The Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle (MCPV) is based on the Orion design requirements for traveling beyond Low Earth Orbit (LEO). The MPCV will serve as the exploration vehicle that will carry the crew to space, provide emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during the space travel, and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities.
NASA MPCV page
The Orion vehicle was part of the Bush era Constellation program. When Obama announced the cancellation of Constellation there was considerable push back, and eventually Orion was saved as part of a compromise. The original plan for Orion was a "lifeboat" for the International Space Station. The language in the budget was ambiguous, but today NASA has decided to not start from scratch and base the MPCV off of the existing Orion design.
This is not a hit to SpaceX Dragon or similar vehicles. The MPCV is for deep space - asteroids and the moon and what have you.
Orion is built in Colorado so this is a little bit of help in a purple state.