As they see it.

• Position: State legislators - Brief article

"One of our first and foremost responsibilities as a state is to keep our citizens safe."

--Idaho Senator Dean Cameron (R) on why he supports transferring a privately run correctional center to the state, in The Spokesman Review.

"I don't know if the escape was the direct result of budget cuts. But the governor's most important job is to keep Michiganders safe. And cutting guards does not protect the safety of Michigan residents."

--Michigan House Minority Leader Tim Greimel (D), commenting on the escape of a convicted murderer from the Ionia Correctional Facility in February, as reported in the Detroit Free Press.

"We're beginning to see a lot more Republicans get behind this issue, it really seems like finally, legislators are catching up with the will of the people."

--Georgia Representative Allen Peake (R), on his bill to legalize a non-psychoactive strain of marijuana for people with severe seizure disorders, as reported by Reuters.

"Both workers and their employers lose out when employees have to choose between reporting for work while sick or losing pay because they don't."

--California Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez (D), who has...