New York,
NY (January
16,
2004) --
John Edwards can't dance; Rebecca Lieberman is too old to live with her parents again (even in the White House); Dick Gephardt has stopped traffic; John Kerry is “the coolest old guy;” and Wesley Clark has plenty to talk about over dinner.
The Scholastic Kids Press Corps, a team of student reporters ages 10-14 who are covering the race to the White House, got the inside scoop on the candidates by interviewing the people who know them best - their children. The Scholastic kid reporters spoke with the children of five Democratic Presidential Candidates to find out what separates each candidate from the pack, politically and personally. Their interviews are published at Scholastic News Online (
www.scholastic.com/news ) and in upcoming issues of
Scholastic News (for students in grades 1-6),
Junior Scholastic® (grades 6-8) and
The New York Times UPFRONT® (grades 9-12).
Here's a peak at the scoop:
Evelyn Velez, a 12-year old Scholastic kid reporter from Orlando, FL asked
Cate Edwards what makes her father, Senator John Edwards, the right choice for President. “I think he's very optimistic. He really has a lot of hope for this country and for our future, which I think is important especially for the youth…I also have known him my entire life and whenever he puts his mind to something, he gets it done.
On a personal note, the funniest thing Cate has ever seen her father do is dance. “He's really not a good dancer. I've made so much fun of him, he just now does it to entertain me. It's very funny.”
Scholastic kid reporter Kieara Jackson, an eighth grader from New York, NY, interviewed
Rebecca Lieberman, daughter of Senator Joe Lieberman about why people should vote for her dad. “These are unique and challenging times and we need a President who people can trust. Someone who has the experience, the temperament, and the plans to keep us safe at home and safe in the world and to get our economy going.”
If her father is elected President, would Rebecca make 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue her new address? “By the time my dad would be inaugurated I would be 35…to be a single, 35-year old woman, living with her parents in the White House is not something I think I want to do! Could you imagine the secret service running background checks on all my dates?”
Matt Gephardt is certain his father, Representative Dick Gephardt will stick to his campaign promises. Thirteen year-old Michael Cappetta from Chagrin Falls, OH asked Matt how he could be so sure. “Because he has done it for 27 years in Congress. A lot of the laws that we have today my dad helped pass…some of the things that people rely on today - like the minimum wage, some of the education programs that we have today, the middle-income financial aid acts and other ones like that - my dad was a proponent of.”
On a lighter note, the funniest thing that Matt's seen his father do? “We used to go on family trips all over the country and drive and probably the funniest thing he's ever done is when he strapped the luggage on top of the car wrong one time…and all the luggage came off of the car. It was all over the road and he was out there picking up all of our stuff…and people were honking at him. It was like a circus. You had to be there, but it was pretty funny.”
It was a tag team effort when Scholastic kid reporters Katelyn Lemay and Melvin Cedeno, eighth grade students in Manchester, NH spoke with
Vanessa Kerry and
Chris Heinz on their father and stepfather, Senator John Kerry. Vanessa was first to respond with what makes Kerry the right choice for President. “I think he has the best domestic record and he's proven he's done very good things for years. I think he's talking about the right big ideas for this country and he understands foreign policy and national security. I think he has an idealism and a vision for this country that I don't see in anyone else.”
How have Chris and Vanessa made John more hip to appeal to younger voters? “There is definite terminology that we introduced him to - going commando, bootylicious. We also talk to him about music. He is one of the most current old guys you'll ever meet, he might not know all of the jargon but he has no problems relating to people.”
In Los Angeles, CA, fifth-grade kid reporters Tommy Elam and Jeanette Cortez spoke with
Wesley Clark Jr. about why his father, General Wesley Clark is the right choice for President. “We need a man in the White House who can make the right decisions…I look up to my father because he has always done the really tough things in life, and he's always been willing to sacrifice to do the right thing.”
And what's General Clark like on the home front? “When I was growing up he was just a regular army office and not yet a General. He would always try to have us eat meals together, and he would try to educate us on current events or world history.”
Throughout the campaign year, the Scholastic Kids Press Corps will interview the candidates themselves and will cover the debates, caucuses and primaries in key states including Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, California, New York, Ohio and Florida, as well as reporting on the Democratic and Republican Conventions, Election Day, and the inauguration of the next President. The Scholastic kid reporters have also covered the Democratic candidates' debate in New York City, the Florida Democratic Convention in Orlando, a rally in Hudson, NY with former Governor Howard Dean, and a Politics and Eggs luncheon in New Hampshire with Senator John Kerry.
Parents, teachers and students can look for occasional reporting by the Scholastic Kids Press Corps on NBC News programs and at MSNBC.com as part of a partnership between Scholastic News and NBC News to report on the 2004 Presidential Election.
Scholastic is the largest publisher of educational magazines with 34 publications for grades PreK-12, reaching over 25 million students and teachers across the country. Teachers rely on these publications to enhance instruction in such subjects as science, reading and language arts, math, social studies, current events, history, geography, world languages, and art. Scholastic News Online (
www.scholastic.com/news ), the magazines' online companion gives teachers, students and parents an additional resource with which to learn about and discuss current events in the classroom and at home.