discovery.

To help clear the way, Senator Booker and I joined Senators Brian Schatz of Hawaii and Cory Gardner of Colorado to reintroduce the Developing Innovation and Growing the Internet of Things (DIGIT) Act. The bill would facilitate a working group of federal agencies and private sector stakeholders. That group would then provide recommendations to Congress about how to plan for, and encourage, the Internet of Things. It gives those innovators a forum to make their voices heard, but it would also help Congress identify problems: like regulatory silos. It would ensure Americans can seize the benefits of this growing, global network.

The most important parts of the Internet of Things aren’t things at all. They are people. We care about the Internet of Things because of what it can do for our families, our children, and our world: Solving everyday headaches, like being stuck in traffic on our daily commute. Connecting people living in the vastness of rural America. Delivering new, potentially lifesaving treatments for patients.

I look forward to continuing my bipartisan work with Senator Booker on this very important issue.

Thank you for participating in the democratic process. I look forward to visiting with you again next week.

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