I recently had the opportunity to view politics up close, and what I learned could not have come from a textbook.
Like many Stuyvesant seniors, I am taking a United States government course. The class never seemed more important than now, with a monumental presidential election coming up and many seniors eligible to vote. As we look forward to our 18th birthdays, we are met with the reality that our politicial opinions are going to have an impact.
When my social studies teacher, Robert Sandler, allowed some of his students to accompany members of the Junior State of America (JSA)–a nonpartisan political organization for high school students–on their trip to New Hampshire to observe the primary, I jumped at the chance. It was an opportunity to learn about the candidates for the 2008 presidential race, which is turning out to be a historic election.
In New Hampshire, wherever our group went, we encountered people who had strong interest in the elections. There was a waitress at a restaurant who thought Barack Obama was refreshing and an information man at the Port Authority who thought John McCain was the candidate to go with.
A conversation escalated into an argument with a train conductor who thought Hillary Clinton was the reason for her husband’s political decline toward the end of his term as president. “I would rather vote for Mickey Mouse than Hillary Clinton,” he said.
The campaign sponsors we heard from were even more enlightening. Rudy Giuliani’s campaign manager and chief finance chairman for New Hampshire came to Southern New Hampshire University and spoke to around a hundred JSA students, pitching Giuliani as the answer to America’s problems. They stressed the threat of “Islamic fascism” and one sponsor said quite bluntly, “Our enemies are out to destroy us, and they want to kill each and every one of you.”
Leftist candidate Dennis Kucinich had a less frienzied message for us. “As the next generation,” he said, “you young men and women have the power to bring this country back to its roots: the Constitution.” Mr. Kucinich opposed the war in Iraq and voted against the Patriot Act. Is he able to bring the United States to the country it once was? I am not sure, and I do not believe any of the audience had that much faith in him, despite giving him a standing ovation.
We took a break from speakers and visited candidates’ campaign headquarters. Along the way, we saw street corners littered with campaign posters and people yelling at passing vehicles to vote for one candidate or another. Each headquarters we visited had volunteers armed with calling lists and prepared to make their case about their candidate.
The McCain, Romney and Clinton headquarters all had the same goal in mind: a big voter turnout. It was surreal. I found it hard to imagine that such passionate people existed in the same country as those who have no idea who Mitt Romney is.
When we returned to the university, we heard from Terry McCullough, former Democratic National Committee chairman and Clinton supporter. He was charming and amiable, and he believes Hillary will do just as good of a job as Bill in the White House. After his speech, many audience members believed it, too.
Senator Richard Burr spoke on behalf of John McCain and said he was an honest man with a record of defending his country. Former House Representative Milton Robert Carr endorsed Bill Richardson, saying that his experience with foreign policy makes him the man for the job. Our session wrapped up with a mock student primary. The victors were Senators Obama and McCain.
At the end of the trip, I was overhwhelemed. All the speakers focused on different issues and emphasized each of them as a “top priority.” It left me wondering what was the most important to me. My health coverage or my civil rights? Iraq or tax cuts?
I feel like I am being pulled in different directions, an experience many new voters are going through. As voters, we shoulder the burden of electing our next president, and as citizens, we face the consequences of such a decision.
